Lufthansa Group warns of further job cuts; renews testing plea

The group’s executive board has approved a third round of restructuring measures, which will result in further efforts to match staffing levels with demand.

It has significantly revised down the group’s capacity outlook; Lufthansa had previously anticipated achieving 50% of 2019 capacity by the fourth quarter.

However, the group’s executive board has now said this "no longer seems realistic", adding that if current trends continue, capacity by available seat kilometres will reduce to between 20% to 30% compared to 2019.

As a result, the group expects to cut around 150 aircraft from its group-wide fleet by 2025, which also includes wet-leased aircraft.

The group’s eight remaining Airbus A380s and 10 Airbus A340-600s will be removed from its fleet planning, and placed in long-term storage.

"These aircraft will only be reactivated in the event of an unexpectedly rapid market recovery," said Lufthansa.

It expects this decision to cost around €1.1 billion, which it expects to account for in its third quarter results.