Pressure on Lufthansa's Eurowings as budget rivals eye Germany

Ryanair is set to fly more passengers than Lufthansa for the first time this year, heaping pressure on the Lufthansa to make a success of Eurowings. Lufthansa has already tried its hand at budget flying with the short-haul Germanwings service, which is now being merged into the new Eurowings business. While Germanwings, whose brand was set to be phased out even before the crash of one of its jets last year, is set to turn a profit for the first time, its costs are still seen as too high to compete with EasyJet or Ryanair. The stakes are high. Budget air travel in Germany, which has long lagged other markets, looks set to take off. And a successful Eurowings could help Lufthansa push through the cost cutting and labour reforms that have been crucial in helping other traditional carriers to thrive in a highly competitive market. <br/>