Etihad, Lufthansa CEs to hold news conference on cooperation drive

Etihad Airways and Lufthansa will hold a joint news conference on their cooperation plans Wednesday, the airlines said Sunday. Etihad and Lufthansa last month signed a code share pact and said they wanted to explore cooperation in other areas. This came after Lufthansa signed an agreement with Air Berlin to lease from it 38 crewed planes. Lufthansa said Sunday the news conference would be on future cooperation. Etihad owns minority stakes Air Berlin and Alitalia, both of them loss-making. Despite media speculation over possible moves by Lufthansa to invest in the Italian carrier and taking on more with Air Berlin, Lufthansa executives have repeatedly said in recent weeks that the airline was too busy with the integration of the Air Berlin planes and a takeover of Brussels Airlines. <br/>