Lufthansa prepares launch of new leisure unit Ocean

Lufthansa has incorporated a new entity named Ocean to operate long-haul flights to tourist destinations and reduce the “complexity” of the group’s current presence in that segment. The German airline says it is in the process of securing an air operator’s certificate for the new unit, which will not operate under its own brand. “The idea is to develop a new product line in the quality leisure segment… based on Edelweiss’s business model,” says Lufthansa. Lufthansa describes its current long-haul tourist operations as “fragmented”, noting that it employs four AOCs for such routes from its main hubs in Frankfurt and Munich and from Dusseldorf. With the largest airport in Germany’s most populous state, Dusseldorf has for decades been a long-haul departure point for several airlines, including Lufthansa and the now-defunct Air Berlin. Lufthansa serves long-haul tourist destinations both through its budget subsidiary Eurowings and under its mainline brand. Eurowings’ long-haul routes have been operated by the German arm of SunExpress – Lufthansa’s leisure joint venture with Turkish Airlines – using a fleet of A330s. However, SunExpress in June disclosed a plan to shut down its German operation. In the past, Lufthansa additionally recruited Brussels Airlines, another group subsidiary, to operate flights on Eurowings’ behalf. But after a review in 2019, Lufthansa took commercial control of Eurowings’ long-haul flights and the Belgian carrier’s remit was changed to concentrating on network services from its home country.<br/>