Lufthansa axes Frankfurt to Beijing route due to high costs & weakening competitiveness

Lufthansa has become the latest European airline to announce cuts to its China network, citing a disadvantageous market environment reflected by heightened costs. First reported by Aeroroutes, as of end-October, Lufthansa will be suspending flights entirely on its Frankfurt to Beijing route, leaving Munich as the only hub with links to the Chinese capital. It is worth noting that while these cuts to mainland China are significant, Lufthansa also offers flights from Frankfurt and Munich to Shanghai. Lufthansa has decided to end flights on the FRA to PEK sector as of October 26. This is also reflected on the carrier's booking platform, which does not list any non-stop Lufthansa-serviced options on the sector. Instead, codeshare partner Air China becomes the only remaining passenger operator flying between the two cities. Lufthansa currently offers daily flights on the route, per Bloomberg, using an Airbus A340-300. It planned to reduce this to five weekly for this coming winter season. According to ch-aviation data, the carrier has 17 planes in its fleet, seven of which are listed as inactive and stored at Teruel Airport. <br/>