EU to approve Lufthansa bid for Austrian Airlines

August 28th, 2009 EU clears Lufthansa's Austrian Airlines takeoverFRANKFURT — German airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Friday the European Commission has approved its takeover of Austrian Airlines Group, allowing it start integrating the company in September. Cologne-based Lufthansa is taking over about 42 percent of the shares of Austrian Airlines owned by the government for about €336,000 ($480,000), according to the European Commission.

August 17th, 2009 Continental to join Star Alliance on Oct. 27HOUSTON — Continental Airlines said Monday that it will officially join the Star Alliance that includes United Airlines and Lufthansa on Oct.

August 11th, 2009 Lufthansa's July passenger numbers up 12 pctFRANKFURT — Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Tuesday that its group passenger numbers increased by 12 percent on the year in July, helped by small increases in demand in Europe and Asia and the consolidation of British carrier BMI. Cologne-based Lufthansa said the group, which also includes Swiss International Airlines, transported 7.2 million passengers last month — up from 6.4 million a year earlier, a figure that was weighed down by strikes.

August 7th, 2009 Airlines flying Airbus A330 and A340 planesAirlines are replacing airspeed sensors on their Airbus A330 and A340 airliners, which have been a focus of the investigation into the June 1 crash of Air France Flight 447. The only U.S.

August 4th, 2009 Austrian Airlines runs up 1H, Q2 lossesVIENNA — Austrian Airlines, the ailing carrier due to be taken over by Germany's Lufthansa, reported losses for the second quarter and first half of the year on Tuesday, blaming the slump in demand affecting the global aviation industry. The airline experienced a loss of euro78.5 million ($113 million) in the April-June period, compared with a profit of euro11.7 million ($16.8 million) a year earlier, a company statement said.

July 30th, 2009 Lufthansa 2Q net pft falls 88 pct to euro40 millionFRANKFURT — Airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Thursday its second quarter profit fell 88 percent on a slump in sales — especially of lucrative first- and business-class seats — due to the global recession. The Cologne-based airline, Europe's largest by sales, earned euro40 million ($56 million) in the April-June period compared with euro337 million a year ago.

July 30th, 2009 Lufthansa 2Q net pft falls 88 pct to €40 millionFRANKFURT — Airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Thursday its second quarter profit fell 88 percent on a slump in sales — especially of lucrative first- and business-class seats — due to the global recession. The Cologne-based airline, Europe's largest by sales, earned €40 million ($56 million) in the April-June period compared with €337 million a year ago.

July 28th, 2009 Lufthansa seeks Austrian merger deadline extensionFRANKFURT — German airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Tuesday it has applied for a month-long extension to the deadline to merge with Austrian Airlines in order to fulfill certain obligations for the deal. In a brief statement, the Cologne-based airline said it had applied to the Austrian Takeover Commission for the extension — to Aug.

July 17th, 2009 EU: Lufthansa makes new offer for AustrianBRUSSELS — Lufthansa has made a new offer to try and soothe antitrust concerns over its bid for Austrian Airlines, European Union regulators say. EU spokesman Jonathan Todd said last week that chances of Lufthansa winning regulatory approval for the deal by July 31 were fading fast because the company was not doing enough to eliminate competition concerns that the deal would reduce choice and hike fares on some routes.

July 10th, 2009 EU warns Lufthansa on Austrian takeoverBRUSSELS — European Union regulators charged Friday that Lufthansa AG has not done enough to allay antitrust concerns over its bid for Austrian Airlines and they are now unlikely to approve it by the end of the month. Lufthansa has the right to pull out of the takeover if EU approval doesn't come through by July 31.

July 2nd, 2009 Austrian Airlines to cut 1,000 jobsVIENNA — Austrian Airlines, the ailing carrier due to be taken over by Germany's Lufthansa AG, said Thursday it will cut about 1,000 jobs by mid-2010 as part of an effort to boost its competitiveness. In a statement, the airline said the downsizing would happen in stages and include layoffs.

June 24th, 2009 Lufthansa increases fuel surchargeBERLIN — Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Wednesday that it is increasing its fuel surcharge on domestic and European flights, blaming a steep rise in oil prices this year. Lufthansa said the surcharge would increase to euro24 ($34) from euro21 ($30) per flight for all tickets issued on or after July 2.

June 10th, 2009 Lufthansa May traffic falls 4.4 pct to 6 millionFRANKFURT — German airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Wednesday the company's group passenger levels in May fell 4.4 percent to 6 million people, as the global recession cut into demand. The Cologne-based company saw 6.3 million passengers in May 2008.

April 29th, 2009 Lufthansa 1Q net loss euro256 millionFRANKFURT — German airline Lufthansa reported a first quarter net loss of euro256 million ($339.6 million) Wednesday, as the economic crisis cut into global travel and freight volumes. Cologne-based Deutsche Lufthansa AG's loss for the January-March period compares with a net profit of euro44 million in the first quarter of 2008.

April 24th, 2009 Lufthansa says it's prepared for difficult marketFRANKFURT — Airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Friday it expects the current difficult operating environment to continue in 2009, but that it was well prepared for the economic turbulence and the expected consolidation in the airline industry. At the company's annual general meeting, Cologne-based Lufthansa, Germany's largest airline, reiterated the extent and duration of the current economic crisis can't be forecast.