In an interview with IATA’s Airlines publication, Austrian Airlines
CEO Annette Mann shared some insights into Lufthansa
Group cooperation. The group consists of several carriers other than the Vienna-based subsidiary, including Brussels Airlines
, SWISS
and Eurowings
for instance. Lufthansa also recently purchased a stake in ITA Airways, with a view to puchase the remainder of the company in the future.

What does the group bring to each individual airline, and how does that impact the passenger? Mann answered that question to some degree, using the New York JFK operation as an example.

britishairways_216862008867490 (1)

New York JFK Airport

IATA/ICAO Code

JFK/KJFK

Country

United States

CEO

Rick Cotton (Executive Director of Port Authority of NY and NJ)

Terminals

Terminal 1 |
Terminal 2 |
Terminal 4 |
Terminal 5 |
Terminal 7 |
Terminal 8

New York JFK collaboration

Mann says that Austrian Airlines is simply too small on its own, adding that Lufthansa Group collaboration ensures the company is future fit.

“The relationship with the Lufthansa Group is extremely important. Austrian has 68 aircraft and more than 6,000 people and so we would be too small on our own and need that group support for a sustainable future.”

OE-LPM Austrian Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Schonbrunn Palace Flying

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

The group dynamic encourages a degree of centralization of tasks, although ultimately allowing each airline to manage their schedules where it makes more sense. For the New York operation, as several LHG airlines operate to JFK, a group-coordinated approach makes sense. Mann clarifies:

“But we do retain our independence even though we work closely together. As an example, we have our own commercial team. but, of course, it makes sense to align our networks. So, with a popular destination New York, for example we stagger departure times between hubs, so the customer has a choice of when to fly. For other destinations, we may avoid duplication whenever useful.

The point is that it must make sense to the customer. A lot of passengers use more than one Lufthansa Group airline for a trip because of that flexibility. There are also economies of scale when it comes to procurement and many other corporate functions. We are stronger together than Austrian could ever be on its own.”

Analyzed: the Lufthansa Group operation at JFK

Four of the group’s carriers operate to New York JFK from their respective countries, per Cirium data from September 2024. This includes:

  • Austrian Airlines: Vienna (VIE);
  • Brussels Airlines: Brussels (BRU);
  • Lufthansa: Frankfurt (FRA), Munich (MUC);
  • SWISS: Geneva (GVA), Zurich (ZRH)
map lhg jfk

Photo: GCMap.com

The flight times are staggered such that a variety of transit options are available but equally for passenger convenience. Based on time of departure from JFK, we have divided them into two categories: afternoon & early-evening (14:00-20:00) and evening (20:00-00:00).

SWISS A330-300

Photo: Swiss International Air Lines

Afternoon & early evening

The Lufthansa Group operation at JFK does not start until 15:45 with a Lufthansa service to Frankfurt. Shortly after, a flight to Zurich departs with SWISS.

Time

Airline

Destination

15:45

Lufthansa

Frankfurt (FRA)

16:15

SWISS

Zurich (ZRH)

17:30

Lufthansa

Munich (MUC)

18:10

Brussels Airlines

Brussels (BRU)

19:25

SWISS

Geneva (GVA)

The Lufthansa operation to JFK uses A340-300s or 747-400s to Frankfurt and an A380-800 to Munich. SWISS meanwhile uses its A330-300s from both GVA and ZRH and Austrian uses its brand new Boeing 787-9s. Brussels Airlines uses its sole long-haul aircraft type, namely the A330-300.

Evening

Time

Airline

Destination

20:30

SWISS

Zurich (ZRH)

21:45

Austrian Airlines

Vienna (VIE)

21:50

Lufthansa

Frankfurt (FRA)

Lufthansa Airbus A340-300 landing at FRA shutterstock_1675863526

Photo: Lukas Wunderlich | Shutterstock

Brussels Airlines and Austrian only offer one daily flight each. The last LHG flight is a Lufthansa service to Frankfurt, ending the day the same way it started.

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