Premium German carrier Lufthansa will operate a record number of flights to Malta this summer.
Maltese travellers are gradually discovering the charms of Germany as a tourist destination
Weekly flights between Malta and the airline’s German hubs of Frankfurt and Munich will increase from eight to 19 by August.
From April 6, daily flights to Frankfurt will increase to twice daily on weekends and flights to Munich will increase from one to three weekly.
From August 1 there will be twice daily flights to Frankfurt all week and five weekly flights to Munich.
Lufthansa made the decision to increase its summer flights after it carried 150,000 passengers to and from the island last year, an increase of 15 per cent from 2011.
Maltese travellers are gradually discovering the charms of Germany as a tourist destination, said Sylvain Heydlauf, Lufthansa’s general manager, Malta.
These include Alpine skiing and breathtaking scenery in Bavaria, as well as vibrant cities such as Berlin and Munich.
In the other direction, Malta is increasingly attractive as both a leisure and business destination, said Carsten Schaeffer, vice-president sales and services, southeast Europe, the Middle East and Africa: “It draws summer tourists but it is also a popular MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events) destination.”
As well as serving the German market, Lufthansa is popular with Scandinavians wishing to fly to and from Malta via Germany, particularly in winter when low-cost airlines reduce the frequency of direct flights from the Nordic countries to the Mediterranean.
The increased frequency of flights to the German hubs provides Maltese travellers with more connections to Lufthansa’s extensive global network.
“Lufthansa has taken the lead as Malta’s favourite network airline with more connections to Europe and beyond than any other carrier,” said Mr Schaeffer.
Frankfurt and Munich are gateways to North America, southeast Asia and other German and European cities, while Frankfurt also offers connections to Brazil, Argentina and South Africa.
In addition to broadening network opportunities from Malta, Lufthansa has committed to investing more than €3 billion over the next three years in its ground and onboard product.
“New seats in all classes, individual in-flight entertainment in economy class, special upgrade of the food service in first and business class, and brand new lounges will help us set new industry standards,” Mr Schaeffer said.
Last year, the premium German carrier carried 103.1 million passengers to the 253 destinations across its network, making a profit of €524 million.