Lufthansa is suspending its flights between Liverpool John Lennon Airport and Frankfurt next year despite reports the route was a success. The major German airline only started operating from the flights hub on the banks of the River Mersey in May 2022.
Flights to the German city provide passengers from Liverpool Airport with onward international connectivity, transporting them to destinations around the world. The airline had increased the number of services to the Merseyside based airport to six per week last summer, according to the Liverpool Echo.
But Lufthansa is to suspend services from Liverpool in February. The decision was taken due to a lack of Lufthansa planes, with the airline carrying out maintenance work on some of its fleet.
A Lufthansa spokesman said the airline regrets the decision, but the route’s “economic” benefits had declined in recent months.
He added: “Lufthansa is continuously evaluating and optimising its entire route network. Due to unscheduled maintenance work on Pratt & Whitney engines in the Lufthansa Airbus A320neo fleet, Lufthansa Airlines will have significantly fewer aircraft available next year 2024 than originally planned.
“The company has therefore decided to suspend some routes from February 2024 that have not shown a positive economic development in recent months. One of the routes affected by this suspension is Frankfurt – Liverpool. Lufthansa regrets this decision.”
He said the cancellations were published on reservation systems on Tuesday (December 19) with passengers affected by cancellations being informed.
A Liverpool John Lennon Airport spokesperson said: “We are naturally very disappointed to hear of Lufthansa’s decision to suspend their Frankfurt service from Liverpool.”
They said the route was “performing well and steadily growing” in line with forecasts.
The spokesperson added: “We will continue to work with Lufthansa to secure the return of this important link at the earliest opportunity, once their availability of aircraft issues have been resolved. This route is strategically important for the City Region due to the global connectivity it brings and we will continue to explore opportunities to better connect the City Region.”
