Air Malta, Lufthansa in cooperation deal

Air Malta and Lufthansa German Airlines yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding for bilateral cooperation that will see them jointly serving a worldwide network and allowing Malta to "move closer to Europe and the rest of the world".

Both airlines are planning to adjust their timetables, increasing connectivity to worldwide destinations - considered to be important for the national economy and the tourism industry, Air Malta CEO Ernst Funk said.

Through the enhanced cooperation, passengers travelling on the summer timetable can make use of a daily Air Malta flight to Munich, connecting to Lufthansa's 187 destinations in 79 countries, he said, envisaging a significant increase in passengers.

On the summer timetable, Air Malta will also be flying to the Lufthansa Terminal T2 at Munich International Airport, meaning passengers can easily connect to Lufthansa flights, Mr Funk said.

The cooperation should also result in the introduction of the first code-sharing flights between Malta and Germany, and eventually beyond, from the start of the winter timetable, November 1.

A joint code allows the airlines to use their flight numbers also on services operated by the partner airline and to offer connecting flights beyond the hubs with their own flight numbers.

Based on the positive experience Air Malta already enjoyed with Lufthansa Technik, a "showpiece" of success, over the last four years, their close cooperation was now being extended to the passenger airline level, Mr Funk said.

Lufthansa vice-president Joachim Steinbach said Air Malta was considered to be a "reliable partner on the passenger side too".

It took eight months for the memorandum of understanding to be finalised and not everything was cast in stone, Mr Funk said, adding that further discussions were required, and that the cooperation would be unfolding over a period of time.

Further dimensions of the commercial cooperation between the two airlines would be looked into in the years ahead, he said.