Lufthansa to Offer Basic Economy Fares on Transatlantic Flights
by Daniel McCarthy
Photo: Lufthansa
Lufthansa, and other Lufthansa Group airlines including Swiss, Austrian, and Brussels, will begin offering basic fares on its transatlantic flights starting this summer.
All of the lines will offer “Economy Light”—its name for its bare-bones fare—options on routes from or to North America for “price-conscious travelers” who are only traveling with a carry-on.
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“The new fare is the least expensive option for price-conscious passengers only travelling with carry-on luggage and who do not require any ticket flexibility,” Lufthansa said in a release.
The fare does not offer free baggage allowance, seat reservations, or cancellations.
The airline had been testing the fare since October 2017 on a number of routes between Scandinavia and North America. It was first introduced in 2015 on the Group’s European routes.
With the news, Lufthansa joins Delta, which started selling basic economy tickets for flights to Europe in April; and American Airlines, which started its basic economy options on some of its long-haul flights earlier this Spring.
Other European carriers have been aggressively pursuing the basic fare market, including some trying to corner the transatlantic market. Airlines like Thomas Cook Airline and Condor, now fly basic economy to U.S. from Manchester and elsewhere.
Others include XL Airways, which has merged with La Compagnie; Edelweiss, a Swiss low-cost contender, and Level, from British Air parent IAG, which is operating flights to the U.S. from Barcelona.
