Lufthansa Passenger Compensation Cost EUR 500 Million in 2018: Executive
By Shadia Nasralla, Reuters | Feb. 02, 2019
Lufthansa spent EUR 500 million (US$573 million) on compensating passengers for flight delays and cancellations last year, a senior company figure said on Friday.
A Lufthansa spokesman could not confirm the cost cited by Thorsten Lange, the German airline's head of fuel purchasing, at a Platts oil product conference.
However, the group's bill for such problems had more than doubled to 350 million euros in the first nine months of the year, the spokesman added. The figure for the full year is due to be published next month.
Lufthansa struggled last year like rivals to cope with Europe's rising demand for air travel.
Germany's largest airline, which owns budget carrier Eurowings, also had problems integrating 77 aeroplanes it took over from bankrupt domestic rival Air Berlin.
The company has since announced it will expand its executive board and create a position dedicated to improve operational stability and quality of the airline group that also includes SWISS and Austrian Airlines.