Lufthansa says it will likely see big demand for premier segment

Frankfurt: Lufthansa German Airlines, which has been operating a business-class-only service on the Dubai route since May, said it sees strong prospects for the premier travel business despite the collapse of three executive class carriers since December.

A senior official stressed Lufthansa benefits from its huge network and product range unlike the limited services provided by the failed business-class only companies.

"We do not believe you can just provide business or first-class services. We have a full range of services that are integrated,¨ Thierry Antinori, Luft-hansa's executive vice-president for sales and marketing, said.

From July 15 the airline will increase the frequency of its Dubai-Munich business-class service from six times a week to daily.

Lufthansa also plans to introduce a similar service for the western Indian city of Pune.

"Pune is a market with high business-class demand," Antinori said, adding that in Dubai the business-class market continues to expand.

British-based Silverjet, which had daily services between London and Dubai, announced in May that it would cease operations due to financial troubles. US-based MaxJet went out of service in December and Eos collapsed in April, reflecting difficulties faced by the airline industry amid record high jet fuel prices.

Lufthansa uses an A319 plane for the business-class-only service, offering a maximum of 48 seats to attract executives looking for quicker boarding and disembarkation time at airports.

According to a company spokeswoman, the Dubai service is enjoying a load factor of 80 per cent.

To reduce the impact of rising oil prices, the company has an active fuel hedging programme.

Lufthansa Group operates a fleet of about 600 aircraft and its fuel bill last year was 4 billion euros.