Lufthansa mulls direct flights to Manila anew

MANILA, Philippines -  German carrier Lufthansa is studying the possibility of having direct flights to Manila.

Tobias Heinrich, senior director head of government affairs at Lufthansa Group, told reporters the carrier is interested in having direct flights to Manila again. 

“We are in constant calculations, but I cannot say when this would be a possibility. We would very much like to fly into Manila again,” he said. 

Lufthansa used to have flights between Manila and Frankfurt. 

The carrier discontinued the service in 2008 amid strong competition in the market. 

Heinrich said the group is looking at having flights to Manila again given the country’s growing economy.

“It’s a very developed market,” he said. 

He also said the Southeast Asian region as a whole is an interesting market for the carrier. 

Should it decide to offer flights to Manila, he said the carrier would be targeting businessmen as well as tourists.

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the government is hopeful the German carrier could operate flights to the Philippines again.  “That is being discussed right now,” he said. 

At present, the Lufthansa Group has presence in the country through Lufthansa Services Philippines (LSP) and Lufthansa Technik. 

LSP has a service center in Alabang handling financial and customer service functions. 

Lufthansa Technik, meanwhile, has a maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in Manila.