Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr is not known for being prone to outbursts of anger. But if you ask him about the conditions at Frankfurt Airport, then this usually quickly causes high blood pressure. Spohr and his people have been arguing with the operating company Fraport for years. In short: they accuse it of being much too expensive and of delivering poor quality. Some Lufthansa employees are already dreading the next summer season and how the masses of holidaymakers will be channeled through the airline’s largest base in a reasonable amount of time.
So it is a good thing that considerations have now emerged via the Internet portal The Pioneer to relocate the legal headquarters of the group from Cologne to Munich. Such a step would hardly have any practical impact on the two hubs, and thousands of administrative staff would not move to Munich (especially not from Frankfurt). But the symbolic and political impact should not be underestimated.
Cologne has been the company’s legal domicile since Lufthansa was re-established in 1954 after the Second World War. Over the decades, however, the airline has moved more and more departments that were once housed there in various office buildings to Frankfurt, where the airport has developed into the largest hub and base for the long-haul fleet. Most recently, there were practically no longer any central functions in Cologne, but the group is still represented in the city by the headquarters of the Eurowings subsidiary. Most of the administration and the Executive Board work from the Lufthansa Aviation Center (LAC), a short walk from Frankfurt Terminal 1, with a view of the apron and the A3 motorway.
According to SZ information, the Bavarian state government has now brought the idea of moving from Cologne to Munich to the group. At Lufthansa, it is said that there are considerations in this regard, but the step can only be decided at the Annual General Meeting in 2024 at the earliest. At the next shareholder meeting in May 2023, the matter is not on the agenda.
Lufthansa wants to establish Munich as a long-haul hub
The fact that the debate drags on a bit should be in the interest of the group. Because the state of Hesse, which is involved in the airport operator Fraport, does not like the move, no matter how symbolic it is. With such a trump up his sleeve, Spohr can appear a little differently in Frankfurt and make it clear that better quality is quickly in demand. And maybe the state government will help to convince Fraport, because the decision in favor of Munich would be embarrassing for them too.
In day-to-day business, Lufthansa is much happier with Munich. The airport there is designed as a hub, and since 2003 it has operated Terminal 2 together with Flughafen München Gesellschaft (FMG). Long queues at the security checkpoints are rarer than in Frankfurt, and the terminal building is more modern and spacious. At least since the terminal opened 20 years ago, Lufthansa has been working to establish the airport as a long-haul hub, especially since the capacity bottlenecks in Frankfurt are forcing it to do so. In the summer, four Airbus A380 reactivated and stationed in Munich, previously they only flew from Frankfurt. However, according to insiders, the important long-haul routes in Frankfurt are still significantly more profitable overall than those in Munich. And despite everything, in Frankfurt it still offers around 50 percent more weekly seats and routes than in Munich.
Incidentally, Spohr, who has lived in Munich for many years, would have to continue commuting to Frankfurt, even if the company’s headquarters were to be relocated to his place of residence in the future. In any case, the board of directors and the head office should remain in Frankfurt.