Lufthansa is wanting people to book its flights – however the way you book a flight with them will be just as important in the next few months.
Lufthansa Boeing 737-500 at Frankfurt Airport – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
Booking tickets via a Lufthansa online system is cheaper to Lufthansa than using a major Global Distribution System such as Amadeus or Sabre – and as such, Lufthansa has been taking up the fee.
However, this all changes from the 1st September, this will be a fee levied €16 per booking for sources other than booking via a Lufthansa system or by booking at a Lufthansa office.
The fee will apply to all members of Lufthansa Group – Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Swiss.
If the costs are passed on, it will manifest itself in different ways:
- For those claiming reward tickets from a source other than Lufthansa, expect another charge to be added on
- For those purchasing tickets through other sources than Lufthansa, expect the fares to show higher than what Lufthansa themselves are charging
- For those on corporate accounts and locked to corporate travel agents – these will the people hit hardest, as they have no choice how their ticket is booked normally.
Lufthansa’s Chief Commercial Officer Jens Bischof in note to this move states:
“Until now, the percentage of revenue generated from the sale of flight tickets by our airlines has continuously decreased. While other service and system partners in the value chain are recording increasing margins and returns, our airline’s earnings have been compromised over time, even though they are the actual providers of flight services. We want to counteract this trend by refocusing our commercial strategy.”
There are other words to describe what he’s saying, but this blog will refrain from such language, other than to say this is a pure money grabbing move from customers that are locked in agreements, and charging customers for the privilege of booking how they want.
The charge for those who are looking for such things is levied per booking, coded as DCC – Distribution Cost Charge.
For passengers, the easiest away will be to book directly with Lufthansa, Swiss, Brussels Airlines or Austrian. Accredited agents can use www.LHGroup-agent.com, whilst agreed corporate groups can use Lufthansa’s site to book zero DCC rated tickets.
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