HistoryLufthansa marks centenary with anniversary fleet featuring Airbus A380 and Boeing 787-9
Lufthansa today commemorates its 100th anniversary, a century after the original ‘Luft Hansa’ was founded on January 6, 1926 in Germany.
The airline is deploying a six-aircraft anniversary fleet, including an Airbus A380, an Airbus A350-1000, an Airbus A350-900, an Airbus A320, a Boeing 747-8, and a Boeing 787-9 as part of its centenary activities.
Lufthansa currently employs 40,000 staff from 122 nations, while the broader Lufthansa Group counts 100,000 employees representing over 160 countries.
The carrier’s centenary theme, ‘We are the Journey’, features prominently across its communications and event programming.
“The anniversary is a tribute to the guests who have accompanied Lufthansa through a century of challenges, changes, and progress,” the company stated.
Merger of two airlines
Lufthansa’s origins trace back to the 1926 merger of Junkers Luftverkehr and Deutsche Aero Lloyd, which formed the basis for its inaugural flight on April 6 of that year.
The original company expanded during the interwar period but faced significant operational and reputational challenges during the Nazi era.
All scheduled services ceased in 1945 as Germany’s defeat in World War II led to the suspension of civil aviation activities.
A new legal entity, referred to as the ‘second Lufthansa’, was established in 1953, enabling the airline to resume operations in the context of postwar reconstruction.
The subsequent decades saw fleet modernization and international network growth, particularly as Lufthansa integrated new aircraft types and entered strategic partnerships.
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the airline expanded through acquisitions and the development of the Lufthansa Group, encompassing multiple brands and operational units.
Today, the Lufthansa Group includes 15 airlines operating their own fleets: Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, Eurowings Europe Malta, ITA Airways, Discover Airlines, Edelweiss, Air Dolomiti, SunExpress, Lufthansa City, Lufthansa CityLine, Lufthansa Cargo, and AeroLogic. Together, these carriers operate around 940 aircraft across passenger and cargo operations and serve hundreds of destinations worldwide.
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