Keystone
Lufthansa, the parent company of Swiss, is facing a painful and long-term restructuring process.
——
Thiele explained this to the «Bild am Sonntag». He also believes that Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr and his team should shoulder this task and make Lufthansa a strong airline again in the medium term, it said.
–
The management will now draft a restructuring plan. This would “not go without hard cuts, because we do not know how the entire economy and air traffic will develop in the future,” said Thiele. The demand for air travel will certainly increase again, “but initially at a lower level than before Corona”.
–
Thiele demands tough austerity measures from Lufthansa management: “Due to the extensive loans that have to be paid interest and repaid, a reduction in personnel and material costs is not enough. Subsidiaries of subsidiaries must also be put to the test, »he demanded. Everything had to be looked at, “which is not necessary for the absolute core business for the next few years, such as the catering business in Europe or parts of Lufthansa Technik”.
–
And Swiss?
The shareholders of the aviation group, which was badly hit by the coronavirus crisis, gave the green light on Thursday for the government’s nine billion euro rescue package. For a long time, Thiele’s approval was considered uncertain. Above all, Thiele contested the planned participation of the German government and wanted to renegotiate the rescue plan for the battered airline.
–
If it were going to be really bad for Lufthansa, Lufthansa would have to sell the silverware, “said aviation expert Stefan Eiselin (52) to BLICK. That would mean: airlines and technical companies to be sold.
–
The most profitable and therefore most valuable company in the Lufthansa network is Swiss. Will it be on sale soon? “The group would only choose this option in an emergency,” says Eiselin. “Because Swiss is the most profitable airline in the Lufthansa network and is very closely integrated into the group.” (SDA / kes)
—
