Making air travel sustainable and innovative: Munich Airport & Lufthansa expand their partnership

Munich Airport and Lufthansa are reaffirming and strengthening their successful strategic partnership. The two companies are now signing a letter of intent to intensify and continue the sustainable development of Munich Airport. In the LOI, both parties commit to a shared sustainability strategy, to the expansion of Munich Airport as an intermodal transport hub, to the needs-based expansion of infrastructure, and to the promotion of digitalization and innovation in operations. This includes projects such as smart passenger handling and automated handling processes in order to make passengers’ travel experience more enjoyable and efficient.

In order to remain competitive in the long term, both organizations are driving forward the fulfillment of their sustainability targets so that the entire Munich Airport campus will benefit from this. The commitment to the respective climate and sustainability goals is a central component of the LOI. 

Jost Lammers, CEO of Munich Airport, commented: “We went through the hard times of the COVID-19 pandemic together with Lufthansa and we will return to our former strength together. With our shared goals of sustainability, innovation, digitalization, and the persistent enhancement of Munich Airport as a premium hub, we will successfully continue this strategic partnership.”

Stefan Kreuzpaintner, CCO of Lufthansa Airlines, said: “Our partnership with Munich Airport can definitely be described as unique. Together, we will continue to take on and meet the challenges of the aviation industry. Sustainability is one of the top issues. This includes better rail links – not only to reach the airport quickly and conveniently, but also to make a vital contribution to climate change mitigation.”

Albert Füracker, Bavarian Minister of Finance and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Flughafen München GmbH: "Sustainability is an important issue for the future of aviation. Back in 2016, we agreed that Munich Airport will be operated on a CO2-neutral basis by 2030 at the latest. We are working hard towards this ambitious climate target with a wide range of measures - and are well on the way to achieving it. I am very pleased that Munich Airport, as Bavaria's gateway to the world, is leading the way together with its strong partner Lufthansa and serving as a role model."

The partnership between Munich Airport and Lufthansa to build and expand airport traffic began at the end of the 1990s. With the joint construction and operation of Terminal 2, which opened in 2003, the two companies launched a unique model of cooperation in Europe – and established Munich Airport as an efficient global aviation hub. The satellite building, which opened in April 2016, marked the first expansion of this eminently successful joint venture.