Lufthansa Group to impose ‘environmental cost surcharge’

European aviation giant Lufthansa Group is to introduce a new “environmental cost surcharge” of up to €72 per flight to cover part of the cost of complying with new green regulatory rules for airlines.

The group, which also includes Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings, said the new environmental surcharge would apply to all tickets issued from 26 June 2024 for departures from 1 January 2025.

Lufthansa said it was facing “steadily rising additional costs due to regulatory environmental requirements”. These include the EU’s new blending quota of 2 per cent for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from 2025, adjustments to the EU Emissions Trading System, and the costs complying with CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation).

The new green charge will apply to all flights sold and operated by the Lufthansa Group departing from the 27 EU member states, as well as from the UK, Norway and Switzerland.

The amount of the charge will depend on the flight route and fare. It will vary between €1 and €72, and the exact charge will be shown in the price details on booking pages.

In a statement, the company insisted it “invests billions” in new aircraft and other measures to make flying more sustainable.

But the group added that it “will not be able to bear the successively increasing additional costs resulting from regulatory requirements in the coming years on its own”.

Last year, Lufthansa’s CEO Carsten Spohr warned that European airlines may have to increase fares and risk losing traffic to non-EU carriers because of the new mandate for the use of SAF.