The largest German airline Lufthansa like many other airlines, has been troubled by the corona crisis. Lufthansa is a size bigger than KLM. Lufthansa indicated earlier this month that their money jar is starting to empty due to the current situation, the costs continue, but there is almost no income. Normally Lufthansa transports around 350 thousand passengers a day, in early April that was about 3000 passengers a day, which is a significant drop. 

The airline has turned to several countries for help, for example Switzerland wants to help with 1,3 billion Swiss Francs in credit guarantees, which is about 1,2 billion Euros. According to sources, Austria and Belgium are also helping to save Lufthansa. The total amount of the rescue plan would be EUR 10 billion.

According to various news reports, the German government has not yet reached an agreement with Lufthansa about an emergency aid package, this is still under negotiation, the discussions that are being held in Berlin are not going smoothly, because Lufthansa would rather not have the government too much has an impact on business operations. In exchange for support, the German government wants to talk about certain Lufthansa topics, such as environmental policy. 

Last week, Lufthansa pilots indicated they want to help and turn in part of their wages over the next two years to save the airline from destruction. According to the union, this would generate an amount of 350 million euros. Last Friday, Air France-KLM was told by the Dutch and French governments that they are receiving support of EUR 11 billion. There are strict rules attached to this, they may not distribute profit, dividends or bonuses.

Also read: Border crossing with Belgium will remain closed until June 8