More airlines are introducing hand‑baggage‑only fares, and United Airlines will now offer this option on some trans‑Atlantic services. Industry observers also expect Lufthansa to follow suit.
United plans to roll out hand‑baggage‑only fares on selected trans‑Atlantic and Latin American routes later in 2018. Because United operates a joint venture with Lufthansa on many long‑haul routes, Lufthansa is widely expected to adopt a similar fare tier across its European network.
Markus Binkert, commercial director of Swiss International Air Lines and head of revenue management for the Lufthansa Group, told Germany’s aerotelegraph.com that the trend is likely to become widespread: “This concept will become the industry standard.
“We too are deliberately considering this [hand‑baggage‑only fares]. It is an issue that is being discussed within Lufthansa Group. So far no decision has been taken, but I expect this [the decision] sooner rather than later.”