The new Lufthansa offshoot Eurowings Discover will also offer short-haul flights from Frankfurt am Main in the 2021 summer flight schedule. Originally, the new establishment, known for some time under the project name Ocean, was only intended for long-haul routes. This could change now.

The "Frankfurt Flyer" portal reports that Airbus A2020 flights to Rome are planned for the mornings in April and May 330. In the afternoon it should go to Barcelona. The connections are carried out under flight numbers of Air Dolomiti in codeshare with the parent company Lufthansa. Tickets can already be booked through the usual channels.

Due to the use of long-haul aircraft of the type Airbus A330-200, it is to be expected that these connections could also serve the training of the pilots. Eurowings Discover is scheduled to start long-haul destinations in June 2020. Among other things, Anchorage, Punta Cana, Mauritius, Las Vegas and Windhoek will be the initial destinations. Plans for Munich are currently on hold, but not generally excluded.

Cutthroat competition against Condor

It is still open whether Eurowings Discover will also offer short-haul tourist destinations. This segment should actually be left to the sister company Eurowings Deutschland - including its offshoots. In general, however, it cannot be ruled out that there could be a gradual shift here, too, because Eurowings Discover has no collective bargaining agreements. This fact is heavily criticized by the unions, because they accuse the circumvention of existing agreements.

Lufthansa is trying to make better use of the new long-haul tourist offshoot, whose route network at least partially overlaps that of its competitor Condor, by terminating the cooperation with Condor that has existed for many decades. However, the holiday airline did not accept the “blue letter” when it came to feeder flights and brought it at the German Federal Cartel Office a complaint and sues before the General Court of the European Union against the approval of state aid for Lufthansa. Trade unions are also very critical of the fact that both groups were saved by the taxpayer and that the funds could indirectly be used for cutthroat competition. The German Federal Cartel Office has already started formal procedure and wants to make a decision at short notice, as the Lufthansa termination will take effect in June 2021.