Germany’s flagship carrier Lufthansa has announced the closure of its regional subsidiary Lufthansa CityLine as part of urgent cost-cutting measures, with immediate effects on its European network.
The airline said all 27 Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft operated by CityLine will be withdrawn from service from tomorrow, in a move aimed at preventing further financial losses within the unit.
The decision has already disrupted schedules, particularly across south-eastern Europe. Hundreds of flights were removed overnight from booking systems, affecting routes linking Munich with several cities in the Balkans.
All services between Munich and Ljubljana have been withdrawn between 18 April and 1 June. Most flights between Munich and Belgrade have also been removed, with only limited services remaining, mainly on Fridays and Sundays.
Other affected destinations include Dubrovnik, Split, Pula, Rijeka and Zadar. While some routes to Dubrovnik, Split, Pula and Zadar will continue to be served by Lufthansa’s mainline operations, all flights to Rijeka have been removed.
Flights scheduled beyond 1 June remain visible in booking systems, suggesting later schedules have yet to be fully updated.
Lufthansa has not confirmed how many of the cancelled services will be replaced. Industry analysts say the airline may attempt to deploy alternative aircraft on key routes, but replacing all 27 regional jets during the busy summer season is considered unlikely, raising the prospect of reduced frequencies.
The restructuring extends beyond short-haul operations. Lufthansa also plans to cut long-haul capacity later this year, with six aircraft set to be withdrawn at the end of the summer schedule.
This includes the retirement of the airline’s remaining Airbus A340-600 fleet in October, alongside the grounding of two Boeing 747-400 aircraft for the winter season.
The airline has yet to comment in detail on how the changes will affect specific routes or passenger bookings.
