Press release -
"Namaste India": Naming ceremony of a Lufthansa Cargo B777F freighter in Mumbai
Recognition of the decades of cargo connections between India and Germany | Increased flight and cargo capacity to Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai since March
Yesterday, a Lufthansa Cargo Boeing 777F with the registration D-ALFH was officially named "Namaste India" at Mumbai Airport.
The freighter has been part of Lufthansa Cargo's fleet since August 2020. Due to the Covid pandemic the naming ceremony had to be delayed. On May 31, the naming ceremony could be held prior to the departure of LH8361 from Mumbai to Frankfurt by Ashwin Bhat, Chief Commercial Officer at Lufthansa Cargo, and in the presence of J. Florian Pfaff, Vice President Asia Pacific at Lufthansa Cargo, customers and station employees.
Following the guiding principle "Say hello around the world," Lufthansa Cargo has been naming its aircraft after its main markets within its global route network since 2013. The respectful greeting "Namaste India," which is widespread in Hindu culture, symbolizes the close connection that exists between Lufthansa Cargo and India. The cargo airline has a long-standing connection with customers in the Indian air cargo industry since 1959 and grew further with its freighter operations since the 1970s. Lufthansa Cargo has continuously expanded its connections and capacities. Currently, Mumbai alone is served four times a week, Bengaluru and Chennai twice weekly from Frankfurt with B777F freighters. In addition, there are further cargo capacities in the passenger aircraft from Frankfurt and Munich to Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai. In 2021, Lufthansa Cargo transported close to 65,000 tons of cargo from and to India. In 2019 (pre-Covid), the annual overall volume of transported cargo to and from India was above 108,000 tons, using its full capacities.
"For decades, Lufthansa Cargo has been an important and reliable partner in and for India. I am extremely pleased to personally mark this partnership and success story in the context of this freighter naming ceremony in my home city. It is our goal to continue connecting India with other markets around the world and to support the strong development of the Indian economy. On a positive note, since the reopening of Indian airspace for commercial passenger flights in March 2022, we have more than tripled the number of passenger flights. From ten weekly passenger flights, we now offer a total of 32 weekly connections. At the same time, we increased to four weekly freighter flights to Mumbai and thus considerably offer more options for our customers to transport their goods with the flexibility, reliability and quality that Lufthansa Cargo is known for. And there will more to come," emphasizes Ashwin Bhat, Chief Commercial Officer at Lufthansa Cargo.
Similar to all 15 aircraft in the Lufthansa Cargo fleet, the twin-engine Boeing 777F “Namaste India” (D-ALFH) is highly fuel-efficient and thus makes an important contribution to lower CO2 emissions. In addition, this aircraft type meets the strict requirements of ICAO Annex 16, Volume I, Chapter 14 in terms of noise protection.
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Lufthansa Cargo AG
With a turnover of 3.8 billion euros and a transport performance of 7.2 billion freight ton kilometers in 2021, Lufthansa Cargo is one of the world's leading companies in the transport of airfreight. The company currently employs around 4,200 people worldwide. Lufthansa Cargo's focus is on the airport-to-airport business. The route network covers around 300 destinations in more than 100 countries, using both freighter aircraft and cargo capacity from passenger aircraft operated by Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings Discover and SunExpress, as well as trucks. The majority of the cargo business is handled via Frankfurt Airport. Lufthansa Cargo is pursuing the goal of becoming the world's most sustainable cargo airline. To achieve this, the company relies on state-of-the-art technologies and continuous investments in the area of sustainability. In 2021, important milestones were reached, such as the fleet modernization to an all-B777F fleet and the introduction of completely CO2-neutral freight transport for all customers. In 2022, Lufthansa Cargo plans to successively equip its fleet with Sharkskin technology and expand its Sustainable Aviation Fuel program to further reduce CO2 emissions. Lufthansa Cargo is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG and the specialist for the logistics business of the Lufthansa Group.
