Condor (DE, Frankfurt International) will regain access to Lufthansa (LH, Frankfurt International) feeder flights to/from Frankfurt International as part of interim measures ordered by the European Commission, which has preliminarily found that the A++ transatlantic joint venture (JV) between Air Canada, United Airlines, and Lufthansa restricts competition on the Frankfurt-New York route.
In a statement, the regulator said it had sent a supplementary statement of objections to Lufthansa, signalling its intention to order the airline to reinstate Condor's access to Lufthansa feed traffic at Frankfurt under the conditions the two airlines agreed on in June 2024.
The Commission is concerned that the termination of a Special Prorate Agreement (SPA) between the two carriers, which allowed Condor to access Lufthansa's short-haul network for feed traffic to its long-haul flights, could harm competition on the Frankfurt-New York route. Condor began competing on this route in 2021, but the termination of the SPA in 2020 - coupled with court rulings - means the arrangement ceased in December 2024. Brussels fear that without this feed traffic, Condor may be forced to exit the market, further reducing competition.
The German airline recently cut six seasonal services to the US and Canada, citing their non-viability without the European feeder traffic. Condor currently operates 4x weekly between Frankfurt and New York JFK. Lufthansa flies daily to JFK and New York Newark. The two cities are also connected daily by Singapore Airlines (JFK) and United Airlines (Newark), and 3x weekly by Delta Air Lines (JFK).
A Lufthansa spokesman said: "We do not share the EU Commission's position and are currently reviewing the Commission's new announcement in the next few days." Condor was not immediately available for comment.
The regulator noted that the interim measure was in the context of its broader investigation into the potential restriction of competition on transatlantic routes to/from several European Economic Area airports by the A++ JV. It said that adopting interim measures enabling Condor to continue serving Frankfurt-New York was warranted to "prevent serious and irreparable damage to competition from occurring in that market."
The Commission's investigation into the transatlantic joint venture dates back to 2013 when it accepted commitments from Lufthansa, United, and Air Canada to address concerns about potential restrictions on competition, particularly on Frankfurt-New York. These commitments, which included providing slots and feed traffic to competitors, were legally binding for 10 years.
However, on August 7, 2024, the authority reopened its scrutiny of the JV, launching proceedings against Lufthansa, United, and Air Canada for potentially breaching competition laws. At the time, it issued a statement of objections to Lufthansa, indicating that interim measures could be necessary to preserve competition, pending the outcome of the investigation.
