Dubai: The merger of Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa will have "no immediate effect" on Middle East routes as of now, Austrian Airlines spokeswoman Pia Stradiot told Gulf News in a telephone interview Wednesday.
However, after the announcement of the merger five days ago, the airline will carry out an assessment of its route table in the region.
"The network will not change much, but there are possibly going to be some cuts. It is too early to tell at the moment," Stradiot said.
Austrian Airlines' route table in the region currently comprises Dubai, Amman, Riyadh, Jeddah, Damascus, Tehran, Cairo and Erbil in Iraq, all served directly from Vienna.
The daily Dubai flights were reduced from two to one recently, but the airline switched from a small 126-seat Airbus to a bigger Boeing 767 with 230 seats, Stradiot said.
"We are also continuing our marketing strategy in Dubai," she said.
The "premium service" on the Dubai-Vienna route includes special Arabian menus in Business Class under the motto "Arabian Nights", as the carrier now is only using the night slot, departing at 1.45am in Dubai and arriving at 6.10am in Vienna.
As of now, it is unclear if Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines are going to keep separated sales offices in Dubai.
"One effect of the merger certainly is the streamlining of sales, back office and procurement," Stradiot said. "But no decision has been made yet."
The only competitor on the direct route from Dubai to Vienna at the moment is Emirates.
Qatar Airways is flying from Dubai to Vienna via Doha. Lufthansa has a connection from Dubai to Frankfurt as its central hub in Europe.
Swiss, also a part of the Lufthansa group, flies from Zurich to Dubai and further on to Muscat, Oman.
Further details about the integration of Austrian Airlines into Lufthansa will be announced in a few weeks, the carrier said in a statement after the closing of the deal on September 5.
By Arno Maierbrugger, Staff Reporter© Gulf News 2009. All rights reserved.
