Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has issued this statement:
Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, and Song Zhiyong, President and Executive Director of Air China Limited (Beijing), signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance the commercial partnership as part of a joint venture, during the Chancellor’s visit to China.
Both companies also signed a memorandum of understanding to expand collaboration in the area of maintenance, repair and overhaul services.
As members of the Star Alliance, Lufthansa and Air China have been connected for a number of years. The memorandum of understanding should pave the way for the creation of a commercial joint venture between the German airline and Air China.
This partnership will add to the existing joint ventures with United Airlines and with Air Canada between Europe and North America (since 1998) and with ANA (since 2012) on routes between Europe and Japan.
The agreement with Air China will allow the Lufthansa Group to provide its airlines with even better access to the world’s second largest aviation market after the USA.
The new partnership agreement should come into force as early as the start of the winter flight timetable in late October 2014.
Since 2007, Air China has been a member of the Star Alliance, the world’s largest airline alliance, and with almost 49 million passengers, as measured by intercontinental traffic, is China’s biggest airline.
Top Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com. Lufthansa’s Boeing 747-430 D-ABVW (msn 29493) climbs away from the runway at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport (YYZ).
Lufthansa: 
Air China:
Bottom Copyright Photo: Jay Selman/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 777-39L ER B-2043 (msn 41441) of Air China approaches the runway at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
Filed under: Air China, Lufthansa Tagged: 29493, 41441, 747, 747-400, 747-430, 777, 777-300, 777-39L, Air China, Air China Limited, B-2043, Boeing, Boeing 747, Boeing 747-400, Boeing 777, Boeing 777-300, D-ABVW, deutsche lufthansa ag, JFK, Lufthansa, Lufthansa Group, memorandum of understanding, New York, Pearson, Toronto, YYZ