Pressure on one of the major international airlines with AI cited as a factor: 4,000 layoffs amid a 84% reduction in air traffic

German based Lufthansa is planning to cut around 4,000 jobs by 2030 as part of a major strategic overhaul aimed at increasing efficiency and profitability.

The key reasons cited by the German airline group are: Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (AI): The company expects that the increased use of AI and digital technologies will lead to greater efficiency and automation in many areas, particularly administrative and back-office functions.

Cost Reduction and Restructuring: The cuts are part of a wider effort to reduce costs, eliminate duplicated work across its subsidiaries (like SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, and Eurowings), and create a leaner operational structure. The company aims to improve its adjusted operating margin to 8-10% by 2028-2030.

Economic Pressures: The decision also comes amid a challenging economic climate, with Germany facing recession and companies struggling with rising costs and competition.

The job cuts will primarily affect administrative roles, with the majority expected in Germany. Operational staff, such as pilots, cabin crew, and ground personnel, are expected to be largely unaffected.

Speaking to Welt.de, Jens Bischof (head of the airline Eurowings and, as President of the German Association of Aviation Companies (BDL), he is also the spokesperson for German airlines and airports) claimed: "If you exclude feeder flights to the hubs in Frankfurt and Munich, domestic air traffic is at one-fifth of its pre-Covid level. In the winter flight schedule now beginning, capacity will shrink further to just 16 percent. 84 percent is gone – and this has consequences for the entire economy"!

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