Originally Posted by
Yaatri
Germany doesn't wield that power over India.
You would be surprised...
The Germans are very subtle... LH has all the slots and landing rights it needs into India right now... the last time that was a problem LH pushed the right buttons and got it corrected asap. the current bilateral limits the capacity per flight to a 747 which is a vague enough term. AI and other carriers operate a far higher density 744 than LH. The capacity they gaining by giving up HYD should suffice for a few additional flights into a suitable city. The A380 capacity is already planned for the next year and only becomes relevant when the next batch of birds is due for delivery. By then they have additional 744s they could deploy in a 2 class config to India.
DL/AF/KL has a lot to catch up to. This may be their break. Go for it ^ With the restrictive lounge policy for elites in ST they have nothing to fear