FRANKFURT, Germany, December 14, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Fraport AG and Deutsche Lufthansa AG signed a new agreement today covering ground handling for all of the airline’s aircraft at its Frankfurt Airport (FRA) global hub over the next eight years. Commenting on the agreement reached between both companies, Fraport AG executive board chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte said: “We are delighted that we could make a convincing offer to Lufthansa, the most important customer at our Frankfurt Airport home base. The new contract is an essential part of our strategy to continue offering direct and indirect customers – airlines, passengers and logistics providers – Fraport’s renowned Made in FRA high-quality baggage and cargo handling.”
Effective January 1, 2011, the agreement runs until December 31, 2018. Both partners agreed not to disclose any details of the contract volume. Services covered under the contract include the handling of passengers and their baggage as well as cargo. Thus, Fraport’s Ground Handling strategic business division will continue to be in charge of loading and unloading Lufthansa’s passenger aircraft, transporting baggage, and transferring passengers by bus to and from aircraft at apron parking stands. Cargo services include loading and unloading the freighters used by Lufthansa Cargo AG as well as transporting standard cargo to and from passenger planes. The contract also includes additional services not part of regular flight operations (eg., animal transport).
Some parts of the existing contract, which define quality standards, have been revised in the new agreement. Service quality has taken on greater importance in the new contract and will also be reflected in the pricing. “Our competitive advantage is precision and reliability. The price itself exists only on paper. When highly complex and interconnected ground handling processes run smoothly, then we can show the value of our service delivery,” emphasized Michael Muller, Fraport AG’s executive vice president of ground services. The contract’s “bonus-malus system” gives an incentive for delivering optimal services and, at the same time, provides fair compensation if the performance of the parties involved falls short of the agreed upon objectives.
