Which Caribbean airport (Mexico, U.S included) has the best chance of one day luring Lufthansa?

Cancun -( too many charters already)
San Juan, St. Marteen, Barbados - is there enough market?

Opinions welcome

Happy new year

LH used to fly to SJU:

FRA-SJU-LIM(OR BOG)-LPB AND RETURN.

Think SJU can with ease be retaken ex FRA with smaller long-range aircraft than actually in the LH fleet.

Quoting 123 (Reply 1):

I think if LH ever lands/ returns to the Caribbean, it would be with the A330, nothing larger

I think if it ever happens look for it to be on Condor,

Havana after the Castros are gone and Cuba reforms and becomes a magnet for investment.

Is DE flying to HAV? If it's, not sure if HAV currently could support 2 German scheduled airlines.
LH FRA/MUC-PUJ may be a possibility.
I can't see LH on Jamaica or Trinidad, unless something extraordinary draws it there.
Now that CM is in Star Alliance, LH is expected to fly to PTY sometime soon. Many (western) Caribbean and Centralamerican destinations will be available via PTY hub.

Quoting EddieDude (Reply 4):

Oh yes forgot about Havana

Quoting luv2fly (Reply 3):

Condor has been doing charters to Cancun ( and other Caribbean airports) from Germany for a long time now. The Dominican Republic is also popular, you hear Condor going in there all the time

Condor's FRA-CUN run has been going on for quite a while, during peak season I think is up 4 weekly, so I don't see LH looking at CUN at all

Until the early or mid 90s LH used to fly FRA-ANU-SJU-FRA and FRA-SXM-SJU-FRA with I think 3-5 weekly flights total depending on the season. I took the ANU flights quite a few times as a kid.

Quoting luv2fly (Reply 3): I think if it ever happens look for it to be on Condor,

Condor has not been a part of LH for many years now. It is now part of the Thomas Cook group.

Quoting UALWN (Reply 8): Condor has not been a part of LH for many years now. It is now part of the Thomas Cook group.

correct, but Condor does take market share away, possibily preventing regular-schedule flights

I don't see LH ever going back to the Caribbean with the possible exception of HAV at some point in the distant future. LH has long pulled out of the leisure markets. There are way too many leisure/charter operators flying from various cities in Germany to the Caribbean. Even at MCO, they don't chase the leisure traveler, which is why they fly the A346 instead of a 744 with more Y seats.

Makes no sense for a high-cost premium-heavy carrier like LH to serve longhaul markets that are almost exclusively leisure destinations.

As already mentioned, they've served the Caribbean in the past and dropped the routes. Going back further, in the mid-1960s LH also served KIN and MBJ (once a week each) from JFK as intermediate stops on 707 flights to South America. Flight routings in the July 1966 timetable:

FRA-JFK-KIN-LIM-SCL
FRA-JFK-MBJ-GYE-LIM-SCL

They had 5th freedom rights on all sectors.

Quoting g500 (Reply 9): correct, but Condor does take market share away, possibily preventing regular-schedule flights

Indeed, but the post I was replying seemed to imply that if LH would ever go back to the Caribbean it would be under the Condor brand...

I believe that up to a few years ago there were flights between FRA and TAB.

Many years ago I know then National Airline BWIA flew L10-11 Tristars to Germany (I believe more than one Airport in fact!).

Despite these historical ties and the ever increasing trade done between T&T and Germany, I doubt a non-stop flight is warranted as it may be to BGI or MBJ or HAV.

AA1818

Quoting aa1818 (Reply 13):

They also had Fights into Muc and I think into Cgn

DE has a few Caribbean destinations and I believe a lot of them are year-round... I remember DE DC-10s coming into BGI back in the 70s and 80s.

BW was busy in Germany in the early 90s when I worked with them; we served FRA, MUC, and CGN from POS, BGI, and UVF. However, I recall most of the fares sold were package deals - a niche DE fills rather well.

Doubt LH sees any real "high fare" opportunities...

Doesn't Lufthansa fly to CCS? Technically, Venezuela has a coast in the Caribbean Sea 

Anyway, as mentioned, LH did serve SJU, but with even IB and BA pulling out, I doubt LH would ever serve SJU again. If anything, I'd expect HAV or SXM service before SJU.

Quoting einsteinboricua (Reply 16): Doesn't Lufthansa fly to CCS?

Yes, they do, and CCS airport is right on the Caribbean coast.

Quoting UALWN (Reply 12): Indeed, but the post I was replying seemed to imply that if LH would ever go back to the Caribbean it would be under the Condor brand...

Lufthansa no-longer owns Condor, it was sold to Thomas Cook, wasn't it?

Dominican Republic, maybe?

All the carribean holiday destinations are well served by DE and AB. Neither warrants a daily service. May be HAV once that country is freed

Lufhansa, in 1960;s flew from Mexico City to Nassau, B707 service

A part of LH flies to the Caribbean with LH flight codes.

Lufthansa Cargo flies to BQN - Borinquen, Puerto Rico:

- dep. BQN 00:00 - arr. FRA 13:40 LH8263 M1F 8h40m Friday
- dep. BQN 22:40 - arr. FRA 12:20+1 LH8261 M1F 8h40m Saturday
- dep. BQN 22:50 - arr. FRA 12:30+1 LH8261 M1F 8h40m Tuesday

Quoting factsonly (Reply 22):

Correct, but it is used as per my understanding as fuel stop point

I would like to see a 747-8 over at Princess Juliana, that would be a sight. Would the runway be long enough to support it? And yes I know that there isn't the market for a plane that size but we can always dream.

at a time (1992-1994, I dont know exactly) the service to SJU or/and ANU passed by in SXM with Airbus A340-200, direct service from FRA. Before the 340-200 was brought in, Lufthansa used DC-10 for this flight. Mid 90's it changed to Condor 767

[Edited 2013-01-01 06:35:33]

Except for PTY, HAV, CUN, and SJO and in that order I do not see LH anywhere landing in the Carribean, CA region. PTY maybe in two to three years, HAV, CUN and SJO, if they use Germanwings also for some longhaul flying.

Quoting einsteinboricua (Reply 16): Doesn't Lufthansa fly to CCS? Technically, Venezuela has a coast in the Caribbean Sea

Indeed and by the same token, they also fly to MEX and Mexico has a Caribbean coast  
But I understand that Isla Maragarita in Venezuela is a lovely place.

Quoting Viscount724 (Reply 11): As already mentioned, they've served the Caribbean in the past and dropped the routes. Going back further, in the mid-1960s LH also served KIN and MBJ (once a week each) from JFK as intermediate stops on 707 flights to South America. Flight routings in the July 1966 timetable: FRA-JFK-KIN-LIM-SCL FRA-JFK-MBJ-GYE-LIM-SCL They had 5th freedom rights on all sectors.

I have seen past photos of a LH DC10 in MBJ as well. Wasn't aware that they served KIN in the past as well. Interesting.

Is there a real market for any of these flights to actually happen?

Quoting 2008matt (Reply 29): Is there a real market for any of these flights to actually happen?

The market is well taken care off by Condor and Air Berlin

Quoting zkojq (Reply 18): Lufthansa no-longer owns Condor, it was sold to Thomas Cook, wasn't it?

Yes. That's what I said in reply #8. However, it's a little bit more complicated, because LH used to own part of Thomas Cook. However, that also ended, as I understand it, a few years ago.