Condor will no longer operate its flights between Germany and multiple U.S. airports after the German Federal Court of Justice overturned a ruling requiring Lufthansa to provide feeder flights to the airline's network.
The airline will cease its services from Frankfurt to Baltimore (BWI), Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), Phoenix (PHX), and San Antonio (SAT) in the U.S., and Edmonton (YEG) and Halifax (YHZ) in Canada.
The recently overturned measure allowed U.S. passengers to travel to Frankfurt on Condor flights.
Condor said in a statement shared with Newsweek: "After years of legal proceedings between Lufthansa and Condor regarding a commercial agreement for feeder flights across Europe and Lufthansa's legal obligation to grant access to Condor given Lufthansa's dominant market position, there has been an interim decision, final ruling is pending, by the court impacting the general circumstances and conditions of accessing these feeder flights.
"Due to this, Condor is forced to review and adjust its summer 2025 flight schedule in the U.S. and Canada in advance of the peak summer booking season."
Condor will still serve 12 gateways in North America including New York (JFK), Boston (BOS), Miami (MIA), Los Angeles (LAX), San Francisco (SFO), Seattle (SEA), Portland (PDX), Las Vegas (LAS) and Anchorage (ANC) in the U.S. and Toronto (YYZ), Calgary (YYC) and Vancouver (YVR) in Canada.
Dr. Jens Boyd, Commercial Director for Condor said in a statement shared with the City of San Antonio: "This is not a decision we take lightly. Condor has cultivated strong professional and personal ties with San Antonio and the other affected communities over the years, and we deeply regret the loss of connectivity and service this will cause.
"We remain committed to exploring all avenues for fair competition, though we recognize that further legal proceedings will take time to resolve."
The news marks a particular loss for the San Antonio region as Condor's flight connecting SAT to Frankfurt was the area's first non-stop route to Europe.
Jenna Saucedo-Herrera, CEO, greater:SATX, a regional economic partnership in the San Antonio area, said: "This summer, the San Antonio region demonstrated its strong support for trans-Atlantic travel.
"While we understand and respect Condor's challenging business decision based off the ruling by the German Federal Court of Justice, we remain deeply grateful for their investment in San Antonio and their efforts to connect SAT to the world. We look forward to resuming trans-Atlantic service and further positioning our world-class region on the global stage.
"Air service is a vital engine of economic and business development, strengthening our ability to attract global investment, create jobs, and provide opportunities for local businesses to thrive on an international scale. We are committed to continuing efforts, alongside SAT and Visit San Antonio, to build and enhance our international air service, positioning our world-class region as a gateway to the global economy."
According to the U.S. Employment Security Administration, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Atlanta have the most direct flights to Europe of all the airports in the U.S.
Frankfurt, located in the southwest of Germany, is a popular city for tourists and is known for its historic buildings and museums.
Jesus Saenz, Jr. Director of Airports for the City of San Antonio, said: "Ties between our region and Europe continue to grow, and reconnecting SAT and Europe will continue to be a top priority for us and our community.
"Our community has long asked for service to Europe and last summer's numbers proved that we do have a market that can sustain nonstop service."
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