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Lufthansa Cargo is celebrating 100 years of air cargo flight in Germany with a special livery for its latest Boeing MD-11 freighter.
The aircraft will be used as the jubilee’s flying ambassador transporting airfreight around the world in Lufthansa Cargo’s global network.
The first cargo-only fli9ght in Germany took place on 19 August 1911 when a single-engined Harlan took off from a grass strip in Berlin-Johannisthal.
On board the flight bound for Frankfurt on the Oder were the latest issues of the Berliner Morgenpost daily.
Lufthansa chairman and chief executive Dr Christoph Franz: “For Germany especially, as the world’s second biggest exporting nation, a functioning and efficient air cargo industry is of existential importance.”
Luft Hansa, Lufthansa’s predecessor airline, was founded in 1926 and set up a dedicated air cargo service only two years after commencing flight operations.
When the newly founded Lufthansa took to the skies again in 1955, it was clear that the transportation of cargo alongside passenger flights would significantly help shape the airline’s future. Cargo flights were introduced in the airline’s schedules on domestic routes already in 1956. In 1972, Lufthansa was the first airline to begin service with the world’s biggest cargo aircraft at the time – the Boeing 747F, soon to be named the jumbo freighter.
Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo are celebrating this year’s centenary of air cargo at a variety of events including a logistics and mobility conference and a broad array of online offerings.
