Lufthansa's logistics division saw revenues and operating profits continue at record levels in the third quarter of the year as industry-wide air cargo capacity continues to be squeezed.
The division, which includes Lufthansa Cargo as well as Jettainer, time:matters and an investment in AeroLogic, saw revenues surge 48% year on year in the third quarter to €871m.
Meanwhile, earnings before interest and tax (ebit) for the period were up 79% to €303m and volumes (revenue cargo tonne km) increased 11% to 1.7bn.
Capacity for the period was up by 18% and the average cargo load factor was down 4.4 percentage points to 67.4%.
The company said that cargo yields remain high compared with historical standards.
"The performance of the Logistics segment is still at a record high; total market freight capacity is down significantly as a result of the corona virus pandemic and the consequent absence of belly capacities on passenger aircraft; demand for the remaining freight capacities re-mains very high," Lufthansa said.
During the period, Lufthansa Cargo added two extra Boeing 777 freighters while the last remaining MD11-F left the Lufthansa Cargo fleet at the end of October.
Freight capacity will increase from early 2022 through the addition of two Airbus A321s that have been converted into freighters.
