Steering Growth - Exclusive Interview with Germanwings' Michael Klee, SVP, Commercial

Germanwings has grown its network progressively from regional airports in Germany (the largest being Cologne/Bonn, Stuttgart, Berlin and Hanover) and now serves more than 75 destinations, all while competing against other low-cost carriers on the network, including Ryanair, easyjet, TUIfly and Air Berlin.

Joining the team from Lufthansa in the Controlling department, Michael Klee, now head of network management, has helped to lead the carrier along its growth path. "We started with five aircraft and we will operate 30 of our own aircraft and two wetleases this summer - a reflection of how much, and how steadily, the airline has grown in the last eight years. More than a third of our capacity is domestic and we are still growing," he tells The Hub.

A significant route development for Germanwings this year has been a new Cologne-Tel Aviv service, which began on March 30, the first sign of expansion beyond its intra-European network. Klee, whose day-to-day work focuses on developing and optimising Germanwings' current schedule and new routes, reflects on developments so far this year: "As well as the new routes we have recently launched from Cologne/Bonn, including to Copenhagen and Friedrichshafen, I was particularly excited about our Tel Aviv service as we've had to go through a lot of bureaucratic 'red-tape' to open it."

He continues: "We are looking forward to opening our next base this month with three aircraft and 16 destinations and we will also fly to Santorini in May. It is great to see how a low-cost carrier can create completely new markets which were once deemed 'unflyable', by stimulating demand."

Hanover will be the carrier's sixth German operating base, alongside Cologne/Bonn, Berlin Schönefeld, Stuttgart, Hamburg and Dortmund, representing a further focus on increasing capacity in Germany. Lufthansa bought the carrier out in January 2009 from previou owners, Eurowings, who decided to sell the carrier in order to focus on regional routes.

Lufthansa and Germanwings' respective network approaches, however, remain complementary, says Klee. "In general our network planning, as well as all commercial activities, are done completely independently from Lufthansa. We are strong in catchment areas where Lufthansa does not operate many flights, so our network complements theirs."

What markets could be next on the horizon for Germanwings? Klee shares his thoughts: "The average flight length for all low-cost airlines has had to increase during the last few years because there are less low hanging fruits on the one to two hour/short-haul sector. Taking this into account, we see some interesting opportunities for Germanwings in the Middle East and in Russia."

Going forward, what's the route strategy behind Klee's thinking? "We continue to analyse passenger potential, competitors and, of course the cost structure of an airport. Our strategy is to only fly where you can make money!"

Turn to page 54 of our latest Routes News magazine for a full interview with Germanwings CEO, Thomas Winklemann.