Lufthansa, Fraport expand ground handling relationship at FRA

 Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Fraport AG have inked a new contract to go into effect on Jan. 1 that will extend their relationship at Fraport’s subsidiary airport, Frankfurt International Airport (FRA), for another seven years.

In the new agreement, Fraport’s ground handling unit will continue to be responsible for services like cargo loading and unloading on all of Lufthansa’s aircraft, but will also be poised to accommodate “a number of innovations in various processes” in collaboration with the technology-focused airline, which just launched another paperless service offering this week – the digitalization of the dangerous goods declaration process.

“Following a series of constructive talks, we submitted a competitive offer,” said Fraport AG’s executive board member and labor director Michael Müller, who added that Lufthansa is the ground handler’s most important customer at the hub.

FRA is moving forward with its own plans for growth via initiatives such as digital slot booking and capacity expansions. The airport operator told Air Cargo World last month that its CargoCity South, Gateway Gardens and Mönchhof facilities “are about to be grown by 50 percent.”