Air India and Lufthansa Group sign MoU to expand India–Europe connectivity

Key facts

• Air India and Lufthansa Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 17 February 2026 to establish a framework for a joint business agreement.
• The agreement covers Air India, Air India Express, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, ITA Airways, Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines.
• The MoU targets passenger traffic between India and the Lufthansa Group’s core European markets of Germany, Austria, Belgium, Italy and Switzerland.
• The partners currently codeshare on 145 routes across 15 Indian and 29 European cities in 20 countries.
• Lufthansa Group carried over 131 million passengers in 2024 and operates five national airlines in Europe.
• Bilateral trade in goods between the European Union (EU) and India exceeded €120 billion in 2024, with the EU being India’s largest trading partner for goods.
• Since its privatisation in 2022, Air India has expanded to 24 codeshare partnerships and nearly 100 interline agreements, providing access to more than 800 destinations globally.