Lufthansa Cargo has started its new short and medium-haul freighter flights in Europe with the maiden flight of its Airbus 321 freighter on March 15 from Frankfurt (FRA) to Dublin (DUB) before continuing to Manchester (MAN).

Lufthansa Cargo's first A321 freighter — named "Hello Europe" — was loaded with express freight and general cargo on its maiden flight.

The twin-engine aircraft is operated by Lufthansa Group's CityLine and a second A321 freighter will be added to the network in August.

Both aircraft will be operated under a wet-lease agreement by Lufthansa CityLine, each under Lufthansa Cargo's flight number.

E-commerce growth cited

Lufthansa said with the launch of the intra-Europe network, the cargo airline now offers same-day and e-commerce solutions within Europe and to selected medium-haul destinations.

"With this market launch, Lufthansa Cargo is responding to the continued growth in demand from the e-commerce industry and can thus offer customers even more capacity and additional fast connections," it said.

The first A321F will serve medium-haul destinations: Dublin (DUB), Manchester (MAN), Istanbul (IST), Tel Aviv (TLV), Malta (MLA), and Tunis (TUN).

Lufthansa Cargo noted that in the summer schedule, the carrier will also add flights to Cairo (CAI) starting March 29. The partially new stations in the freighter network will be served two to three times a week from and to Frankfurt (FRA).

Lufthansa Cargo chief executive Dorothea von Boxberg said e-commerce items would mostly occupy the freighter for delivery within Europe.

"One segment that is growing very fast is e-commerce but there are also others such as spare parts and other time-sensitive goods," van Boxberg said.

"We have been carrying e-commerce in belly holds but we realized that the little space we have in the bellyhold of a continental aircraft is just not enough for e-commerce needs."

Lufthansa Cargo last operated intra-Europe freighter flights in the 2000s carrying mail in nighttime flights.

The Airbus A321s, which have been converted to freighters, offer a payload of 28 metric tons with a range of 3,500 kilometers. The conversion allows the use of standardized cargo pallets on the main deck as well.

Aside from the A321F, to date, Lufthansa Cargo also operates a freighter fleet of currently 15 of its own B777F aircraft.