Lufthansa Group Strengthens Wet Lease Partnership With AirBaltic

AirBaltic Joins Forces with Lufthansa

Lufthansa Group has signed an agreement to acquire a convertible share representing a 10 percent stake in the Latvian airline airBaltic. The share will be issued at a subscription price of 14 million euros. Additionally, Lufthansa Group will gain a seat on the airBaltic Supervisory Board.

The convertible share will be converted into ordinary shares upon a potential IPO of AirBaltic. The size of the stake will be determined by the market pricing of the possible IPO, with Lufthansa Group’s share amounting to at least 5 percent of AirBaltic.

This transaction builds on the existing wet-lease agreement between Lufthansa Group and airBaltic and aims to strengthen airBaltic’s role as a strategic partner of Lufthansa Group. Expanding this commercial cooperation allows Lufthansa Group to enhance the quality of its network and add new markets. Additionally, further product development of the wet lease services, in line with customer expectations, is planned.

The transaction’s closing, subject to antitrust review, is anticipated to close in the second quarter of this year.

The wet-lease agreement between Lufthansa Group and airBaltic was recently extended for an additional three years beyond the summer of 2025. This partnership enables the flexible deployment of up to 21 additional aircraft of the fuel-efficient Airbus A220-300 in the summer and five aircraft of this type in the winter across various Lufthansa Group hubs. Lufthansa Group is thus responding more adaptively to increased customer demand in the summer.

With the additional capacities from airBaltic, high-demand destinations in the route networks can be served even more flexibly in the future. At the same time, it enhances the quality and stability of connections to Lufthansa Group Airlines’ intercontinental services at the Group’s hubs.

AirBaltic is Latvia’s most significant national airline, headquartered in Riga, operating a fleet of 50 modern and fuel-efficient Airbus A220 aircraft. The Lufthansa Group has been collaborating with airBaltic since 2019, and it has proven to be a reliable and valuable partner.