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The History
lufthansa-technik.com
1
2
Lufthansa Technik
The History
Content
04 Events 1951 to 1955 28 Events 1975 to 1984 50 Events 1995 to 2004
Warm-up Steep Climb The Technik Group
Before the re-establishment of During the third decade of Separating Lufthansa Technik as an
Deutsche Lufthansa, work com- Lufthansa’s maintenance, repair independently operated compa-
menced on the construction of and overhaul activities there was ny took place at a time when the
a maintenance base for the new a significant increase in business market was becoming increasingly
airline. When the first aircraft ar- from other international customers. difficult. But the new company ’s
rived, the maintenance and repair On the European aircraft market, response was rapid and effective –
installations were ready for use. Airbus Industrie emerged as a se- new products and the development
rious competitor to the Boeing and of a global network. This strategy
12 Events 1955 to 1964 Douglas monopoly, with technical proved to be correct: Ten years later
Take off support from Lufthansa. Lufthansa Technik is a world-leading
provider of technical services for
The new Lufthansa company 38 Events 1985 to 1994 commercial aircraft.
began flight operations on 1 April Maintain Flight Level
1955. During those first years Ham- 64 Events 2005 to 2014
burg was not only the chief main- Over the years Lufthansa’s engi- Global Expansion
tenance base, but also the main neers and technicians introduced
hub for the company’s international significant improvements to the de- The 50th anniversary of the founda-
services. The jet age arrived for sign and maintenance procedures tion of the Lufthansa Group and the
Lufthansa in 1960 with the Boeing for commercial aircraft. In the early tenth birthday of Lufthansa Technik
707. 1990s the company made large AG in 2005 marked the beginning
investments in a major expansion of a decade of global expansion.
20 Events 1965 to 1974 program of its Hamburg facilities. Important milestones were the
Full Thrust opening of new sites in the growth
markets of Asia and America along
In the 1960s jet aircraft changed with a stronger focus on the estab-
the world of civil aviation. They car- lishment of partnerships with the
ried twice as many passengers as original equipment manufacturers
propeller aircraft and reached their (OEMs) of engines and compo-
destinations in half the time. At first, nents. Furthermore, the funding of
jets dominated long-range services, innovation projects, such as new
and then quickly conquered medi- products, services, and technolo-
um- and short-range routes as well. gies, set the course for a profitable
future for the world’s leading pro-
vider of technical aviation services.
3
1951 1953 1954
29 May 6 January 24 May
German Minister of Transport A new company – the Luftag Corpora- Topping-out ceremony for the first office
Hans-Christoph Seebohm appoints tion for air transport requirements – is building.
pre-war Lufthansa executive Hans set up in Cologne. Bongers runs the
M. Bongers to advise the Federal commercial and Höltje the engineering 6 August
German Government on the future side of the business. Luftag is renamed ‘Deutsche Lufthansa
commercial aspects of German civil Aktiengesellschaft’.
aviation. Another founding member of
the ‘Bureau Bongers’ was Dipl.- Ing. 30 August
Gerhard Höltje who took on responsi- The first workshop and storage building
bility for the technical side of the future has been completed.
airline.
4 October
Construction is completed of the first
half of a two-part aircraft hangar. Main-
26 June tenance technicians begin ‘dry training’
Luftag places their first order for long- in preparation for the arrival of aircraft
range aircraft, four Lockheed Super on order.
Constellations.
1952
16 January
The Bureau Bongers presents its
first report, ‘The technical basis for a
German airline’. Written by Gerhard 21 July 1 November
Höltje, the report describes the technical Construction machinery starts work The Lufthansa Hamburg staff roll lists 36
requirements for a maintenance base, preparing the land for a maintenance salaried and 86 weekly-paid employees
plus systems for maintenance and base on the southwest corner of Ham- – with an upward trend.
overhaul. burg’s Fuhlsbüttel Airport, on the site of
a former horserace track. 29 November
28 August Lufthansa’s first two Convair 340 aircraft
The Hamburg State Government – the 28 September arrive in Hamburg.
Senate – gives the Bureau Bongers its An order is placed for four short-range
support for the construction of a main- Convair 340 airliners.
tenance base. The letter was signed by 1955
a young official named Helmut Schmidt. 1 March
He later became Federal German Lufthansa begins route-proving trial
Chancellor. flights to prepare for domestic services.
26 September 31 March
The German Cabinet decides on a Official entry into service of the first
company to plan and prepare the section of the maintenance hangar
resumption of civil air transport. at Lufthansa’s Hamburg base. Each
2 December section is designed to accommodate six
30 October Luftag signs a lease with the Hamburg aircraft.
Another report from the Bureau Bongers Senate for the workshops and storage
recommends Hamburg as the location facilities already under construction and
for a maintenance base. those to follow.
4
The History
Warm-up
Warm-up
Before the re-establishment of Deutsche
Lufthansa, work commenced on the con-
struction of a maintenance base for the
new airline. When the first aircraft arrived,
the maintenance and repair installations
were ready for use.
5
The History
Warm-up
he early days of Lufthansa’s from the Hamburg State, Lufthansa went
operations in Hamburg were ahead with setting up the new mainte-
not exactly spectacular: The nance organization.
Hamburg Senate (State Gov- This followed an extended period
ernment) advised Lufthansa in under- of preparation. Although large parts of
stated tones, that “it would be possible Germany still remained severely dam-
to meet your requests in reasonable aged or destroyed by wartime bombing,
measure”. shortly after the Federal Republic of
Germany was constituted in September
A Letter from Helmut Schmidt 1949 there were the first signs of a rapid With enterprise and initiative
The letter was signed by one Helmut economic recovery. One of the essential by Helmut Schmidt
Schmidt, aged 33 and the official in prerequisites for this recovery process
charge of the State’s transport office. – later called the ‘German economic My first visit to Hamburg airport was
Schmidt was on the threshold of a miracle’ or ‘Wirtschaftswunder’ – was about 1931 or 1932 when I was 12 or
high-flying career; 22 years later he was the establishment of links to potential 13 years old. You had to hang about
elected Federal Chancellor of Germany. foreign markets. For this reason, in the for hours until an aircraft landed – a
major sensation. Delighted, I walked
The letter was addressed to the same year the then Federal Minister of
back to the underground railway and
Bureau Bongers in Cologne, where Transport Hans-Christoph Seebohm
then traveled home, happy that I had
a small group of pre-war Lufthansa asked the occupying allied powers that
been given a small Lufthansa badge
executives were quietly planning the Germany should henceforth recover with the crane bird logo.
establishment of a new German airline. ‘full decision-taking powers with respect
At that time the young Federal Republic to all issues affecting transport’. This My second visit to the airport was 20
of Germany had not regained sover- included recovery of full sovereignty years later when I was in charge of
eignty of its own airspace, and the work of the air and operation of a national Hamburg’s transport management of-
was undertaken away from the glare of airline. fice. The airport and aviation fell under
publicity. my responsibility.
On behalf of the Hamburg State, Recovery of sovereignty
I remember Hans Bongers and Ger-
Helmut Schmidt’s letter also answered of the air
hard Höltje very well, and the problems
Bureau Bongers’ question: ‘What costs The Federal German Government soon
we had to overcome at the time. It
were likely to be found it was knocking on the
wasn’t until 1955 that the Allies gave
faced by a new Western Allies’ open door. us the green light. Hereafter, the new
airline if renting Consequently, the Bonn operation was set up with much enter-
buildings and Government made budget prise and initiative. What an example
equipment to set up provisions for a new begin- for today!
a new maintenance ning. And on 29 May 1951,
center in Hamburg?’ Minister Seebohm wrote At that time all the major cities in
Another important to the Bureau Bongers Germany were vying to become the
question was wheth- that it ‘should advise the main location for the expected new
Lufthansa. I was very proud of the fact
er suitable accommo- Federal Government on
that I managed to get the decision
dation could be made issues relating to the
made in favor of Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel
available quickly for future of air transport
for the new maintenance base. It was
essential personnel, and act as a consultant plain to me then, that as time went on,
but without liability to in these matters’. In it would bring thousands of new jobs to
pay rental surcharges plain language, The Hamburg. And so it did.
for private residential Bongers team was to
property which was plan and prepare the Extract from a speech given by the
common in post-war establishment of a former Federal Chancellor of Germany,
Germany. new German airline. Helmut Schmidt on 31 March 2005, at
After receipt of the basic green light This letter effectively triggered the fu- Lufthansa Technik’s Hamburg Base.
6
ture division of labor within the Bongers
team, which was then located in the
sparsely furnished first floor of a house
in Cologne’s city center. Bongers (53)
was a businessman and he therefore
looked after the commercial aspects,
while Höltje (44) was an engineer
and as such responsible for technical
Steel scaffolding deno-
matters. tes the new construction
As early as January 1952 Höltje pre- site in Hamburg; the
old trees are still there
sented Transport Minister Seebohm with
today.
a 37-page study entitled: ‘The technical
basis for a German airline’. His far-sight-
ed report set out the maintenance and
repair systems requirements for a new
German airline. He defined the neces-
sary buildings and equipment and item-
ized the likely costs. In addition Höltje set
out in careful and diplomatic language
his first thoughts as to which airports
might be suitable for this purpose.
At that time the operational situation
indicated that a location close to the
German border would be most suita-
ble as a main base, both for flight and
maintenance operations. On the flight
operations side, long-range flights could The first building of the
technical base was a
make an intermediate stop elsewhere to hangar, still in operation
pick up more passengers. This consid- today.
eration reduced the suitable locations
to Hamburg and Munich. Behind the
scenes there ensued a heated argument
between the two cities as to which one
would have the maintenance base and
the jobs that would follow.
In October 1952 the Cologne plan-
ning team presented a list of detailed
arguments that clearly favored Ham-
burg. Firstly, maintenance should be
concentrated at an airfield where aircraft
were usually concentrated for an over-
night stop. It was further argued that an
operation based in Munich (1712 ft above
mean sea level) would cost 2 million
DM more than Hamburg (53 ft MSL). In
addition, temperatures at Munich Riem
Airport were often very high; therefore
aircraft would not always be able to take
off with a full payload.
Luftag’s founding fathers shake hands on the company’s first day: Chairman Hans M. Bongers, Fed-
eral German Minister of Transport Hans-Christoph Seebohm, Technical Director Gerhard Höltje, and
Chairman of the Supervisory Board Dr. Kurt Weigelt (l. to. r).
7
The History
Warm-up
Decision Unusual
for Hamburg working conditions
The team concluded: ‘Hamburg airport The first 20 Luftag staff members were
meets practically all the requirements cramped inside an airport workshop;
in terms of efficient airline timetable the conditions under which they
planning and a maintenance base.’ worked were most unusual, even for
This conclusion was supported in all those early post-war years. Although
aspects by Cologne University’s Faculty the first aircraft were on order and the
of Transport. maintenance buildings were under
The Bureau Bongers The Hamburg Senate remained construction, the whole business was
Hans Max Bongers was an airline man keen for Lufthansa to be based in their barely legal since Germany had not
to the core who had developed his city, as confirmed in the letter men- regained full sovereignty.
passion while working for the Junkers tioned above from Helmut Schmidt, From time to time there were spot
aircraft company in Dessau. Prior to with whom Höltje had held preliminary checks by a British officer dressed in
the end of WW2 he had become head discussions. When Schmidt had signed ‘civvies’. On one occasion he saw tech-
of operations for the original Lufthansa the letter, he flew to the Farnborough nical drawings and suspected he had
company. He acquired the nickname
Air Show in England to hold talks with tumbled upon plans to build new war-
‘Beko’ (Betriebskosten = operating
the Bongers team about specific next planes, of course absolutely forbidden.
costs) Bongers because of his con-
steps. One of those present said later: „We
stant focus on efficient operations.
After Lufthansa ceased operations Hamburg offered to construct the had great difficulty in convincing him
in 1945, he found himself in Bavaria necessary buildings and let them to that he was looking at American-sup-
thinking about resurrection of German the new airline at an attractively priced plied drawings for the Convair 340s on
civil air transport. His initial approach rent. At that time the initial estimate order.“
to the American Military Government was for capital investment of nearly 12 At this time Gerhard Höltje assem-
was met with a point blank refusal. But million DM. The city offered additional bled a team of senior managers who
at least his support for the first years in the form of left their marks on Lufthansa’s mainte-
name had be- a stepped reduction in rent and local nance operations for many years.
come known
payroll tax. For example, Joachim Alpheis had
to those who
At the beginning of 1953 the semi- studied with Höltje and worked in the
mattered.
official Bureau Bongers was absorbed Bureau Bongers; he became the main
He subse-
quently worked as an economics into the Government-owned ‘Luftag’. driving force in the subsequent devel-
consultant at Bitburg in the Eifel moun- Bongers was appointed Commercial opment of the Hamburg maintenance
tains, before moving to Cologne a Director, Höltje was named Technical operation. His tall figure and broad
few miles north of the provisional new Director. This was followed by initial shoulders were always highly visible,
German capital, Bonn. The ‘Bureau employee appointments, and orders both in the workshops and at official
Bongers’ became – more or less were placed for the first aircraft: four functions.
officially – the meeting place for those long-range Lockheed Super Constel- The team was soon joined by Kurt
who were planning a new German lations and four short-range Convair Ihssen who had been Lufthansa’s
airline. First to join was graduate engi-
340s. The Luftag supervisory board maintenance base manager at Rio de
neer Gerhard Höltje, another from pre-
then decided that the company’s main Janeiro until 1942. After WW2 he was
war Lufthansa. After the war he had
base would be in Hamburg. responsible for the development and
first worked on the maintenance of
American aircraft at Berlin’s Tempelhof This decision was taken in May 1953 expansion of the maintenance and
Airport, so he was well up to speed and the State of Hamburg reacted repair facilities for Brazilian national
with current technology. quickly. Two months later construction airline Varig. He was rapidly promoted
In May 1951 Minister of Transport Hans machinery was at work clearing a for- and placed in charge of aircraft mainte-
Christoph Seebohm engaged the mer horse racetrack next to the City’s nance and repair.
Bureau Bongers to ‘provide advice on Fuhlsbüttel airport as a building site for
the economic and technical aspects of the first maintenance hangars, work-
future German civil air transport.’ shops and office building.
8
On 29 November 1954: Luft- Topping-out cerem-
hansa’s small work force and ony for Hangar 1/2:
a lot of curious guests admire first visible sign of
the company’s first two brand the new home base
new Convair CV-340. for the Lufthansa
fleet, with the Crane
bird logo on the fin.
As yet not much is happening
in the new air craft hangar –
just two Convair airliners at
the back.
9
The History
Warm-up
Left: A big welcome in Hamburg
for Lufthansa’s first two Convairs
on 29 November 1954.
Right: Engine maintenance is one
of the first jobs required at the
Hamburg maintenance base.
Hamburg Senator Professor
Karl Schiller, Airport Director
Max Wachtel and Luftag
Board Member Gerhard
Höltje (seated, l. to r.) sign
the rental agreement for the
Hamburg base.
A Convair CV-340 parked in
front of the Hamburg hangar.
Left: Pilot training: First training cour-
se in Hamburg, relocated to Bremen
in 1956.
Right: Propeller overhaul requires a
combination of physical strength and
great care.
10Whilst the construction machines Initial training
were shifting earth at the former in form of dry runs
racetrack, the lawyers were drawing There was the additional problem of
up official documents. The rental ‘over-qualification’. American mainte-
agreement for the Hamburg base was nance handbooks had to be some-
finally signed on 2 December 1953. what simplified because German
However, all the movable inventory, craftsmen were well educated and the
machines and tools were the property English text was excessively detailed.
of the new company. As far as the practical aspects of
The first buildings consisted of work- the work were concerned, much initial Gerhard Höltje
shops and a double aircraft hangar, training was in the form of ‘dry runs’.
both of which were ready for use dur- The workshops were equipped with So well was Gerhard Höltje known
ing the course of the following year. many components, motors and other throughout the world of civil
The first office building was deliberate- equipment, but not the most impor- aviation, that his nicknames were
ly set apart from the maintenance and tant training device of them all – the an accolade in their own right. He
repair facilities. aircraft. was described as a pacemaker of
modern aviation technology, and as
Even today, there remains a small That all changed on 29 November
the underlying driving force behind
copse of oak trees between the two 1954 when the new Lufthansa’s first
the Boeing 737. His Lufthansa col-
oldest buildings. It was Höltje who two aircraft arrived at Hamburg’s Fu-
leagues simply called this enthusias-
called for their preservation: “The trees hlsbüttel Airport, flushed in the drizzle tic engineer who was later appointed
give protection from wind, give shade with which the city is so familiar. The Professor ‘Mr. Boeing’, because he
in summer, and pleasure to our work Convair 340s, registered D-ACAD and laid the foundation for close cooper-
force.” D-ACOH, bore the German flag on ation with that company. By contrast,
In the summer of 1954 the new their fins. in American aviation circles he was
Deutsche Lufthansa Aktiengesellschaft They were delivered by American known as ‘Mr. Lufthansa’.
emerged from the plans forged by pilots, but they were accompanied by
Luftag, employing just over 100 people two experienced pre-war Lufthansa Dipl.-Ing. Gerhard Höltje was one of
the founders of the new Lufthansa
in Hamburg. For most of them, civil Flight Captains, Walter Blume and
and was a member of the Board
aviation was an entirely new career. Rudolf Mayr, who was later to become
from 1953 to 1972, where he was re-
The airline had entered into an chief pilot. Mayr was from Miesbach in
sponsible for technical issues. Long
agreement with the State of Hamburg Bavaria; that is why he was known by before Lufthansa ordered its first
that it would only recruit senior salaried the nickname ‘Miesi’. aircraft, he had drafted a detailed
employees and master craftsmen The next day the maintenance plan describing the technological
from the ranks of the old Lufthansa. All crews could at last get to work on structure that would be required for
others were to be hired and trained in real aircraft. Then everything rapidly an airline. The consequence was the
Hamburg for their new jobs; so it was gathered speed, with more recruitment choice of Hamburg for a mainte-
that blacksmiths, precision mechanics, and training. nance base.
welders and turners sat side-by-side on In March 1955 Lufthansa began
Without him, the most successful
three-month intensive training courses. route-proving trials, though without
commercial airliner of all time – the
Even long-time employees from the paying passengers. On 31 March the
Boeing 737 – would have stayed
old Lufthansa had to attend training first half of the double hangar in Ham-
on the drawing board. He took early
courses run by airlines in the UK and burg was ceremonially handed over. decisions in favor of the Boeing 707
USA. Germany’s isolation after WW2 The following day came the first real and 727 long-range and medium
had cut them off from much of the test, when Lufthansa began regular range aircraft for Lufthansa’s future
technical development. By this time services. fleet. Under his auspices Lufthansa
the British and Americans were in was the first non-American airline
the technical lead, and Lufthansa had to order the Boeing 747 wide-body
a gap to make up of more than ten jet, and the first carrier worldwide to
years. order the 747F freighter.
111955 1962
1 April 16 December 1 February
Lufthansa starts domestic flights, with return The first batch of co-pilots trained by In Hamburg Lufthansa starts operation
services between Hamburg and Munich. Lufthansa commence regular flight of the first engine noise reduction test
operations. hangar in Germany.
19 April
Delivery of the first Lockheed L-1049G 5 November
Super Constellation, fondly remembered 1958 A major success and international rec-
as the ‘Super Connie’, carrying 77 pas- 2 March ognition for Lufthansa’s maintenance and
sengers and cruising at up to 530 km/h Lufthansa establishes a local technical overhaul services: the American Federal
(330 mph). liaison office with the Boeing works in Aviation Administration (FAA) gives for-
Seattle to monitor production and hando- mal permission for Lufthansa to perform
8 June ver of the 707. maintenance and overhaul on US-regis-
First intercontinental flight with a Super tered airliners and their engines.
Constellation from Hamburg to New York 17 March
via Düsseldorf and Shannon. Lufthansa begins transatlantic flights with
the Lockheed L-1649A ‘Super Star’, which 1963
was at that time the most advanced civil
air transport type in service.
1 October 1 April
Lufthansa begins its first pilot training Inauguration of a low-cost ‘Airbus’ walk-
course in Hamburg. on shuttle air service between Hamburg
1959 and Frankfurt. The Super Constellations
11 January fly at regular times; tickets are sold on
1956 Lufthansa Super Constellation D-ALAK board; there is no on-board catering
11 February accident in Rio de Janeiro, killing 29 or reserved seats. The shuttle service
Letter of intent signed for the purchase of passengers and seven of the ten crew continues until 1966.
four Boeing 707s. members.
1964
3 April 21 March
The first group of Lufthansa technical 1960 The first Boeing 727 arrives in Hamburg.
apprentices begin their training. 2 March Named the ‘Europa Jet’ by Lufthansa’s
Lufthansa enters the jet age: the first marketing department, it is easily iden-
2 May Boeing 707 lands in Hamburg tified by its high tailplane and three jet
Lufthansa opens its commercial pilot engines in the rear fuselage.
training school in Bremen. 17 March
The Boeing 707 starts service on the
15 June North Atlantic route.
Contract placed for seven Vickers
Viscounts. These four-engined turbo-
prop aircraft remained in service with
Lufthansa from late 1958 to March 1971.
5 November
Lufthansa starts ‘Paper Jet’ study to
simulate jet aircraft flights over the North
Atlantic. 1961
23 January
Lufthansa begins operating Boeing 707
1957 routes to the Far East (Bangkok - Hong 16 April
5 September Kong - Tokyo). The Boeing 727 enters regular service.
A Super Constellation flight deck simula-
tor starts operation in Hamburg. Further 20 May 31 December
simulators follow for the Vickers Viscount The Boeing 720B begins service, a Hans M.Bongers retires.
and Boeing 707. smaller long-range version of the 707.
12The History
Take off
Take off
The new Lufthansa company began flight oper-
ations on 1 April 1955. During those first years
Hamburg was not only the chief maintenance
base, but also the main hub for the company’s
international services. The jet age arrived for
Lufthansa in 1960 with the Boeing 707.
13The History
Take off
n 1 April 1955 the Lufthansa propeller, earning her the nickname of
flag was fluttering over the ‘the world’s best tri-motor’. This phe-
airports at Hamburg and Mu- nomenon was by no means exclusive
nich. Almost simultaneously, to Lufthansa; other airlines had exactly
Convair 340s bearing the company’s the same problem.
Crane bird logo on the fin, took off The engine manufacturer specified
from each airport – Lufthansa’s regular a time between overhauls of 1100
services started with flight numbers 101 hours, but in reality the interval was „As if inside a wild animal“
and 102. closer to 800 hours. For comparison, a
Further domestic and foreign desti- record-setting General Electric CF6-50 The simultaneous first
nations followed at short intervals. The powering a Lufthansa Boeing 747-200 Lufthansa flights between
first intercontinental service was flown remained on the wing for more than Hamburg and Munich made
by a Super Constellation on 8 June 26,000 hours. intermediate stops; the flight
from Hamburg to New York via Düssel- from Hamburg landed at
Düsseldorf and Frankfurt,
dorf and Shannon. The flight time was Early diagnostic
while that from Munich also
17 hours. methods landed at Frankfurt and
Even during the early years Lufthansa Cologne.
Super Connie: maintenance crews were resourceful in
A ‘diva’ their choice of diagnostic methods. The The head of public affairs
The Lockheed Super Constellation engine condition monitoring now in for the Bavarian State
was fondly known by its fans as the use has a simple precursor. Government was one of 17
‘Super Connie’ and admired as the A sample of engine oil was drained passengers on the first flight
most beautiful aircraft of all time. The through a coffee filter paper, leaving from Munich to Hamburg.
Super Connie had a three-fin tailplane a variety of metal grains. If inspection He was ecstatic and wrote in
and long-range wingtip tanks; she was revealed high aluminum content, the a newspaper article:
without doubt the most modern aircraft finger of suspicion was directed at a
“Before take-off, the pilot
of the era. For the flight and mainte- particular bolt which was promptly re-
runs up both engines for a
nance crews, however, this was no placed before engine damage ensued. final test at full power. Barely
protection from her ‘diva’ foibles. In the first years of the new restrained, the aircraft vi-
This was particularly true of the four Lufthansa, Hamburg Airport was not brates. It feels as if one were
Curtiss- Wright 18 cylinder twin-banked only the main maintenance base but sitting inside a wild animal
radial engines, each weighing more also the main hub for intercontinental about to leap.
than two tons. At that time, large aircraft flight operations. With the growth of
variable-pitch propeller technology was the international route network and There is a brief jerk, then
well developed, right down to the last frequency of services, the maintenance the aircraft hurtles down
detail. Each engine consisted of no less facilities grew very quickly. the runway. As the Convair
rotates, the passenger is
than 14,000 individual components. When the first aircraft arrived to
pressed gently into the foam
For example, there were exhaust begin service there were 124 employ-
rubber seat cushions and
gas turbines, more correctly known as ees in Hamburg. By the end of 1955 barely notices he has left the
‘power recovery units’. Engine mechan- this number had grown to 651. By ground.”
ics soon began referring to them sar- 1960, Lufthansa’s technical department
castically as ‘parts recovery units’. Any employed 2,460 engineers, technicians, The same day, Pan Amer-
tiny screw or metal fixture that became white collar workers and secretaries in ican World Airways took
detached from somewhere within the Hamburg. The terms of employment display ads in German
engine, fell with the exhaust gases into were set down by an agreement in newspapers welcoming the
the turbine, which then self-destructed. 1955; hourly wages ranged from 1.48 arrival of its new competitor:
It was not at all unusual for a Super DM to 2.15 DM in the highest-paid “Blocks Away!”
Connie to arrive home with a feathered group.
14James C. Fitzmaurice, Dr. Hans-Christoph Seebohm und Hans M. Bongers (r. to l.) The first cabin crew members were ready for flight operations in February 1955;
in New York, on the occasion of the first intercontinental scheduled flight between they started work with route proving flights in March.
Hamburg and New York.
The Vickers V-814 Viscount flew The cockpit of the Vickers Viscount
with Lufthansa until 1971. was state-of-the-art in 1958.
From 1958 the Vickers Viscount
turboprop airliner was a regular
visitor to the Hamburg main-
tenance shop.
15The History
Take off
Construction Even then, there were some unu- chased aircraft so to speak ‘off the
1955 - 1964 sual non-wage benefits: On 15 April peg’. For instance, the company’s
1955 employees were provided with choice of jet engines differed from that
After the first aircraft hangar was
a load of tasty apples free of charge. made by most other companies, but
officially handed over in March
Fresh fruit in April was a sensation in was important and correct.
1955; there followed a period of
rapid construction of Lufthansa
Germany at that time. The secret was The standard powerplant for the
maintenance facilities. that on its delivery flight from Burbank 707 was the American-made Pratt &
in California, the company’s first Super Whitney JT4A. Lufthansa, however, held
Hamburg Constellation had brought cases of back the decision until the British com-
1955 Test cells for piston and fresh apples. pany Rolls-Royce had finished devel-
turboprop engines In the first few years Lufthansa’s opment of the Conway engine. It was
Hamburg operation looked more like a both lighter and quieter than the JT4A,
1957 Simulator Building building site than a maintenance base. was less expensive and consumed
In a very short time the company had less fuel. With the same amount of fuel,
1958 Engine shop with appren-
to erect new buildings and essential the Conway powered 707 could either
tice training facilities; additional
equipment – docks for airframe access, carry a bigger payload or fly further.
offices.
machines, test gear and tools. Thus, Lufthansa became the first airline
1959 Hydraulics workshop to fly a full payload Frankfurt- Chicago
with test stand; extension of Advent of non-stop.
the existing powerplant shop to the jet age In order to prepare for all aspects
accommodate jet engines. But even though the world was still of operating the next generation of
buying propeller-driven aircraft, all eyes aircraft, in November 1956 Lufthansa
1960 Second double hangar were on the horizon and the advent started a ‘Paper Jet’ study to simulate
building, further workshops. of the jet age. In 1959 the powerplant flight operations between Frankfurt and
maintenance and repair workshops New York using performance figures
1962 Noise-protection hang-
were extended to make provision for jet for the Boeing prototype.
ar, canteen, equipment repair
engines. These were combined with meteor-
workshop.
It was self-evident that Lufthansa ological data such as wind speed and
1963 Jet engine test stand. would order jet-powered aircraft as direction, flight visibility and air traffic
soon as these became available. After density at the destination. The study
1964 Materials warehouse with careful consideration of all the pros produced data which subsequently
administration building. and cons, Lufthansa decided against proved to be quite realistic on such
the Douglas DC-8 and in favor of the vital matters as take-off weight, cruise
Frankfurt Boeing 707. altitude, flight duration and fuel con-
1960 Official handover of the The famous Dash 80 prototype of sumption.
‘Butterfly Hangar’, at that time the Boeing 707 had made its success-
the biggest aircraft maintenance
ful first flight in the summer of 1954. Maintenance
building in the world.
Eighteen months later Lufthansa signed base Frankfurt
a letter of intent for the purchase of its The introduction of jet aircraft was
first Boeing 707s. The arrival of jet-pow- accompanied by far-reaching chang-
ered passenger airliners represented a es because Frankfurt was chosen as
quantum leap in civil air transport. Not Lufthansa’s main base for the jets’ line
only did they fly twice as fast and high maintenance and flight operations. The
as their propeller-powered predeces- jets offered much more range than
sors; they carried double the number piston-engined aircraft. Therefore, the
of passengers over much greater factors which, years before, had resulted
distances. in the original choice of Hamburg as the
Now Lufthansa would not be main operational base no longer held
Lufthansa, if its engineers had pur- good.
16Even today, the
Lockheed Super
Constellation is still
seen by its fans as the
most beautiful aircraft
of the era.
The Curtiss-Wright double-banked radial piston engine was highly
Not only good-looking, complex, but not particularly reliable; for which reason airline people
the Super- Connie’s referred to the Super Connie as ‘The world’s best trimotor aircraft’.
long-range tip tanks.
Four ‘Super Connies’ are
prepared in Hamburg for
their next long-range flight.
17The History
Take off
The advent of jets meant that
Lufthansa technicians had to take in an
enormous amount of new information
and training, for at that time very few
people in Germany had experience
of jet aero engines. After the war the
victorious allies had put a full stop to
German involvement in jet engines.
During their studies, young engineers
might have gained some experience of
simple steam turbines, but no more.
Then there were new technologies of
airframe construction and pressurized
cabins. Jet engines made a lot more ADELE (automatic data-logging by punch card entry) was the
precursor of modern computer systems.
noise than piston engines; so the com-
pany built a noise-insulated engine test
The centerline engine in the Boeing 727 rear fuselage under
cell and even a noise-insulated hangar maintenance.
for ground testing of aircraft engines
in order to minimize the impact on the
neighboring community.
International links
As in the early years of operation,
international links between technicians
helped the company through this chal-
lenging period. Other airlines such as
Air France, Sabena, Swissair and KLM
shared their technical knowledge with
Lufthansa on such matters as tooling
and equipment, laying the foundation
for subsequent technical cooperation
between members of the European
ATLAS Group of airlines.
This technical assistance fell upon
fertile ground. Very soon the Hamburg
maintenance base had such a good
One of the first Boeing 7 27s in the
command of the new technology, that in Hamburg maintenance dock.
1962 the US Federal Aviation Admin-
istration gave Lufthansa the formal
authority to maintain and overhaul
US-registered commercial airliners and
engines. This recognized the very high
standards achieved by the company’s
technical division.
On 2 March 1960 the sirens
screamed over Lufthansa’s Hamburg
base, but were soon drowned by the
high-pitched whine of four turbine en-
gines when the first Boeing 707, finished
18in Lufthansa’s blue-yellow-white house
livery, landed at Fuhlsbüttel Airport.
The jet age arrived
for Lufthansa with At the controls of this 25 million DM
the Boeing 707, seen aircraft registered D-ABOB were Chief
here shortly after Pilot Rudolf Mayr and Captain Werner
landing in Hamburg.
Utter, who later joined the executive
board and was in charge of flight oper-
ations.
The Boeing 707 and (from 1961)
the slightly smaller 720B variant took
Lufthansa’s medium and long-range
routes by storm. But just around the
corner was the next in line: the Boeing
727.
Boeing 727:
Unique appearance
The 727 presented a unique appear-
ance in the sky, with its high T-tail and
three jets in the rear fuselage. Very early
on, Lufthansa recognized the great po-
tential of this short- and medium-range
jet and was the first European airline
to place an order, for a batch of twelve.
The Boeing 727 entered scheduled
service in April 1964 and was an instant
success. Now Lufthansa was able to
offer its passengers the same degree
of speed and comfort on their Euro-
pean and Middle East routes that they
already enjoyed on long-range flights.
The 727 flew just as fast as the big 707,
had the same cabin cross-sectional
area, and hence exactly the same seat-
ing comfort. Even better, passengers
Lufthansa built Germany ’s first noise-reduction engine test liked the fact that the rear-mounted en-
hangar in Hamburg; it entered service in 1962.
gines minimized cabin noise and stress.
Lufthansa success was also reflected
in its financial results; for the first time
since its foundation the company made
a profit of DM37 million in 1963.
191965 1968
10 February 1 November
World Premiere: The Boeing 737 The company’s Chief Pilot Werner Utter
commences scheduled services with joins the Lufthansa Board, the first Flight
Lufthansa. Dubbed the ‘City Jet’, it rapidly Captain so appointed.
establishes short-haul services. establish-
es shorthaul services.
1973
16 February
19 February Lufthansa accepts its 100th Boeing jet, a
Lufthansa becomes the launch customer 727. During the delivery flight the aircraft
for the Boeing 737, whose technical con- transports a cargo of 5,000 juicy steaks
cept has been significantly influenced by as a gift from Boeing for the personnel at
the company’s engineering team. the Hamburg maintenance base.
10 November
Delivery of Lufthansa’s first jet-powered
cargo aircraft, a Boeing 707, named
‘America’. 1969
14 March
December The ATLAS agreement is signed by
First fleet rollover: the four Boeing 720B Lufthansa, Air France, Alitalia and Sabena,
aircraft are retired in favor of the larger under which these airlines agree joint
and improved Boeing 707. maintenance arrangements for the Boe-
ing 747. Iberia joins in 1972. November
The first global oil crisis. Lufthansa has
1966 to cancel or merge flights. The oil crisis
25 January 1970 urges manufacturers to develop more
A Convair Metropolitan operated by 9 March fuel-efficient jet engines.
Lufthansa stalls during an aborted landing Lufthansa’s first Boeing 747-100 lands in
at Bremen, killing all 46 persons on Frankfurt.
board. The cause of the accident is never 1974
fully established.. 14 April
The Lufthansa Board determines that all
27 June jet engines in the company’s Boeing 727
The era of wide-body jets begins for and 737 will be retrofitted with environ-
Lufthansa with an order placed for three mentally friendly combustion chambers.
Boeing 747-100s.
26 April
The Boeing 747-100 begins scheduled
services. It is the first Lufthansa aircraft
to be fitted with an in-flight entertainment 14 January
system for passengers. The first McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-30
enters service with Lufthansa. It is used on
1967 long range routes for which the Boeing
1 May 1971 747 would be uneconomic.
The Lufthansa flight training school trans- 31 March
fers most of its non-academic operations The era of propeller-powered aircraft 20 November
to San Diego in California, subsequently comes to an end for Lufthansa; the last Lufthansa Boeing 747 accident on takeoff
(1970) to Phoenix, Arizona. Vickers Viscount is retired. at Nairobi Airport. The aircraft’s leading
edge slats were not deployed. 58 occu-
6 October 19 April pants die, 97 are injured.
The Super Constellation makes its last Lufthansa becomes the first airline to op-
scheduled flight for Lufthansa. erate the cargo version of the Boeing 747.
1 July
Dipl.-Ing. Reinhardt Abraham is appointed
to Technical Director on the Lufthansa Ex-
ecutive Board, succeeding Prof. Gerhard
Höltje.
20The History
Full Thrust
Full Thrust
In the 1960s jet aircraft changed the world of
civil aviation. They carried twice as many
passengers as propeller aircraft and
reached their destinations in half the time.
At first, jets dominated long-range services,
and then quickly conquered medium- and
short-range routes as well.
21The History
Full Thrust
uring the 1960s the pace of nance and pilot training. The Saga
of the Rear
aviation technology advanced The negotiations with Boeing were
Stairs
at an enormous rate. Propel- long and difficult. Both sides had
by Ernst
ler-powered aircraft were rap- known each other well since 1954, Simon
idly left behind; fast jets ruled the skies. when the first emissaries from Seat-
But then came a major new departure: tle had made their attendance upon
wide-body jets, dubbed ‘Jumbo Jets’ by the Bureau Bongers in Cologne. In
the popular press. addition, Lufthansa had become an
But Lufthansa’s first job was to try important customer. For about 40 years the rumour has
and persuade Boeing to build a new But were these reasons enough to been doing the rounds that I had
short and medium-range aircraft, the design and build a totally new aircraft; designed the rear door and air
737. especially when Boeing itself was not stairs for the Boeing 737-100. This is
a nice story, and flatters me greatly.
In the mid-1960s Lufthansa was well totally convinced?
Unfortunately, it is also incorrect.
equipped with medium and long-range Back in Germany, criticisms were
The truth is :
aircraft in the shape of the Boeing 707 voiced in the media: a leading news
and 727. But the company’s technical magazine said that the 737 devel- For reasons of passenger conveni-
and commercial teams wanted a jet to opment was out of line with market ence, our sales people wanted the
replace propeller-powered short-range requirements and was destined to be 737 to have side access doors with
aircraft. a flop. But Lufthansa was convinced it integral air stairs at both the front
In theory that should not have been was right and ignored the criticisms. and rear. In those days there were
a problem. The French-built Caravelle However, even the wildest optimists few airports with the jetways now in
had been in service for several years, would not have dared to predict that general use.
the British had the BAC 1-11, and the initially un-loved Boeing 737 would
In response to Lufthansa’s wishes,
Douglas in the USA had started series become the most successful com-
Boeing designed an electric-pow-
production of the DC-9. All three types mercial jet aircraft of all time – about
ered mechanical marvel. The door
had common features: five seats in 13,000 had been built so far.
opened inwards, while the stairs
each row (3 + 2) and two jet engines in naturally deployed outwards. Both
the rear fuselage. Grinding of teeth in Seattle the door and stairs were fairly
It was not until Lufthansa let it be heavy. On top of that, there was the
Demand on Boeing known it might switch to Douglas that need for battery back-up. We found
However, Höltje and his team were not Boeing gave in and began to design all this additional weight unaccept-
happy with this arrangement. They want- the 737, as one observer put it: “grind- able.
ed an aircraft with the engines installed ing their teeth and without enthusiasm”.
in pods under the wings because The first 737 seated 86 passengers At the time I happened to be in
Seattle and suggested to our
this gave more space in the cabin for and met all require-
American friends how they could do
passengers, six seats ments of the Höltje
the job more easily and lighter: with
per row, and a team. In February a door that opened outwards and
cabin with the 1965 the Lufthansa a hand-deployed staircase. That’s
same cross-sec- Supervisory Board what they finally built.
tional area as the gave permission
Boeing 707 and to order 22 Boe- Prof. Ernst Simon who was head of
727. In addition, ing 737-100 at a Technical Project Engineering for
they wanted a two- price of exactly $ many years, sadly died in March
man cockpit with as 2,983,936 each. 2014 at the age of 92. Although
much commonality The Lufthansa he had been retired for quite some
time, his vast knowledge was still
as possible with the launch order
in demand by many. With him the
727. This design quickly trig-
international aviation business lost a
would make for great gered fol- highly reputed insider.
synergies in mainte- low-on bookings
22from others such as United, a leading flight crews still fondly refer to the 737 and the thrust reverser on the Pratt &
American airline. Subsequently, Boeing as ‘Bobby’ – the name was borrowed Whitney jet engines. Lufthansa post-
produced many further variants. from a children’s story book now long poned acceptance of several 737s until
Lufthansa replaced its 737 twin-jets since out of print, ‘Bobby Boeing Earns these problems were solved. At one
several times in a series of ‘rollover’ His Wings’. This entertaining book tells time there was a line of 737-200 aircraft
programs and purchased a total of 140 the story of Bobby’s construction and bearing the crane logo on their fins
Boeing 737s of various types over the his adventures in flight operations. and parked outside the Boeing factory.
years. Like any new aircraft, the Boeing There they remained until the autopilots
From 1968 Lufthansa marketed the 737 had teething troubles. There were had been modified to the satisfaction of
Boeing 737 as the ‘City Jet’. Even now, problems with aerodynamic details the Lufthansa’s engineers.
The Boeing 727
cockpit as seen
by the crew.
Two generations side-
byside; the Boeing 727 (l.)
rapidly displaced the older
Vickers Viscount.
23The History
Full Thrust
Boeing did not see Lufthansa as
being the easiest customer to please.
In 1958 the company had set up a
liaison office with Boeing in Seattle. It
was staffed by experienced and highly
qualified technicians whose job was
to monitor in detail the construction,
assembly and testing of each aircraft
destined for Lufthansa.
Their objective was to ensure that an
aircraft destined for Lufthansa service
not only was technically perfect but
More construction also that the manufacturer adhered
1965 to 1973 to the company’s quality guidelines
during the entire construction phase.
This cooperation within the Boeing
Hamburg factory was highly beneficial to both
1965 Seating and upholstery sides; the local German team made
workshop many suggestions for improvements
that were gladly incorporated into wider
1966 New engine shop
series production.
But even before the first flight of
1967 Energy Supply Center
the Boeing 737, a new shape was on
1968 Office Building C, heating the drawing board – the Boeing 747
central captured the imagination of engineers
and the media alike. It was the first
1969 School of technical training commercial wide-body jet.
1972 Electro-plating building, Boeing 747 at the start
central workshop The origins of the 747 were simple
and logical. The American Department
1973 High-rack warehouse
of Defense had wanted a long-range
heavy transport aircraft. The Boeing nearly three years later, followed by
Frankfurt design was rejected, but the company numerous bookings as long-range
1970 Widebody jet maintenance decided to use its expertise gained traffic became stronger. In March 1969
hangar. Like the ‘Butterfly Hangar’ at the C-5 project as the basis for the Lufthansa was the launch customer for
built in the early 1960s, at that construction of a completely new civil the 747 freighter. By 2005, the German
time it was the biggest in the aircraft which they named 747. Initially, carrier had purchased a total of 61
world. few international air carriers showed Boeing Jumbo Jets.
interest; only the US flag carrier PanAm Following the introduction of the first
soon placed an initial order for 25. generation of civil jet aircraft, the Boe-
Otherwise, sales of the 747 were ing 747 represented the second major
slow in its early years. Although Höltje’s revolution in air transport within hardly
team was convinced that the wide- more than a decade. The 70-metre
body jet had a good future, Lufthansa fuselage accommodated between 350
initially hung back but later became and 380 passengers, depending upon
the first non-American carrier to order the seat plan. The gross takeoff weight
the Jumbo – three 747-100s. The next was 300 tons and the range was 9,000
Lufthansa orders for the 747 followed km.
24My First Day...
by Wolfgang
Mayrhuber
At half past
seven in the
morning of 2
February 1970
I stood in the
office of Wolfgang Hergesell, then in
charge of Hamburg’s engine mainte-
nance. He was known world-wide by
the nickname of ‘Mr. Engine’. Within
the company he had the reputation
as an energy-charged full-blooded
Lufthansa man to the core. He was
a charismatic leader, respected and
feared alike.
There were jobs to be allocated but
there was no time to spare for pleas-
antries. While Hergesell was outlining
the responsibilities of a planning engi-
neer I raised my hand with a question
and he took it that I wanted this job.
So there was I, the new boy, thrown
right in the deep end.
Lufthansa’s first Boeing
747-100 arrives in Frank- The cold water was refreshing, and
furt on 9 March 1970; it the responsibility great. My first task
entered scheduled ser- was to prepare the job sheets for
vice a few weeks later.
retrofitting thrust-reversers and heat
exchangers to the JT9 engines power-
ing the Boeing 747-200.
Behind the cockpit and reached by From 1974 it was operated on routes I shared an office with a dozen col-
a spiral staircase, there was a short where Lufthansa could not fill the 350 leagues. There were four telephones
and one typewriter. Nevertheless,
top-deck in which Lufthansa and other seats in the 747.
with maximum concentration on the
airlines initially installed a lounge with Lufthansa had long since determined
essential things and a tab of Tipp-Ex
a small bar for First-Class passengers. that servicing its jet fleet – that is all correction paper, it worked well. We
This arrangement was soon changed the technical maintenance which can were kept very busy and thoroughly
when it was realized that more seats be performed without taking an aircraft enjoyed our work.
would earn more profit. The bar was out of circulation – should be located
removed. However, there were some as close as possible to an operation- From 1995 to 2000, Wolfgang May-
long-range routes for which the 747 al base. For this reason all regular rhuber was Chairman of the Executive
was too large and the 707 too small. maintenance up to the annual C-Check Board of Lufthansa Technik AG. From
After long deliberations, Lufthansa’s takes place in Frankfurt. In 1960 the June 2003 until December 2010
commercial and technical teams company therefore built a new mainte- Chairman of the Executive Board and
CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. In
decided to buy, for the first time, a jet nance hangar, which at that time was
May 2013 Mayrhuber was elected to
aircraft not built by Boeing. The tri-jet the biggest hangar in the world, on the
join the Lufthansa Supervisory Board
McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-30 was a edge of Frankfurt’s Rhein-Main of which he is chairman to this day.
250-seat twin-aisled wide-body aircraft. Airport
25The History
Full Thrust
Its unusual architecture earned the End of an era
name ‘Butterfly Hangar’; it was joined in In Hamburg and Frankfurt the era of
1970 by the ‘Jumbo Hangar’. Frankfurt Lufthansa’s founding fathers came to
is also the work station for the com- an end in 1972. Reinhardt Abraham,
pany’s technical pilot, who acts as an an aviation and business engineer
interface between flight operations and who had been with the company since
the maintenance organization. Ham- 1956, joined the Board as Technical
burg became the main technical base Director in succession to Prof. Gerhard
and concentrates on overhaul. Höltje.
This work embraces checks and Joachim Alpheis retired; under his
Supersonic? No Thanks!
repairs to airframes, components, cabin leadership the Hamburg Lufthansa
Lufthansa gave but brief serious refurbishment, equipment, instruments maintenance base had become an
consideration to the possibility of and engines, for which a separate internationally recognized technology
supersonic air traffic. In-line with the workshop complex had been built. center in less than two decades. He
times, the company took options on was succeeded by Dr. Alban Rupp,
three Concordes. However, given the New principles who until then had been in charge of
rising cost of kerosene and massive in maintenance the Frankfurt line maintenance opera-
protests from the environmental The victory march of the jets and the tions.
lobby about supersonic bangs, they relatively rapid demise of propeller Abraham and Rupp took on their
let the options lapse.
powered aircraft brought commensurate new tasks at a difficult time. The first
changes to the company’s maintenance world oil crisis had stalled the German
In the 1960s there were two possible
choices, the Anglo-French Concorde,
operations. economic miracle and in 1974 there
or the US Supersonic Transport There was a progressive change from was a more than six percent decline
project initiated by President John F. ‘life cycle’ and ‘fixed-interval’ mainte- in Lufthansa passengers. In addition,
Kennedy. Both Lockheed and Boeing nance to ‘on-condition maintenance’. profits suffered from the progressive in-
drew up plans for a 250-seat aircraft. This means that components are no crease in international value of the DM.
The Lockheed design had a double longer removed according to a strict The de-facto progressive revaluation
delta planform, while Boeing went schedule but when their condition calls of the DM against the US dollar hit the
for a variable-geometry swing-wing for action. Under the on-condition phi- company’s maintenance operations
design, the 2707. losophy, a repair is made whenever a hard. In Hamburg, a new business
defect is to be expected or is at an early sector had just begun a period of rapid
Prof. Ernst Simon was at that time
stage. This may sound a little risky, but growth: providing technical services for
responsible for aircraft evaluation
in Lufthansa’s engineering division.
in reality poses no threat to safety. Every airlines not belonging to the Lufthansa
He remembers: “All that was much aircraft has a duplicate set of all vital group, and private operators of civil
too complicated. As far as we were systems; redundancy is a fundamental airliners.
concerned the operating costs of the principle of airliner construction. Because of the international strength
American designs were much too Secondly, Lufthansa engineers have of the German currency, labor costs
high, while the Concorde could only developed effective monitoring and increased disproportionately in relation
transport 100 First-Class passengers. diagnostic procedures which provide re- to the international standard method of
None of these designs could have liable information on the point at which invoicing in US dollars.
been operated by Lufthansa at a problems may occur in the life cycle of
profit.”
an engine or other component, whether
this be mechanical wear or failure, and
their possible consequences.
It is no exaggeration to say that
Lufthansa’s maintenance engineers
have been pioneers in developing
on-condition maintenance, in which they
retain a world-leading role.
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