Lufthansa Cargo and DB Schenker Join Forces for CO2 Reduction

The Lufthansa Cargo freighter D-ALFG is now labeled with ‘Flying 100% CO2 neutral powered by DB Schenker’. The inscription on a Boeing 777F highlights CO2 reduction through Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Both companies have been collaborating on climate protection for ten years and have now launched a concrete offering in the market.

(Essen/Frankfurt) On Wednesday, the Lufthansa Cargo freighter with the registration D-ALFG took off for the first time with a very special design: The inscription ‘Flying 100% CO2 neutral powered by DB Schenker’ along with an illustration of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) powerfully showcases the joint mission of Lufthansa Cargo and DB Schenker. Both companies have been working together on climate protection for ten years and have now launched a concrete offering in the market. By using SAF, which is based on extensive research, the cargo airline and the logistics provider are accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels to make the entire air freight industry more climate-friendly. Since April, they have been offering weekly CO2-neutral freight services between Frankfurt and Shanghai. The aircraft, with its special livery, draws attention to the topic of SAF and invites customers to transport their cargo CO2-neutrally. For Deutsche Bahn and DB Schenker, this is only the third time that the company logo has been seen on an aircraft.

Support for Sustainability Goals

“We are pleased to have DB Schenker as a partner who is vigorously promoting the reduction of CO2 in the air freight industry. The special livery gives us the opportunity to raise global awareness of our joint commitment. This also shows that we take the support of the United Nations’ sustainability goal ‘Climate Action’ very seriously. The increased use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel and a modern freighter fleet are significant measures to sustainably reduce our CO2 emissions,” explains Ashwin Bhat, Board Member for Product and Sales at Lufthansa Cargo. Thorsten Meincke, Board Member for Air and Sea Freight at DB Schenker, adds: “Sustainability is not a nice-to-have. Our declared goal is to transport more goods in an environmentally friendly manner. We focus on where it is particularly important to take action – air traffic! Together with Lufthansa Cargo, we offer a regular CO2-neutral freight flight connection. We are now celebrating this milestone visibly on an aircraft. We are proud that we have already been able to excite many customers about our green offering. We are pleased that this special jet is literally carrying the awareness of our partnership further into the world.”

100 Percent Greenhouse Gas Neutral Freight Connection

After the first CO2-neutral freight cycle of Lufthansa Cargo and DB Schenker from Frankfurt to Shanghai in November 2020, the companies are offering a 100 percent greenhouse gas neutral freight connection between Europe and Asia throughout the entire Lufthansa Cargo summer flight schedule. The fuel requirement on the Frankfurt-Shanghai route and back is completely covered by SAF. This saves around 174 tons of conventional kerosene each week. Sustainable Aviation Fuel is primarily produced from biomass waste, such as used plant and cooking oils. Therefore, only CO2 is released during combustion in the engine, which was previously absorbed from the atmosphere during the growth of the plants. The greenhouse gases generated during the production and transport of the fuel are also fully compensated through certified offset projects. This achieves complete greenhouse gas neutrality for the flights.
Photo: © Lufthansa Cargo