While Deutsche Luft Hansa played a significant role in the development of commercial aviation in Germany, it was liquidated in 1951 due to its association with the Nazi regime during World War II.

[17] Lufthansa traces its history to 1926 when Deutsche Luft Hansa was formed in Berlin by the merger of Deutscher Aero Lloyd, the world's sixth-oldest airline, and Junkers Luftverkehr.

During the war, the airline was focused mainly on aircraft maintenance and repair in which forced labor was employed on the site of Berlin Tempelhof Airport.

[19][20] In an effort to create a new national airline, a company called Aktiengesellschaft für Luftverkehrsbedarf (Luftag)[21] was founded in the city of Cologne in West Germany on 6 January 1953, with many of its staff having worked for the pre-war Deutsche Luft Hansa.

The United States, Soviet Union, Britain and France did not allow Lufthansa to fly to any part of the divided Berlin during the division of Germany.

The airline also embarked on a marketing campaign to encourage travelers to consider visiting West Germany as it rebuilt in the wake of World War II and to use its hub to connect to other locations across Europe.

[29] During this time, East Germany attempted to establish its own "Lufthansa" airline in 1955, but legal challenges from the West German carrier led to its abandonment.

While NASA technically had the first built 737 airframe, it was ultimately delivered last and originally intended for Lufthansa, making them the first foreign launch customer for a Boeing airliner.

Following German reunification on 3 October 1990, Lufthansa swiftly reintegrated Berlin into its network, marking the city's return as a key destination within 25 days.

Over time, the group further expanded through the addition of LSG Sky Chefs (catering), Condor (leisure travel), and Lufthansa CityLine (regional operations).

In 1999, the airline participated in a German initiative aimed at resolving wartime misdeeds, acknowledging the use of forced labor by its predecessor, Deutsche Luft Hansa.

[46] In November 2014, Lufthansa signed an outsourcing deal worth $1.25 billion with IBM that will see the US company take over the airline's IT infrastructure services division and staff.

It was revealed that Lubitz suffered from a severe case of depression and mental disorders and had intentionally crashed Germanwings Flight 9525 into the French Alps, killing all 150 aboard whereas Spohr had misleadingly said the co-pilot "was 100% airworthy without any restrictions, without any conditions".

[49] In June 2015, Lufthansa announced plans to close its small long-haul base at Düsseldorf Airport for economic reasons by October 2015.

While Lufthansa reduced its costs throughout 2020, continuing health risks and travel restrictions still caused hourly losses of approximately 500,000 euros on average at the beginning of 2021.

[74][75][76] In January 2021, Lufthansa CEO Spohr announced that the entire currently stored Airbus A340-600 fleet will be retired with immediate effect and not return to service anymore.

[citation needed] In June 2021, Lufthansa said it wants to repay state aid it received during the pandemic before Germany's federal election in September 2021 if possible.

[84][85] In May 2023, Lufthansa Group announced an agreement with the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) to acquire a 41 per cent stake in ITA Airways.

[104] Relations between Lufthansa and their pilots have been very tense in the past years, with many strikes occurring, causing many flights to be cancelled, as well as major losses to the company.

[123] In April 2012, Lufthansa completed the sale of BMI to International Airlines Group (IAG), owner of British Airways and Iberia for £172.5 million.

[128] On August 8, 2024, HCLSoftware announced intent to acquire Zeenea for 24 million euros, which is expected to continue operating as an independent unit under Actian, their data & analytics division.

On 30 March 2023, Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr visited ITA Airways headquarters in Rome to negotiate a deal to buy the Italian airline.

[138] Beginning 9 December 2024, Lufthansa is offering direct flights between Munich and São Paulo, serving 3 times per week through its Airbus A350 aircraft.

This tradition continued, with two notable exceptions, until 2010: The first was an Airbus A340-300 registered D-AIFC, named "Gander/Halifax", after two Canadian cities along the standard flight path from Europe to North America.

The name commemorates the hospitality of the communities of Gander and Halifax, which served as improvised safe havens for the passengers and crew of the multitude of international aircraft unable to return to their originating airports during Operation Yellow Ribbon after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Subsequent A380 aircraft were named after other Lufthansa Group hub airports Zürich, Wien (Vienna) and Brüssel (Brussels) and the major German cities of Düsseldorf and Berlin.

The remaining A380s were named after Star Alliance hub cities Tokyo, Beijing, Johannesburg, New York, San Francisco and Delhi.

[153] Lufthansa Technik, the airline's maintenance arm, restored a Junkers Ju 52/3m built in 1936 to airworthiness; this aircraft was in use on the 10-hour Berlin to Rome route, across the Alps, in the 1930s.

After the preparatory evaluation and minor repair in Frankfurt, the A380 departed for Lufthansa Technik in Manila, Philippines for the extensive maintenance and replacement work.

In May 2022, during a New York to Frankfurt flight, the captain alerted Lufthansa security that some passengers had failed to follow crew instructions requiring the wearing of masks and barring gathering.