The first daily nonstop flight from Munich to Denver landed Saturday, marking a major step forward in local officials’ efforts to attract more international flights.
The new Munich route, operated by German airline Lufthansa, makes Denver a gateway, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said. Growth in international flights “continues to define Denver as an international city,” he said.
The Airbus A340-300 plane that flew in from the German city taxied to its gate on Denver International Airport’s Concourse A through a celebratory water arch sprayed by two airport firetrucks.
Hickenlooper said the new route could bring in more than 30,000 international visitors a year.
The flights “become a catalyst for commerce,” Hickenlooper said.
Lufthansa now has two daily flights between Denver and Germany – one to Munich and one to Frankfurt.
Many flights on the Denver-Munich route are about 90 percent full or more in coming weeks, said Harry Huff, a regional sales manager for Lufthansa.
A delegation of about 30 people, including officials from Denver, the state of Colorado, Munich Airport and Lufthansa, flew in on the Saturday flight.
The city of Denver, state of Colorado and the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. offered $2 million in incentives to Lufthansa for starting the Denver- Munich flight. That amount would be pro- rated if Lufthansa reduces the frequency of the flight to five times a week during the winter, as the carrier is considering.
Shar Weiser, who lives in Wiggins and was to travel to Germany with her husband on the inaugural Denver-to-Munich flight Saturday, said she may make the trip more often because of the nonstop flight.
To get to Munich in the past, she would typically have a stopover in the United States, which “really takes a toll on you.”
A nonstop flight, she said, “is a considerable improvement.”
Staff writer Kelly Yamanouchi can be reached at 303-954-1488 or kyamanouchi@denverpost.com.
