Corps. Draw Lufthansa To Portland

Lufthansa German Airlines today announced it will launch daily service between Portland, Ore., and its Frankfurt hub, effective May 31, 2003. The carrier was swayed, in part, by financial commitments from local corporations that will use Lufthansa AirPlus, a successful centralized corporate billing and settlement mechanism in Germany, to administer their programs. "AirPlus has been working with the Port of Portland through a travel bank to bring Lufthansa to Portland," confirmed an AirPlus rep.

Sources close to the deal said travel banks compiled by corporations have brought carriers into new domestic markets several times in the past. But Lufthansa's decision to serve Portland--which will be the carrier's 18th and smallest North American gateway--may be the first time such a strategy successfully attracted a foreign carrier to a U.S. city.

Lufthansa will operate the service with 247-seat Airbus A340 aircraft. Oregon tourism officials said the new flights will save travelers an average of four to eight hours in each direction.