A recent bright spot for the St. Louis business landscape is the growing number of direct international flights in and out of Lambert International Airport, with Lufthansa having added capacity since adding a route to Frankfurt and British Airways seasonal service to London’s Heathrow Airport launching this year.
The point was underscored yesterday during the World Trade Center St. Louis’ annual Growing Global luncheon, where British Airways’ vice president of sales for North America, Hubert Frach, revealed the airline will be adding to its service in and out of Lambert.
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“In 2027, we [will] increase the capacity by 80 percent, and over large parts of next summer, we will have a daily service in and out of St. Louis,” he said, as applause rippled through the room of nearly 700 business leaders.
The announcement came in a panel discussion focused on connecting St. Louis to global opportunities that featured airline executives from Lufthansa, Air Canada, and Southwest Airlines as well.
Frach said the expanded flights for British Airways will quickly ramp up after the airline’s seasonal service returns on March 28. The airline will begin with five flights a week (versus the four it’s been running), but expects to offer daily service in April, May, parts of June, and September and October, he said.
The expansion reflects the strong performance of the route, which Frach called a “one of the best launches” British Airways has made recently.
“There’s a clear vision and a broad community support and that’s outstanding,” he said. “What I’ve seen in St. Louis is definitely special and it’s this unity across the community, the vision, and then the execution, and that’s really strong.”
Frach added he believes it’s a testament to “how attractive St. Louis is seen in the global aviation space,” pointing to the region’s constellation of corporations with multinational footprints, as well as budding tourism draws for international travelers.
Dirk Janzen, Lufthansa’s vice president for the Americas, echoed this sentiment when he explained why the airline took the leap to reestablish St. Louis’ direct connection with mainland Europe in 2022.
“What convinced us was the strong commitment of this community,” he said. “That made the difference.”
Janzen acknowledged that Lufthansa’s early success with its route likely helped attract the competition that’s present now, but chalked that up to normal route development in the airline space.
“We took a chance and the route developed. Obviously, then the demand also grows, and then others are seeing that and then also decide to enter,” he said. “I think that’s a normal development, and there have probably been instances where it has been the other way around [with Lufthansa and British Airways].”
Janzen added Lufthansa is still distinct from British Airways service, since its flight operates the entire year, rather than seasonally, which “corporate customers, of course, appreciate.”
Vincent Gauthier-Dore, managing director for Canada and U.S. sales at Air Canada, added any kind of international connection becomes powerful leverage for the region, as foreign investors’ typical first question in talks about a potential expansion often focuses on flight connectivity.
“I still think that it is important that the business community realize how much of a lever those flights are,” he said. “So when you’re going out to the market, trying to get foreign investment, new companies to come into St. Louis, use this as a leverage.”
It’s a point that World Trade Center St. Louis executive director Tim Nowak also underscored.
“For all the ways technology has made our world smaller, something hasn’t changed. There’s still enormous value in actually being there, sitting across the table, walking through a facility, meeting a customer, shaking a hand, sharing a meal, and that’s why air connectivity is so important to the future of St. Louis,” he said.
Looking forward, both Frach and Janzen said St. Louis has the potential to grow its reputation as a good entry point into the U.S. for international travelers from Europe.
“The incoming business definitely offers a lot of potential,” Janzen said. “It’s an easy way to enter the United States, no queues. It’s a great starting point for a trip beyond.”
He added leisure travelers may enter St. Louis and then travel to other parts of the country after a stay in the Gateway City. Frach added St. Louis’ status as a “secondary airport is something that needs to be promoted.”
“If you enter the U.S. through a secondary airport, immigration is a breeze,” he said. “If you enter the U.S., for instance, through Chicago or you take JFK, it’s not that comfortable.”
To that end Frach said British Airways is working with the local tourism organization Explore St. Louis to determine which international markets are ripe for St. Louis to target with advertising and marketing.
As for what the World Trade Center expects to unfold soon, Nowak shared that the organization will be making an official trade delegation trip to Africa, after highlighting global opportunities there at the same luncheon last year. And the first new Sister City agreement in a decade will be signed between St. Louis and Kigali, Rwanda, he added.
“Business is still personal. Relationships matter. Trust matters. Being there matters,” Nowak said. “Sometimes the most important step in building an international relationship is pretty simple. You’ve got to get there.”
