FRANKFURTGerman flag carrier Lufthansa is unlikely to return its fourteen grounded Airbus A380s to service. The airline will instead expand its widebody fleet with 20 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Jets on order.

"At Lufthansa, fourteen A380-800s and ten A340-600s, among others, have been permanently decommissioned," said Chief Executive Carsten Spohr during the presentation of the company's annual results.

According to the German group's annual financial report, six superjumbos are already scheduled for retirement, and the remaining eight just as "temporarily decommissioned. Spohr, however, said that the remaining eight A380 aircraft wouldn't ever be reactivated while looking at the issue from today's perspective. The six retired superjumbos will be sold back to Airbus in 2022 and 2023.

"The A340-600 sub-fleets and the eight A380s remaining after the agreed sale of six aircraft in 2022 and 2023 have been fully decommissioned for several years," Lufthansa Group said in the report.

The group will focus on smaller widebody aircraft, which are better suited to the expected low-demand environment. Spohr confirmed that at least some of the twenty Boeing 787-9s the group has on firm order from Boeing will go to Lufthansa.

Boeing's Dreamliner jets are due to deliver between 2022 and 2025. Lufthansa also holds options for another 20.