On Tuesday, a Lufthansa Cargo Boeing 777F with the registration D-ALFH was officially named "Namaste India" at Mumbai Airport. The cargo ship has been part of the Lufthansa Cargo fleet since August 2020.

The naming ceremony had to be postponed due to the Covid pandemic. On May 31, the naming ceremony ahead of the departure of LH8361 from Mumbai to Frankfurt could be held by Ashwin Bhat, Chief Commercial Officer at Lufthansa Cargo, and in the presence of J. Florian Pfaff, Vice President Asia Pacific at Lufthansa Cargo, customers and station employees .

Following the guiding principle of "Say hello around the world", Lufthansa Cargo has been naming its aircraft after the most important markets within its global route network since 2013. The respectful greeting "Namaste India", which is widespread in Hindu culture, symbolizes the close bond that exists between Lufthansa Cargo and India.

The cargo airline has had a longstanding relationship with customers in the Indian air cargo industry since 1959 and has continued to grow its cargo business since the 1970s. Lufthansa Cargo has continuously expanded its connections and capabilities. Currently only Mumbai is served four times a week, Bengaluru and Chennai twice a week from Frankfurt with B777F freighters. In addition, there are further cargo capacities in the passenger planes from Frankfurt and Munich to Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai. In 2021, Lufthansa Cargo transported nearly 65,000 tons of cargo to and from India. In 2019 (pre-Covid), the annual total volume of freight transported to and from India was over 108,000 tons, using full capacity.

Like all 15 aircraft in the Lufthansa Cargo fleet, the twin-engine Boeing 777F "Namaste India" (D-ALFH) is highly fuel-efficient, making a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions. In addition, this aircraft type meets the strict requirements of ICAO Annex 16, Volume I, Chapter 14 in the field of noise protection.