Germanwings was a German low-cost carrier and subsidiary of Lufthansa, established to compete in the budget airline segment across European routes. Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Cologne, Germany, it operated primarily out of Cologne Bonn Airport and later expanded to other German cities. In 2013, Lufthansa restructured its operations and transferred a significant portion of its point-to-point European routes to Germanwings, making it Lufthansa's primary vehicle for non-hub European flights. The airline operated under the Eurowings brand umbrella as part of Lufthansa Group's low-cost strategy. Germanwings ceased operations in April 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic's devastating impact on aviation. The airline is also tragically remembered for Flight 4U9525 in March 2015, when a co-pilot deliberately crashed the aircraft into the French Alps, killing all 150 people on board.