Germany national rail company Deutsche Bahn is adding Brussels Airport to its network of high-speed train stops as of September 2026, providing an opportunity for Belgium national carrier Brussels Airlines to code-share on the new service.
The launching of this new connection is planned from Cologne central station on September 7, at 06.11 am. The train will stop in Cologne, Aachen, Liege, Leuven and Brussels Airport. Afterwards, the train will continue to Antwerp. The ride between Cologne and Brussels Airport would take about 2 hours.
The train will be operated as a code-share with Brussels Airlines. For customers, tickets for the route can be purchased via brusselsairlines.com, via travel agents and all other sales channels of Brussels Airlines.
With Brussels Airlines Express Rail, passengers can connect smoothly in Brussels Airport on Brussels Airlines’ entire network. Passengers have a single booking for their entire journey, a guaranteed connection in case of delays and can accumulate miles via the Miles and More program.
“The continued expansion of our cooperation with Deutsche Bahn is a key pillar of the Lufthansa Group’s intermodal strategy, bringing air and rail even closer together for our customers. By improving rail access to our hubs and better connecting surrounding regions and cities, we are making travel more seamless, efficient and sustainable for our customers,” tells Dieter Vranckx, Chief Commercial Officer, Lufthansa Group.
The new rail connection is particularly important for Brussels Airlines as the airline offers one of Europe’s most extensive network to Africa while the land of North Rhineland-Westphalia (where Cologne is located) is home to an important African diaspora. “Our codeshare with Deutsche Bahn offers smooth connections in the most sustainable way. We work on more connections to come,” highlights Dorothea von Boxberg, CEO, Brussels Airlines.
Brussels Airport also sees the new high-speed connection as a major milestone to its development. ” We are very pleased that Brussels Airport is again connected to the high-speed rail network, an important step for Belgium’s international connectivity. Intermodality is indeed one of our strategic objectives and we are strongly committed to developing a robust, future-oriented network that strengthens our role as major intermodal hub, ” tells Arnaud Feist, CEO, Brussels Airport.
All advantages of the codeshare at a glance
- A guaranteed connection
- Seat reservation in fixed carriage
- Status customers have access to the Deutsche Bahn lounges
- Miles accrual at Miles and More
- Ticket includes local transport in Germany
