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In view of the flight chaos, Lufthansa calls for faster passenger checks

2022-07-03T10:35:29.625Z


Modern technology would speed up security checks, says the head of Germany's largest airline. She was partly to blame for the mess.


Enlarge image

Queue in front of the Hamburg airport security check on Sunday

Photo: Axel Heimken / dpa

In view of the sometimes chaotic conditions at German airports, Lufthansa is demanding the use of more modern scanner technology at security.

»There is state-of-the-art technology that would significantly speed up security checks.

Instead, mostly older technology is in use at the airports in Germany,” said Detlef Kayser, the Lufthansa board member responsible for fleets and infrastructure, in the “Bild am Sonntag”.

For example, more modern scanners no longer required taking liquids and computers out of your pocket.

"For our customers, I would like the new devices to be used as quickly as possible," said Kayser.

Hotline unavailable

Lufthansa helped cause the chaos by cutting too many staff during the corona crisis - as did the Frankfurt airport operator Fraport and other industry giants.

The people that the companies got rid of back then are now missing everywhere: at the check-in counter and at the security checkpoint, on board and with the luggage.

Or with service.

The central Lufthansa customer hotline 069-86 799 799 was unavailable on Sunday morning, as it had been for weeks.

Callers often don't even get into the queue.

If you are lucky and still manage to do this, you may have to wait an hour, an hour and a half or two.

According to the airport association ADV, the service providers involved in handling passengers have around 20 percent fewer staff than before Corona.

Manager Kayser rejected Interior Minister Nancy Faeser's (SPD) proposal to open priority boarding to all passengers.

»The priority boarding of the planes is not the problem at the moment.

Dissolving fast lanes in state security checks does not help in the current situation either.

The lines are long everywhere.

We need solutions for all passengers.«

The Lufthansa core brand alone has already canceled more than 3,000 flights in the summer;

according to her, that corresponds to five percent of the planned launches.

Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr has officially apologized to customers, but does not expect any drastic improvement for the time being.

USA: more than 1000 canceled flights

Cancellations, massive delays and chaotic scenes at airports are also increasing in other countries.

In the United States, more than 600 flights were canceled over the Independence Day (July 4) long weekend alone on Saturday afternoon.

Another more than 3,300 flights were delayed, according to website flightaware.com.

The main reason is the shortage of staff.

587 US flights had already been canceled on Friday.

For Sunday, too, it became apparent that many passengers would again be stuck at the airports - more than 100 flights have already been canceled.

Many travelers had expected the chaos and had not even booked.

The traffic on the highways should be all the more dense.

According to a forecast by the AAA automobile association, a record number of 42 million citizens will drive at least 50 miles (80 kilometers) by car over the weekend before the holiday on Monday – despite record prices for petrol and diesel.

che/Reuters/AFP

Source: spiegel

All business articles on 2022-07-03

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