Airport chaos: The anger never ends – warning strikes are now being called
Created: 06/30/2022Updated: 06/30/2022 11:36 am
By: Martina Lippl
Numerous suitcases are stored in the baggage claim area.
Hundreds of suitcases, bags and prams are still piling up in the baggage claim area of some airports and it takes days to find their owners.
© Jonas Walzberg
Thousands of vacationers are affected.
Canceled flights, long queues and suitcase chaos.
The situation at German airports is critical.
The summer holidays have only just begun.
Warning strike
in
flight chaos
: Verdi calls for a strike at Hamburg Airport
Check-in chaos
in
air traffic
: Endless queues, delays and cancellations.
Flight chaos
at
German airports
: Can skilled workers from Turkey solve the problem?
This news ticker about the airport chaos in Germany is updated regularly.
Update from June 30, 10:49 a.m
.: In the middle of the flight chaos, things could get worse in Hamburg.
At the start of the holiday season in the northern German states, Verdi is calling on the technical staff at Hamburg Airport to go on warning strike on Friday (July 1).
In the midst of flight chaos: Verdi calls for a strike at Hamburg Airport
Real Estate Maintenance (RMH) is responsible for maintaining the technology in baggage handling, the runways and all other technical infrastructure.
The strike is scheduled to begin in the morning shift and will initially last 24 hours.
In Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Friday is the last day of school before the summer holidays.
Federal State | Summer vacation 2022 |
Schleswig Holstein | July 4 to August 13, 2022 |
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania | July 4 to August 13, 2022 |
Hamburg | July 7 to August 17, 2022 |
Handling chaos in air traffic: Endless queues, delays and cancellations
Munich – It is probably a debacle with an announcement: the German airports are currently completely overwhelmed.
There is a lack of staff at check-in, security and baggage handling.
But the increasing number of corona infections among flight staff and ground staff at the airlines is also exacerbating the situation.
Flight passengers currently need good nerves and a lot of time.
What that means was shown at the start of the holiday season in North Rhine-Westphalia at Düsseldorf Airport.
Suitcases were left behind at the weekend.
Travelers had to fly on vacation without luggage.
After landing, there were problems unloading.
The airport fire brigade had to lend a hand.
Staff shortages and a technical breakdown in the baggage sorting machine were the reason for the misery.
Not an isolated case: Baggage handling is also working at the capacity limit at other German airports.
The peak travel season is just beginning.
Airlines have already thinned out their flight schedules.
In addition to the 900 cancellations in July, Lufthansa alone is taking a further 2,200 connections in the summer at the Frankfurt and Munich hubs from the flight schedule.
Classic holiday destinations should be less affected.
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Airport chaos internationally: Germany wants to use workers from Turkey
Flight chaos at German airports: Can skilled workers from Turkey solve the problem?
Foreign workers are supposed to help against the chaos at German airports.
"We make it possible for companies to use helpers from abroad, especially from Turkey," said Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) on Wednesday in Berlin after coordinated government proposals.
Frankfurt Airport wants to hire "several hundred" foreign temporary workers.
According to previous estimates, the first employees could start working in eight weeks, said a spokesman for the operator Fraport on Wednesday.
The federal government had previously cleared the way for easier recruitment in Turkey, among other places.
The security check at the state of Hesse alone takes six weeks, explained Fraport.
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) had assured that no compromises would be made on security.
This means that the main travel wave during the school holidays would be missed at the largest German airport.
"The additional forces still help us a lot," said the Fraport spokesman.
Lufthansa boss apologizes: flight chaos probably all summer
Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr has already warned the passengers that there will be further difficulties in air traffic.
The industry is planning several thousand new hires in Europe alone.
"However, this increase in capacity will only have a stabilizing effect in the coming winter." He apologized on behalf of the company for the fact that after the Corona slump, the "ramp-up of the complex air traffic system from almost zero to currently almost 90 percent again" did not achieve the desired reliability , punctuality and robustness.
The manager admitted that the Lufthansa Group also lacked staff in some areas.
From next summer, the group intends to use the A380 aircraft, which have since been decommissioned.
(ml/dpa)
