Status: 15.10.2023, 19:12 PM
By: Teresa Toth, Moritz Bletzinger, Bjarne Kommnick
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Airlines are responding to the war in Israel. Lufthansa is carrying out evacuation flights to Germany on two days. On Friday, 800 Germans landed in Munich and Frankfurt.
Update from October 13, 21:18 p.m.: The German government has organized further special flights to evacuate Germans from Israel. Two special Condor flights from the Jordanian city of Aqaba on the border with Israel are planned for Sunday (14 October), the Federal Foreign Office announced on Friday. In addition, the ministry is in talks with Lufthansa about possible additional special flights.
Previously, Lufthansa operated special flights for Germans stranded in Israel at the request of the Federal Foreign Office. After about 950 German citizens on Thursday, "more than 850 Germans were flown out of Israel again" on Friday, the Foreign Office said in the evening on X (formerly Twitter). "So far, we have supported around 2800,<> Germans in leaving the country by land, air and sea," it continued.
Journalists interview the tourists who landed in Germany. © Lukas Barth/dpa
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) praised Lufthansa's willingness to make special flights despite adverse circumstances. "I am very grateful to Lufthansa and the crews for their important commitment in difficult times," Scholz said on Friday on online service X.
Special flights from Israel: Due to "uncertain security situation" Lufthansa does not plan any further flights
Update from October 13, 19:49 p.m.: Lufthansa flew more than 800 Germans from Israel to Germany on Friday with four special flights organised by the Federal Foreign Office. As on the previous day, a total of four aircraft were deployed, according to the German Foreign Ministry in Berlin. Two of them flew to Frankfurt, the other two to Munich.
According to the Federal Foreign Office, a total of 950 Germans and their relatives left Israel on Thursday after Hamas' terrorist attacks. A ferry to Cyprus had also been organised. No further special flights are planned from Saturday, Lufthansa announced. "In addition to the uncertain security situation, there are also unresolved questions of operational stability in Tel Aviv," it said.
Israel Special Flights Landed in Germany – Bundeswehr Announcement Follows
Update from October 13, 16:15 p.m.: Since the Hamas attack on Israel, which left thousands dead and injured, many Germans have been waiting to be able to return home. Hundreds of Germans have already been able to leave the country on special flights. Also on Friday (13 October), Lufthansa plans to bring more citizens back home. As on the previous day, the airline set departure times for 13:30 p.m., 14:30 p.m., 16:00 p.m. and 17:00 p.m.
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Relief: On Thursday (12 October), the first people landed in Germany in the evacuation planes from Israel. © Boris Roessler/dpa
In addition to Lufthansa, the Bundeswehr also announced that it would fly German citizens out of Israel in an emergency. "Preparatory preventive measures" had been planned, as the Ministry of Defense announced on Friday night. The aim is to ensure "that in the event of a failure of civilian flight operations from Israel, the Federal Government has taken all necessary logistical precautions for a rapid pick-up by the Air Force."
Israel Special Flights Landed in Germany: Many Seats Remained Free
Update from October 13, 8:33 a.m.: At the time of the outbreak of war in the Middle East, a number of German citizens were in Israel. According to the Foreign Office, around 5000,<> German citizens were added to the list for a total of eight evacuation flights from the war zone. The first ones have now landed back on German soil – and thus safely.
One of them is Verena Wanner. "Everyone's hearts were lifted when we took off, and when we flew the curve and then were over the sea," the mother of two told Reuters news agency on her arrival at Frankfurt Airport. Lufthansa flew her and her two children out of Israel after the country declared war on Hamas.
However, numerous seats are said to have remained unoccupied on the first flights to Germany, reports Business Insider. The Foreign Office confirmed that some of the planes of the evacuation flights were not full. According to Business Insider, there were some so-called "no-shows" on Thursday (12 October) alone – i.e. passengers who booked and paid but did not take their flight.
A spokesman for the Foreign Office said on Wednesday that around 5,000 people had signed up to the crisis list of the German embassy in Israel. But he could not say whether all these people wanted to leave. In total, there are more than 100,000 German citizens in Israel, many with dual citizenship. Experts suspect that this could be related to the costs: a place in the evacuation plane costs 300 euros for those who want to leave the country.
First German from Israel landed in Frankfurt – evacuation flights probably not fully occupied
Update from October 12, 21:30 p.m.: Hundreds of people have already been able to leave Israel on Lufthansa's evacuation flights. On Thursday afternoon (12 October), the first two planes from Tel Aviv landed in Frankfurt and Munich. Although there has been a real rush for tickets and hotlines have been paralyzed, the airline will probably not be able to fill the planes. This is according to an email from the German Foreign Office, which Business Insider has obtained. According to the report, this was sent to Germans stuck in Israel.
With the subject "Hurry! Flights tomorrow", they are informed that there are still free seats available on the planes to Germany on Friday (13 October) at short notice. Interested parties should contact the Foreign Office by telephone, it continues. A diplomat told Business Insider that as early as Thursday, several people had not boarded the flights, even though tickets had been booked and paid. Those wishing to leave the country pay around 300 euros for boarding passes. Lufthansa charges 550 euros, but 250 euros per ticket is paid by the federal government.
Update from October 12, 18:20 p.m.: According to information from the Federal Foreign Office, the first flight from Tel Aviv has arrived in Frankfurt – and with it 372 people. The Lufthansa plane landed with a delay of one hour. Shortly thereafter, a plane also arrived at Munich Airport, it is said.
A Lufthansa plane arrives at Frankfurt Airport from Tel Aviv. There are 372 people on board. © Hannes P Albert/dpa
First evacuation flights from Israel to Germany started
Update from October 12, 18 p.m.: On Thursday afternoon, the first evacuation flights from Israel to Germany took off. With the first three of four special flights planned for Thursday, more than 660 German citizens and their family members were able to leave the country, the Foreign Office said. Flights from Tel Aviv were to fly directly to Frankfurt and Munich. More would follow on Friday.
Germans who have registered on the Federal Foreign Office's precautionary list for crisis information were able to register for the flights. Lufthansa had promised to offer up to four flights from Tel Aviv on Thursday and Friday. At 13.30 p.m., 14.30 p.m., 16 p.m. and 17 p.m. (local time). According to the Federal Foreign Office, there are more than 100,000 German citizens in Israel, most of whom have dual citizenship.
Update from October 12, 13:28 p.m.: It took a long time for the German evacuation flights from Israel to start and the chaos continues. Contrary to the original plan, Lufthansa does not want to resume scheduled flights on Saturday. All that remains are the special flights of the Federal Foreign Office to leave the country. On Friday and Thursday there are four each.
Four special flights will operate between Germany and Israel on Thursday and Friday: The scheduled flights from Saturday onwards will be cancelled. © Achille Abboud/Imago
Until then, several Lufthansa planes will fly to Israel on Thursday and Friday, and a ferry will also leave for Cyprus on Thursday, as reported by Bild.
War in Israel: Lufthansa cancels numerous more flights to Tel Aviv
First reported on October 9, 15:41 p.m.: Cologne – Lufthansa has cancelled all flights to and from the country until further notice in the wake of the war in Israel. A spokesperson for the company told IPPEN on Monday afternoon. MEDIA: "Safety is a top priority for the airlines of the Lufthansa Group. Due to the still unclear development of the situation in Israel and after intensive analysis of the situation, the airlines of the Lufthansa Group have decided to suspend their regular flights to and from Tel Aviv up to and including Saturday."
Lufthansa suspends all flights to Israel – travel offers can still be found on homepage on Monday
For affected travelers, it seems to be complicated: "At the moment, we can only offer very limited rebooking options to and from Israel," the company explains. "We regret having to make this decision. We ask all those affected to contact their airline." The Lufthansa Group will now continue to closely monitor the security situation in Israel "and are in close contact with the authorities." Currently, there is also an urgent travel warning to the crisis area.
Lufthansa and other airlines have suspended air traffic to Israel until further notice. © Georg Ismar/dpa
As recently as Monday afternoon (October 9, 14:55 p.m.), the company had offered flights to Israel as usual on its website. Only a short time later, the offer is no longer to be found. Previously, the company had suspended air traffic up to and including Monday, October 9. With this extension, the company is responding to the security situation in Israel. At the moment, a group of German students is even stuck in the middle of the crisis area. Attempts to fly the young people out had so far failed.
Air traffic to Israel severely restricted – planes turn around in the air
Already on Saturday, a Lufthansa spokesman told dpa that all but one Lufthansa flight to Israel had been canceled. Lufthansa's subsidiary Swiss has also cancelled all other connections for the time being, with the exception of two flights to Israel.
Other airlines are also significantly restricting their flights to Israel due to the unclear political situation at the moment. According to AeroTelegraph, several airlines had changed the destination of their flying planes during the flight on Saturday and sent their pilots back to the departure airport. In view of the current situation, a quick return to normal operations around air traffic in Israel seems unlikely.