After the warning strike at several large airports in Germany, only a few impairments are now expected. At the largest German airport in Frankfurt, regular operations begin again at 5 a.m. after the night-time ban. In Hanover, where there is no night flight ban, the operators expect largely normal business again, apart from a few flight cancellations in the morning. Bremen Airport made a similar statement.
Operations at Munich Airport were also back to normal in the morning. “There are no more strike-related failures,” said an airport spokesman. However, according to him, long queues formed at the security checkpoints because “a lot of traffic was shifted from Friday to Saturday”.
Lufthansa wanted to start regular operations again immediately, as a spokesman announced. On Friday, the largest German airline had to cancel around 1,300 flights because Verdi struck seven German airports, including the Lufthansa hubs in Frankfurt and Munich.
Because of the strike, Friday was one of the quietest days in German airspace for years, as a spokesman for German air traffic control said. The federal company expected a slightly higher volume for the restart on Saturday, because the approaches from the USA in particular had been postponed to Saturday.
Seven airports in Germany paralyzed
Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg are starting a holiday week. A large number of passengers is to be expected there. Stuttgart Airport announced regular operations, but recommended that passengers check their flight status for the next few days. Individual changes in the flight plan after the warning strike are possible.
A total of seven airports in Germany have been largely paralyzed since Friday morning by the labor dispute. The Verdi union had called for an all-day walkout to increase the pressure on employers in several ongoing collective bargaining rounds. In addition to Frankfurt, Munich, Bremen and Hanover, Stuttgart, Hamburg and Dortmund were also affected.
Verdi and the civil servants’ association DBB are demanding 10.5 percent more income in the public service wage dispute, but at least 500 euros more for the approximately 2.5 million federal and local employees. An offer from the employer has not yet been received. In addition to the public service, there are sometimes local collective bargaining for ground handling services and a nationwide bargaining round for aviation security.
