07/24/2022 15:41 (act 07/24/2022 15:41)
Run to German airports ©APA/dpa
Chaos in Cologne, relaxed atmosphere in Frankfurt/Main: German airports had different stocks over the weekend. At Frankfurt airport there were no major problems in several federal states on the first weekend of the summer holidays. The terminals are busy, but so far everything is working correctly, a spokesperson for operator Fraport said on Sunday. At Cologne/Bonn airport, on the other hand, there were again major handling problems.
In front of the security areas in Cologne/Bonn, lines sometimes formed several hundred meters to the terminals.
For Frankfurt, a spokesperson for the federal police reported “moderate wait times” of 20 to 30 minutes at security checks: “Checks run smoothly, our measures are like additional personnel.” As summer holidays began in three federal states – Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saar – on Friday, Germany’s biggest airport got ready for a big rush.
Up to 200,000 passengers a day were expected over the weekend. On Friday there were about 180,000, on Saturday Fraport also had about 180,000 passengers according to an initial estimate. Airlines also prepared for the high number of passengers with additional staff. As a precaution, the flight plan was significantly shortened so that as many aircraft were not dispatched as usual. Many travelers were prepared for delays and arrived at Frankfurt airport much earlier than usual.
At the Cologne/Bonn airport, a reporter from the German Press Agency stood in line for seven hours outside the security checkpoint on Saturday. Luck in misfortune: his flight was delayed – and he still made it to the plane. Several passengers were unlucky: they lost their planes and had to reschedule.
The long wait times had caused such dissatisfaction and aggression the previous day that the Cologne police had to step up their presence and intervene. “We found that in our local area of responsibility – the area in front of the security locks – lines have become extremely long. And in individual cases there are attempts to enter the security area without authorization,” reported Cologne police spokesperson Christoph Gillen in WDR. “We have to stop this. Thus, we strengthen our security forces to solve the corresponding problems.” In concrete terms: those at the front were caught and sent to the end of the line.
However, the high demand for travel after the Corona lull is not a surprise. Problems were already big on the May holidays with Ascension Day and Pentecost. Many disease-related failures, among other things due to the increase in the number of corona infections and the already huge shortage of employees in the sector, along with the high number of passengers at peak times, are the main causes of the conditions.
There have also been problems with handling luggage at Frankfurt airport for weeks because there is a shortage of staff. Fraport had braced himself for the fact that waiting times of one to two hours at baggage claim would also be possible on weekends.