Strikes at airports and on the railways – where nothing is working today

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Display board at Frankfurt Airport (symbolic image)

Photo: Lu Yang / Xinhua / IMAGO

The next warning strike by ground staff at Lufthansa began early on Thursday morning - parallel to the train drivers' strike at Deutsche Bahn.

A spokesman for the Ver.di union told the dpa news agency that the strike at Frankfurt Airport had gotten off to a very successful start.

In addition, the aviation security controllers in Hamburg, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf went on strike, meaning that no passengers from outside can board at either location on this day.

Lufthansa wants to fly 10 to 20 percent of its original flight schedule during the warning strike.

The strike by Lufthansa ground staff is scheduled to last until Saturday morning at 7:10 a.m.

Lufthansa's technical departments had already gone on what is now the fifth wave of warning strikes on Wednesday evening, which was extended to the areas in the terminal close to passengers in the morning.

In this way, Ver.di wants to force greater concessions from management in the ongoing collective bargaining for around 25,000 ground staff employees.

The negotiations with private aviation security companies also involve around 25,000 people.

Large parts of long-distance and regional rail traffic have also been at a standstill since early Thursday morning.

The reason is the 35-hour strike by the German Locomotive Drivers' Union (GDL) in the tough collective bargaining dispute with Deutsche Bahn.

The emergency timetable for rail traffic has been running since 2 a.m., according to Deutsche Bahn.

“The DB is expecting a massive impact on rail operations on Thursday and Friday,” said a railway spokeswoman.

As with previous GDL labor disputes, only around a fifth of the long-distance trains are in use on Thursday and Friday.

In regional transport, the offer can vary significantly depending on the region.

Consequences for train travelers:

The railway has canceled the train connection for Thursday and Friday.

Passengers can therefore start their journey on a later day.

The company's usual information platforms reveal which train is running and which isn't.

The strike in freight transport is expected to last until 5 a.m. on Friday, and in passenger transport until 1 p.m.

But the limited train timetable should remain in place throughout Friday.

A railway spokesman said the company would only be able to make the full range available again on Saturday.

Consequences for airline passengers:

If flights within Germany are canceled, customers will not be able to use their plane ticket to take the train as usual due to the train drivers' strike.

And under no circumstances should passengers from canceled flights come to the airport, warned Lufthansa and the airport operator Fraport.

Free rebooking options are available via lufthansa.com, the customer app and the service center.

The impairments by region:

Frankfurt:

At Frankfurt Airport, due to the lack of security checks on Thursday, no passengers who want to depart from Frankfurt will enter the security area of ​​the airport.

Takeoffs and landings still take place, so that at least transit guests can change.

It will also be possible to get off in Frankfurt.

Munich:

Munich Airport is expected to remain open on Thursday and Friday despite the warning strike by ground staff, but is expecting many flight cancellations.

Munich Airport announced that around 500 of 800 flights were canceled on Thursday.

The airport spokesman expected a similar failure rate for Friday.

According to the flight schedule, flights planned for Wednesday evening were canceled.

Stuttgart:

Four Lufthansa flights to and from Munich and Frankfurt were canceled at Stuttgart Airport due to the warning strike on Thursday, an airport spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

The flights to and from Munich and Frankfurt would probably also be canceled on Friday, it was said.

The last flight to Munich on Wednesday evening had already been canceled.

Berlin:

According to the flight schedule, there are also many cancellations of Lufthansa flights to and from Munich and Frankfurt on Thursday and Friday at the capital's BER airport.

Passengers are advised to contact the airline before arriving to find out the current status of their flight and rebooking options.

Hamburg:

The central security checkpoint at Hamburg's Helmut Schmidt Airport remains closed, and the airport operator has therefore canceled all 141 departures for Thursday.

According to the airport, 15 Lufthansa arrivals and departures were canceled on Friday.

Düsseldorf

: Employees who work in passenger checks, people and goods checks and in service areas should stop work from Thursday, 3:30 a.m. to midnight on Friday.

With the strikes, Ver.di wants to signal to employers "that the current offer needs to be improved."

Cologne/Bonn:

According to Ver.di union secretary Tarim, the aviation security forces in the cargo area stopped work at Cologne-Bonn Airport.

The strike began on Wednesday evening and will run until midnight on Friday, he told the AFP news agency.

However, unlike in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Hamburg, the passenger sector is not affected.

In the ongoing collective bargaining dispute with Lufthansa, Ver.di is demanding 12.5 percent more salary, but at least 500 euros per month for a term of twelve months.

There will also be a group-wide uniform inflation compensation bonus of 3,000 euros.

Lufthansa refers to past wage increases and has so far offered 10 percent more salary and an inflation compensation bonus for a period of 28 months.

The next negotiations are scheduled for March 13th and 14th.

Lufthansa passengers must also expect strikes from another professional group in the near future.

A few weeks before the start of the Easter holidays, the flight attendants of Lufthansa and its regional subsidiary Lufthansa Cityline voted for strikes in a strike vote by the UFO union on Wednesday.

However, it is still unclear when defaults can be expected.

jok/dpa/AFP