Lack of staff causes chaos at German airports. Verdi is now calling on Lufthansa ground staff to go on strike on Wednesday. The news ticker for the warning strike.
Frankfurt/Main/Munich – The chaos at German airports has been getting on the nerves of holidaymakers over the past few days and weeks. But the situation, which is already tense due to a lack of staff, is likely to get worse. The Verdi union has called on Lufthansa ground staff to go on warning strike on Wednesday (July 27).
The airline has already reacted and taken drastic measures. Almost no Lufthansa plane will take off on Wednesday, the airline canceled almost its entire flight schedule. As the company announced, it was forced to take this step due to the nationwide strike by ground staff.
Verdi strike: Lufthansa cancels more than 1000 flights at German airports
According to Verdi, the warning strike will affect the airports at the hubs in Frankfurt and Munich as well as in Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Berlin, Bremen, Hanover, Stuttgart and Cologne from 3.45 a.m. on Wednesday. The strike is scheduled to end on Thursday (July 28) at 6 a.m. The company gave the following figures for the individual airports:
- Frankfurt/Main Airport: A total of 678 flights are cancelled. Of these, 646 were canceled for Wednesday (July 27), 32 were canceled on Tuesday (July 26).
- Munich Airport: 345 flights will not take place. This affected 330 flights on Wednesday (July 27) and 15 on Tuesday (July 26).
- Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Berlin, Bremen, Hanover, Stuttgart and Cologne airports: No figures were given here. However, Lufthansa usually only maintains smaller units at these locations. They also offer their services to other airlines.
According to Lufthansa, the effects of the strike should be felt until Friday (July 29). This day is also the last day of school in Bavaria before the summer holidays begin there.
Lufthansa ground staff walks out of work on Wednesday (July 27) – Eurowings not affected by the strike
While travelers who have booked a Lufthansa flight for the days mentioned will probably not be able to take it, Eurowings customers will probably be lucky. The day before the strike, the Lufthansa subsidiary announced that it was assuming an unrestricted flight plan.
“Despite the announced Verdi strike among Lufthansa ground staff, Eurowings is assuming that flight operations will be largely normal throughout the network for Wednesday, July 27, 2022,” said a statement on the Eurowings website: Verdi does not target Eurowings, so Eurowings staff are not affected by the call.”
Strike at Lufthansa: Rebooking of the canceled flight is only rarely possible due to the holiday season
Meanwhile, the Lufthansa ground staff strike is having a massive impact due to the timing. The flight is canceled for around 144,000 travelers, and there are also threats of delays. A rebooking is only possible in a few cases in the middle of the holiday season, as numerous flights are occupied to the last seat these days.
If the booked flight is canceled due to the strike, travelers also have rights that they can claim. You should not drive to the airport on your own, although your own route is affected by the failure, Lufthansa confirmed. The airline explained that “only a few or none at all” were occupied by the service counters. (kh with dpa)
