Airport security staff at three German airports (Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn & Hamburg) started a two-day strike today (read more here), canceling most, if not all, flights (roughly 700).
The two-day strike expands to include Stuttgart airport for a day on Friday (April 21, 2023), and airlines have already canceled almost all flights.
The airlines are required to rebook affected passengers at their earliest possibility, even when this means moving them to rival airlines. Passengers whose flights are canceled or significantly delayed can also choose a refund.
Passengers are also eligible for Duty to Care in case of long delays. This requires airlines to provide accommodation and meals.
Lufthansa’s Announcement:
On 21. April, the German trade union ver.di has called for a strike of the airport security staff in Stuttgart. Cancellations and delays in the Lufthansa Group flight schedule are expected.
In the event of a cancellation, Lufthansa will rebook you free of charge and usually automatically to another flight and inform you via your mobile phone number. If you do not receive a message from Lufthansa, please check the current status of your booking. Here you can also adjust the rebooking if required. Alternatively, you can also use the Lufthansa Chatbot.
If you have booked through a tour operator or travel agency, you may also contact the tour operator / travel agency where the booking was made.
In the event of a cancellation of a domestic Lufthansa flight (or a Lufthansa flight between Germany and Basel or Salzburg within two days before departure, you can exchange your flight ticket into a ticket with Deutsche Bahn free of charge. We recommend that you make a reservation for this on the Deutsche Bahn website. Please note that the ticket is only valid on Deutsche Bahn trains on the day of issue and the following day.
If you have a connecting flight from Frankfurt or Munich, we recommend that you allow sufficient time for changing from train to flight when planning your rail journey to the airports.
Please note that unions of the Deutsche Bahn are planning a strike on Friday, 21 April in the morning hours. Substitute transport will not be possible during this time. Likewise, an increased volume of passengers is expected in the period before and after the rail strike.
If you are rebooked onto the following day, please check our information about hotel accommodation.
Hotline
In case you are not able to use the mentioned self-service options, please contact our Service Center at +49 (0) 69-86-799-799*, or one of our local Lufthansa phone numbers.
We ask for your understanding that there may be longer waiting times due to the increased volume of calls.
Conclusion
So, three airports are essentially closed for today (Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn & Hamburg) and four tomorrow (Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn & Hamburg + Stuttgart), affecting a significant number of passengers.
It is really unfortunate that there has been no resolution for the wage raises for these security employees at German Airports.