Status: 02/15/2023 2:54 p.m
The cause of the IT failure at Lufthansa has been found – but the consequences are likely to be felt by passengers for a long time. Dozens of flights were canceled in Frankfurt, also because landings were not possible in the meantime.
According to the operator Fraport and Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS), flight operations at Frankfurt Airport are gradually returning to normal after the massive disruption caused by the IT failure at Lufthansa. Since 1.20 p.m., 40 approaches per hour have been possible again, which is close to the current normal operation, said a spokeswoman for DFS. According to Fraport, there were more than 200 flight cancellations by noon. More than half of these were arrivals.
After the major IT failure at Lufthansa and its subsidiary airlines, the group expects that the operation of the computer systems could be restored by the afternoon, a spokesman said.
According to Lufthansa, the failure of the IT systems was caused by construction work on a railway line in Frankfurt am Main. A spokesman for Deutsche Telekom confirmed that an excavator with an earth auger severed fiber optic lines at a depth of five meters late Tuesday afternoon. It is not yet clear when the work will be completed. The situation was expected to improve significantly as the day progressed.
Landings in Frankfurt possible again
The failure primarily affected the largest German hub, Frankfurt am Main. Lufthansa canceled all departures. Because this meant that all parking positions were occupied, Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS), on the advice of airport operator Fraport, decided to divert incoming planes – to Nuremberg, Cologne or Düsseldorf. Around 500 arrivals were planned in Frankfurt am Main on Wednesday. Departures were not affected.
Thousands of passengers affected
Thousands of passengers are now faced with flight delays and cancellations. The consequences were also felt at Munich, Nuremberg and Berlin airports. As the speaker of Lufthansa Munich dem Bavarian radio confirmed, there are currently isolated flight cancellations and delays at the Erdinger Moos. “Passengers are asked to plan enough time for their arrival and to be at the check-in counter as early as possible before departure,” said Munich Airport.
“For hours there has been very little”, Michael Immel, HR, on flight cancellations at Lufthansa due to IT problems
Tagesschau 12:00 p.m., 15.2.2023
According to the website, three flights each to and from Frankfurt were canceled at Berlin-Brandenburg Airport in Schönefeld BER. In the course of the afternoon there could still be delays, an airport spokeswoman said RBB. Here, too, passengers on Lufthansa Group flights were advised to obtain information in advance.
Passengers have been piling up at Frankfurt Airport in particular since the morning. The passengers were not let into the waiting machines in the morning on a tally sheet because, according to the staff, important information about the departure was missing. However, passengers in Hamburg, Nuremberg, Cologne and Düsseldorf are also affected.
Lufthansa also owns Brussels Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Swiss International and Eurowings. Fraport advises passengers of Lufthansa and its partners to first obtain information from the company’s hotlines and service portals before driving to the airport. Deutsche Bahn recommended that passengers who want to switch to rail look online for trains that are less popular.
Further restrictions in air traffic are already threatening on Friday. The trade union ver.di has called for an all-day warning strike in the public service wage dispute.
Flight cancellations and delays due to IT problems at Lufthansa
Roman Warsaw, HR, February 15, 2023 11:50 a.m