Passengers have to prepare for major problems in German air traffic in June and thus before the summer holidays. The reason for this is an unusually extensive military exercise by the NATO countries between June 12 and 23.
“According to the current plans of NATO and the Air Force, parts of German airspace will then be closed,” said Matthias von Randow, general manager of the Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL), on Friday in Berlin. Disadvantages for passengers are probably unavoidable.
According to von Randow, however, the effects of the “Air Defender” exercise on the already highly polluted German airspace must be reduced. For this purpose, a close exchange with the responsible ministries and the German air traffic control has been agreed. Airlines and airports need very precise information about when which airspace blocks will be closed and how flight management should then be organized. Initial information on this has already been provided.
Experts assume that certain parts of German airspace will be blocked for a few hours in blocks. Above all, the airlines should try to be able to carry out lucrative connections such as transatlantic flights.
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