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98 percent less passenger air traffic
Passenger operations at Germany's airports have come to an almost complete standstill. An airport association registered 98 percent fewer passengers than in the previous year - despite the extensive return programs.
Anyone who has not spotted a plane looking at the sky for a long time should not be surprised: At the airports throughout Germany, passenger air traffic is almost completely at a standstill in the Corona crisis.
In the week from March 30 to April 5, the airport association ADV only registered 97,693 passengers, reports the "Spiegel". For comparison: In the same period in 2019, more than 4.5 million guests traveled through German commercial airports.
According to the information, the situation in the freight sector is also bad: In the 14th calendar week, a good 77,685 tons of freight were transported via German airports - a decrease of 20.8 percent compared to 2019. According to ADV, there was a significantly higher number of ad hoc Flights, for example for the transport of medical equipment.
In view of the numbers, the ADV association speaks of a "historical low value". Most airlines had initially stopped their flight operations, so the large-scale return programs of the federal government for Germans stranded abroad also had no noteworthy effect. According to ADV, it is important that all airports continue to operate on the ground to enable short-term flights in the charter and freight sectors.
Nevertheless, the quasi-standstill caused the airport operators financial problems: "Operating an airport without income cannot last long. If airports perform their function of general interest in the interest of Germany in difficult times, we expect the federal and state governments that the airports Liquidity support and assumption of costs are at the top of the ADV agenda, "Spiegel said in a letter to the ADV executive board and board of directors.
