German Airport Strike Grounds Thousands of Flights and Disrupts Over Half a Million Travelers

Thousands of flights have been canceled, and more than a half a million travelers impacted, due to the German airport worker strike on Monday.

The strike, called by the Verdi workers union, unexpectedly started a day early at Hamburg Airport (HAM) and has expanded to include Frankfurt Airport (FRA), the country’s busiest airport, along with Munich Airport (MUC) and Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) on Monday.

Cancellations at Frankfurt alone now number more than 1,000, and disruptions could last into Tuesday. At Munich, more than 800 flights have been canceled.

Verdi called the strike for its members working in passenger screening, personnel, goods and cargo screening, and in service areas, as the union continues to negotiate with the federal government for better working conditions. The union said the goal is to “end the wage dispute before Easter.”

Lufthansa, Germany’s largest carrier, is allowing those impacted by Monday’s strike to rebook their flights free of charge — keeping the original origin and destination — for on or after March 7 through on or before March 17, 2025.