Lufthansa has taken unusual measures due to a possible kerosene shortage at Frankfurt Airport. Pilots were instructed to carry extra fuel on board when flying to the hub. This is intended to relieve the burden on inventories in Frankfurt, even if, according to airport operator Fraport, the supply of kerosene is secured. The most important questions and answers.
Is Frankfurt Airport in danger of running out of fuel?
Currently definitely not. The airport company Fraport AG assures that the operational capability is not affected despite the maintenance of an important pipeline. Lufthansa also describes its approach as a “pure precautionary measure”. The precautions have already had an effect and could probably be discontinued again in the “foreseeable future,” assures a spokeswoman for the company.
How is the airport supplied with kerosene?
Germany's largest airport is connected to the major seaports on the North Sea via two pipelines, which are part of the critical infrastructure. This also includes the NATO pipeline. Fraport does not want to provide details about the maintenance for security reasons.
Another supply route runs via the Rhine and Main waterways, which have been suffering from low water levels since the summer. Tankers can therefore load less liquid and transport it to the Main ports near the airport. At the airport itself, the kerosene suppliers jointly operate a tank farm with a capacity of 186 million liters. According to Fraport, that's enough for around ten days.
Why is Lufthansa so worried?
Pipeline maintenance and barely navigable rivers were apparently a mixed bag for Lufthansa's operational planners with a high risk that flights would have to be canceled due to a lack of fuel. The airline itself is responsible for purchasing, so flight cancellations could be expensive due to possible compensation claims from passengers. The goal is reliable flight operations.
What measures has Lufthansa taken?
The company has instructed crews to take extra fuel on flights to Frankfurt to conserve supplies at Rhein-Main Airport. The “Bild-Zeitung” had previously quoted from the instructions. Lufthansa is by far the largest user of the airport and has appropriate leverage at its disposal.
The medium-haul jets of the A320 family should carry up to eight tons of additional fuel. This is more than a third of the tank capacity of around 20 tons and is enough for a medium-haul flight of around 3,000 kilometers.
In normal operation, passenger aircraft land with an almost empty tank because additional weight increases consumption and environmental pollution. With a higher landing weight, aircraft components such as the landing gear wear out more quickly, so additional costs arise. Lufthansa doesn't want to miss out on income, so additional fuel can only be carried up to the border where freight or passengers would otherwise have to be unloaded.
What does this mean for passengers?
There are currently no restrictions for passengers. The airlines Lufthansa and Condor say they are flying as scheduled. If flights are canceled at short notice due to a lack of kerosene, according to EU rules, passengers have the right to replacement transport and compensation of between 250 and 600 euros if the airline is responsible. According to the passenger rights portal Flightright, a local, uncontrollable shortage of kerosene can, in individual cases, mean that the airline does not have to pay compensation.
