frankfurt Howling fighter jets were rarely seen in German skies. This will change starting Monday. Then Air Defense Defenders began, the largest exercise since NATO was founded. Planning had been in the works for months, and the logistics were complicated. Air Force and USAF are responsible.
From June 12 to 23, 10,000 soldiers from 25 countries practiced the air force deployment. 250 aircraft – transports and fighters – will take off and land. The United States alone diverted more than 100 aircraft to German airports.
The base airports for the exercise were Jagel/Hohn in Schleswig-Holstein, Wunstorf in Lower Saxony, Lechfeld in Bavaria, Spangdahlem in Rhineland-Palatinate, Volkel in the Netherlands and Caslav in the Czech Republic .
Countries are very interested in this exercise, and Russia’s attack on Ukraine has woken up many politicians. Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius repeatedly explained the large-scale exercise by saying that the purpose was to show that coalition areas “can be defended quickly and effectively”.
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There’s good news for townspeople: They shouldn’t be practicing at night or on weekends.
Why is civil air traffic affected by NATO exercises?
For the maneuvers, three large areas of the air over Germany are reserved for several hours on weekdays exclusively for military aircraft. The southern region roughly spans Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, all the way to Rhineland-Palatinate. It will be closed between 1pm and 5pm.
In the north, the corridor extends from Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein to the North Sea. The military wants to have exercises here between 4pm and 8pm. The third airspace is located in the eastern part of the republic, over Mecklenburg-West Pomerania and the Baltic Sea. Commercial aircraft are not allowed between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm.
Air Defender affects most of German airspace. During the shutdown, airlines are required to fly around the affected area. For safety reasons, commercial and military aircraft should not get too close. Some soldiers fly when they see it.
The problem: Even without military exercises, the airspace over Germany is already narrow. Most importantly, there is a bottleneck in the so-called high-altitude space at an altitude of 7.5 kilometers. Most importantly, the flyby takes place at this altitude. Due to the blockade of Ukrainian airspace, they will turn to Germany from the beginning of 2022. Second impact of the war in Ukraine: Even without Air Defender, military air traffic over Germany would increase, sometimes by 60%. This exacerbates the bottleneck. Air Defender is now added.
What does Air Defender mean for my flight?
Air traffic grew significantly again as all pandemic requirements were lifted. Indeed, fewer people fly in Europe than before the crisis. There are so few new planes that manufacturers can’t deliver on time because of missing parts and engines. Still, the sky has refilled. Anything that immediately disrupts normal operations can have major consequences.
Defense Minister Pistorius has pledged to keep the exercise’s impact on civil aviation as low as possible. However, Pistorius and Federal Transport Minister Volkwyshin acknowledged in a joint letter that there would be repercussions.
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Eurocontrol, the European air traffic control agency, assumes that as many as 800 flights need to be diverted each day. Eurocontrol calculated the consequences in several situations. In a worst case scenario, the cumulative delay can be as high as 50,000 minutes in a day. Other scenarios are less restrictive.
Civil aviation hopes not to cancel too many flights because of the military exercise. But this operation will not have no effect on passengers.
(Photo: imago images/Ralph Peters)
What makes assessing possible consequences so difficult: In aviation, everything is time-sensitive. Flight planning can quickly become a mess if the plane isn’t where it’s supposed to take off the next day, or the crew isn’t there because they’re stranded elsewhere. This domino effect is difficult to buffer in advance with proper planning.
From Monday, travelers must prepare for disruption. This could particularly affect holidaymakers in North Rhine-Westphalia. Because summer vacation there starts on June 22nd – Air Defender ends just one day later.
How should aviation administration counteract it?
While politicians and the aviation industry have exchanged views on the major exercise regularly in recent weeks, there remains a degree of uncertainty among airlines and airports about how to respond to the situation. Flight plans are still being developed. However, the industry expects a lot of change after the first few days of drills and experience.
Germany is host to the massive military exercise, which is supported by the U.S. Air Force.
(Image credit: IMAGO/localpic)
At the same time, attempts are being made to increase the range of take-off and landing. A strict ban on night flights at many German airports will be eased. Air traffic is still allowed in Stuttgart until 2am. In Frankfurt, the hours of operation were extended until midnight – but only for flights delayed by maneuvers. Authorities in Hamburg and Düsseldorf may be more generous.
What should I do if there is a problem with my flight?
The same applies to flights canceled due to military exercises: passengers have the right to choose an alternative means of transportation or to have their ticket refunded. Passenger rights portal Flightright points this out. Usually, the airline should provide an alternative connection.
If this does not happen, the passenger can find out for himself and claim the money back from the airline. This also applies if a train is chosen as an alternative. The airline must also arrange for an overnight stay if an alternative is only available the next day.
On the other hand, under EU law, customers may have to accept compensation that is common in many other situations. Flightright’s Claudia Brosche explained that the exercise should be classified as an exceptional situation: “Therefore, there is little chance of compensation.”
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