A general ground worker strike at Berlin’s infamous BER airport has been advised by the trade union ver.di for Wednesday (January 25, 2023), resulting in the cancellation of all flights.
The airport, union representatives, and airlines have advised the public that no flight activity will take place tomorrow and that passengers should get in touch with their respective airlines to find a rebooking option.
The strike affects operations for both incoming and outgoing flights at Berlin Brandenburg BER Airport. Therefore, passengers are NOT accepted tomorrow.
You can access Lufthansa’s page for strike information here and Berlin Airport’s here.
The Airport advises on its website:
Due to the announced warning strike at Berlin Brandenburg Airport, no passenger flights will be possible on Wednesday, 25 January 2023. The airport company officially informed its partners such as the airlines, ground handling service providers, security companies and local businesses of this in the evening.
Originally, around 300 take-offs and landings with almost 35,000 passengers were planned for the traffic day.
Passengers affected are asked to contact their airline for information on rebooking and alternative travel options.
The trade union ver.di has announced an all-day warning strike for 25 January.
Remember that this is a force majeure strike situation for the airlines, and delay/cancellation compensation per EC 261/2004 doesn’t apply, but the duty to care does.
If your flight is affected by this action, the airline is responsible for rebooking you from your original to the ticketed destination, even on other airlines.
Lufthansa’s Notice:
Due to a strike by the trade union ver.di, Berlin Airport is expected to be closed all day on 25 January. Lufthansa and all other Lufthansa Group Airlines will adjust their flight schedules accordingly.
In the event of a cancellation, Lufthansa will rebook you free of charge and usually automatically to another flight and inform you via your mobile phone number. If you do not receive a message from Lufthansa, please check the current status of your booking. Here you can also adjust the rebooking if required. Alternatively, you can also use the Lufthansa Chatbot.
If you booked your flight through a tour operator or travel agency, you may also contact the tour operator / travel agency where the booking was made.
As the entire airport in Berlin is expected to be closed on Wednesday, 25 January, we recommend substitute transport by train. You can see how to exchange your ticket for a rail ticket in the next chapter.
In the event of a cancellation of a domestic Lufthansa flight or a Lufthansa flight between Germany and Basel or Salzburg within two days before departure, you can exchange your flight ticket into a ticket with Deutsche Bahn free of charge. We recommend that you make a [seat] reservation for this on the Deutsche Bahn website.
Trains will be packed. Therefore I emphasize that you should indeed make a seat reservation for the train you’re going to take through the DB website or at a ticket machine TODAY.
I would also compare prices. If you have an expensive ticket from Berlin to elsewhere in Germany, it might make more sense to just get a full refund for the flight and pay cash for the train ticket.
I am sure that airlines will try to push you to their later services, but you can request to be rerouted to airports and airlines that are not affected by this labor action in Germany. There are Leipzig and Dresden in the immediate vicinity (more or less). These airports have limited connections, however.
Apparently, there are problems between the airport management and workers in pretty much all sections of the airport. They are waiting for contracts, among other issues. If the BER wouldn’t be such a mess, to begin with, I’d almost have sympathy for this situation.
Conclusion
A miserable situation to be in on Wednesday for passengers that are set to arrive or originate in Berlin. There is always an option to take a train/rental car to any other airport in Germany and try to begin your trip there or postpone it by a day or two.
If you are scheduled for transiting in Berlin, you should request that the airline rebooks you to a service that doesn’t touch BER.
You also need to remember that this might affect the schedule on Thursday as well when planes and crews are out of their usual rotation. It’s best to monitor your reservation closely and contact the airline as soon as you notice something fishy.
