A leak in a gas pipeline about 1,6 kilometers south of the Baden-Airpark site led to significant restrictions on flight operations at Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden Airport (FKB) on Tuesday.
Between 11:50 a.m. and 15:50 p.m., takeoffs and landings were possible, but due to the wind conditions, these were primarily small aircraft. Almost all scheduled passenger flights had to be canceled during this period.
Hours of disruption and flight cancellations
According to the airport, flight operations resumed at 15:50 p.m. following clearance from the responsible authorities. However, due to the previous disruption, significant delays to the flight schedule are expected until late in the evening. Normalization of flight operations is not expected until Wednesday morning. In total, twelve arrivals and twelve departures are affected by the disruption at Frankfurt Airport, disrupting the travel plans of over 4.000 passengers. Some arriving flights were diverted to Frankfurt-Hahn and Stuttgart, from where bus transfers were organized for the passengers.
According to initial information, the gas leak occurred during excavation work on a major pipeline between Rheinmünster-Stollhofen and Schwarzach, just about two kilometers from the airport site. However, the fire department gave the all-clear, stating that there was no danger to people and no evacuations were necessary. The energy supplier Badenova was on site and set up a bypass to divert the escaping gas without having to shut down the main pipeline. The affected area was cordoned off over a wide area.
Passengers should inform themselves online
Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden Airport urged affected passengers to check the airport's website for the current status of their flights. It is expected that further adjustments to the flight schedule may occur throughout the evening and overnight, as airlines attempt to catch up on the backlog caused by the disruption lasting several hours.
Travelers should therefore keep an eye on the airport's online information to be informed of possible delays or flight changes.
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