German air traffic is facing massive challenges. While other European countries have largely recovered from the aftermath of the corona pandemic, Germany is lagging far behind.
Airlines such as Ryanair, Eurowings and now Condor are reducing their flights from Hamburg and other airports. Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr is also warning of further cuts, as the industry is suffering from significant cost increases and no longer wants to shoulder these. The discussion about government-imposed taxes and new environmental regulations has become more intense in recent months, and German air traffic could be further weakened in the future.
A downward trend in German air traffic
German airlines have been sounding the alarm for months: high taxes and fees, rising costs due to new requirements and the rise in ticket prices are putting a strain on the industry. According to the German Aviation Association (BDL), 2024 million seats will be offered to and from Germany between September 2025 and February 115,7 - an increase of 5 percent compared to the previous year, but still 13 percent less than before the pandemic. A comparison with other European countries illustrates the misery: while the offer in Germany only reaches 87 percent of the pre-crisis level, the rest of Europe is already at 106 percent.
Medium-sized airports such as Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Berlin are particularly affected. These airports offer significantly fewer flights than before the pandemic, and Hamburg, which had been doing relatively well up until now, is now also being hit by flight cuts. The cuts in flight schedules show that the crisis in German skies is far from over.
The burden of state taxes
At the heart of the airlines' complaints are the government-imposed taxes. Since May 2024, the air traffic tax has been increased by 25 percent, and depending on the distance of the destination, airlines now have to pay between 15,53 euros and 70,83 euros per ticket. Air traffic control fees and the aviation security fee, which is charged for checking passengers, are also increasing. The latter is to be increased from a maximum of 10 euros to up to 15 euros next year. In addition, there are the airport take-off and landing fees, which are particularly high in Germany compared to Europe. A medium-haul flight with an Airbus A320 incurs an average of 3.500 euros in fees in Germany, while in neighboring countries only around 1.300 euros are due. On long-haul flights, the fees in Germany are even four times as high as at competing locations in Europe.
These enormous cost differences have led many airlines to reduce their offerings in Germany. Point-to-point providers such as Ryanair or Wizz Air, which specialize in direct connections without a stopover, have reduced their offerings in Germany to 78 percent of pre-crisis levels. In other parts of Europe, however, these low-cost airlines are expanding and reaching 125 percent of their previous offerings.
Sustainability as a cost factor
In addition to the existing taxes, the increasing importance of climate protection also represents an additional financial burden for airlines. In addition to emissions trading, the European Union has also introduced new requirements for the use of sustainably produced kerosene (Sustainable Aviation Fuel, SAF).
From 2025, airlines will have to add 2 percent SAF, and from 2030 they will also have to add synthetically produced fuel produced solely from green electricity. However, the production of such fuels is expensive and not technologically advanced enough. Lufthansa criticizes the fact that a PtL sub-quota of 2026 percent is already required in Germany from 0,5, while there is still no factory in the whole of Europe for the production of power-to-liquid fuels.
shift in air traffic
Domestic German air traffic is particularly badly affected. Domestic flights that do not serve as feeder flights to the Frankfurt or Munich hubs have been drastically reduced. Business trips that used to be carried out by plane are increasingly being shifted to rail or replaced by video conferences. This is leading to a significant decline in domestic German flight connections, such as the canceled Hamburg-Cologne route by Eurowings.
The direct competition situation is also getting fiercer. The number of destinations that can be reached directly from Germany is decreasing, while ticket prices are rising at the same time. Many routes are now only served by one provider, which leads to a monopoly on certain routes and further increases pricing.
The airlines' demands
In view of these developments, the aviation industry is calling for a reduction in state taxes. Ryanair manager Eddie Wilson has called on Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing to completely abolish the air traffic tax and reduce air traffic control fees. German associations would already be satisfied if the last tax increase were reversed and the revenues used to promote PtL production, as originally planned by the traffic light coalition.
In the short term, however, cost reductions are hardly in sight. Airports and the federal air traffic control point to increased material and personnel costs that must be refinanced. Tax cuts or the waiver of environmental regulations also do not seem politically feasible at present. German airports and airlines are therefore still exposed to considerable financial burdens that are increasingly putting them behind in European competition.
The future of German air transport therefore remains uncertain. While international providers are expanding their market shares and other European countries are recovering, Germany is faced with the difficult task of finding the balance between costs, sustainability and competitiveness.
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