Auf die Frage, ob die deutschen Flughäfen ausreichend gegen Eindringlinge geschützt sind, haben Aktivisten der Letzten Generation in der Nacht zu Donnerstag ihre eigene Antwort gegeben. Sie klebten sich auf der Rollbahn des Flughafens Leipzig/Halle fest und blockierten drei Stunden lang den Frachtverkehr. Passagierflüge waren diesmal nicht beeinträchtigt. Wie in Frankfurt und Köln/Bonn eine Woche zuvor kamen die Klima-Demonstranten durch Löcher im Zaun auf das Gelände.
Das Thema Sicherheit beschäftigt Flughafenbetreiber und Behörden nicht erst jetzt. Vor einem Jahr legten Aktivisten vorübergehend die Flughäfen Hamburg und Düsseldorf lahm. Auch in Frankfurt wurden die Vorfälle registriert. Sie hätten Fraport noch stärker sensibilisiert, hieß es damals von Seiten des Flughafenbetreibers, man habe Sicherheitspläne und Dienstanweisungen überprüft. Eine Garantie könne es aber nicht geben. Letzteres hat sich vergangene Woche bewahrheitet.
Übung für schnelles Eingreifen
Als im November 2022 Mitglieder der Letzten Generation auf das Rollfeld des Berliner Flughafens gelangten, hatten sie einige Mühe, die Sicherheitskräfte auf sich aufmerksam zu machen. So schilderten sie es zumindest dem „Spiegel“. Ihr Anruf gelangte erst über Umwege zum Flughafenkontrollzentrum. Bis dahin fuhr einer von ihnen mit dem Fahrrad auf der Rollbahn und filmte sich.
In Frankfurt, the intruders were apparently noticed quickly. “We were there in just a few minutes, even though it’s a huge area,” says a spokesman for the federal police. “We got an overview of who was there pretty quickly.” The demonstrators had stuck themselves to a taxiway that connects the apron with the runways. The first two people were quickly removed and the first runway was reopened at 7:02 a.m. “That’s no coincidence,” says the spokesman. Last year, a similar situation was simulated and the interaction between the federal police, airport security, fire service and state police was practiced in a large-scale exercise. “Now the alarm chain has worked.”
The 30-kilometer-long airport fence in Frankfurt is not an insurmountable obstacle. In the recent past, it also had political significance in the Rhine-Main area and stood for the promise that the airport would only grow within the fence. The northwest runway was added later. The fence there is the most modern and differs from the others in the older part of the airport. The design also depends on the area in question, says a Fraport spokesman. For example, whether the boundary is next to a forest or a road.
The regulations on how the airport must be secured are based on an EU standard from 2008 and the recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), according to the Hessian Ministry of Transport. It is responsible for air traffic safety and is the supervisory authority for the airport.
When asked whether Fraport meets all the requirements, the ministry answered yes. However, it is in constant contact with the airport operator “as part of the assessment of security incidents”. The Federal Ministry of the Interior refers to the Aviation Security Act, according to which airports are obliged to secure the airport premises against unauthorized access.
Interior Minister Faeser calls for more investment in security
In some places at Frankfurt Airport, this is done using a wire mesh fence. “This may be the minimum standard according to EU norms, but it is inadequate as a security measure,” says Jens Mohrherr, regional chairman of the police union. According to the Federal Police, when the activists entered the airport grounds in Frankfurt, they cut through a total of three fences at one point, one of which was a more stable double-bar fence.
A Fraport spokesman declined to comment on the details of the second stage, i.e. detectors, cameras, infrared detection and strips. “The layman sees a fence, but not the downstream process chains.” Ultimately, the security concept worked. “We are trying to learn from the incident.” The enclosure also has limits in terms of aviation security. If an aircraft rolls off the runway in an emergency, a fence is better than a wall.
“People expect security,” says GdP chairman Mohrherr, not just thinking about climate protection, but also about the uncertain situation in the Middle East. Ultimately, given the length of the fences at major airports, it’s also about money. Experts are talking about double-digit millions for the upgrades. Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) has called on airports to “invest significantly more in the protection of their facilities.” The current standard, according to her ministry, is not considered sufficient.
After a declaration of voluntary commitment by airport operators failed, the Federal Ministry of the Interior says it has resumed negotiations with the states on a legal ordinance to protect German airports. This includes improving fences and gates in conjunction with modern signaling technology. In the tightening of the Aviation Security Act, which makes unauthorized entry onto runways and taxiways, which was previously punishable by fines, a criminal offense, the Federal Government expects 15 incidents a year with six people involved each in 2023 based on its experience. A bizarre side note: the fact that this leads to 60 criminal proceedings instead of the multiplication result of 90 is, according to information from Berlin, an “editorial error.”
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