Frankfurt Airport, Germany’s busiest, resumed operations on Thursday morning after a temporary suspension caused by a demonstration staged by climate activists. The protest, organized by the group Last Generation, resulted in the airport initially advising passengers not to travel to the airport and to check their flight status. The airport later deleted this message, indicating that flight operations were gradually resuming.
The climate activists, who had cut through a fence and positioned themselves on the runways with posters reading “Oil kills”, were removed by the police. Their action was part of a wider protest campaign demanding the German government commit to a global agreement to exit oil, gas, and coal by 2030.
The protest at Frankfurt Airport followed similar disruptions across Europe and North America, including a protest at Germany’s Cologne-Bonn airport on Wednesday, where activists glued themselves to a runway. The German Interior Minister, Nancy Faeser, condemned the actions as “dangerous, dumb and criminal,” and her ministry is seeking to implement stricter penalties for unauthorized airfield access.
In Norway, a dozen activists blocked the check-in area at Oslo Airport, marking the second day of their protest actions, but flights were not disrupted. Similar actions at other European airports were thwarted by authorities.
Despite the resumption of operations at Frankfurt Airport, passengers are still advised to check their flight status before departing for the airport.
