Eurowings and Condor join Ryanair in significantly reducing capacity at Hamburg Helmut Schmidt Airport for the summer of 2025, citing “disproportionate increases in charges” that have raised operational costs for airlines.
Eurowings plans to cut 1,000 flights to and from Hamburg, removing popular routes and transferring them to other airports due to sharply rising location costs, while Condor announced a 13pc capacity reduction and several route cancellations from Hamburg.
Ryanair has announced a 60pc reduction in capacity to Hamburg and a 12pc overall cut in flights to Germany, protesting against high aviation taxes and fees imposed by the German government that hinder recovery and growth.
Hamburg Airport’s managing director disputed the airlines’ claims about rising fees, stating the proposed increase would only be EUR2.30 per passenger, and suggested that airlines are using the situation to amplify political grievances rather than addressing airport-specific issues.
Eurowings said “we are considering further route closures at other German airports in favour of flights to other EU countries, given the constantly rising infrastructure and location costs for airlines in Germany. This is because the sum of all German and European cost burdens is making flying to and from Germany increasingly expensive and unprofitable on many routes.”
Condor CEO Peter Gerber shared: “We are not only cutting capacity in Hamburg but also our planned growth in summer 2025 a logical consequence of the threat of a completely disproportionate increase in charges in Hamburg. With these significantly increased costs, we are not only forced to relocate flights from Hamburg to other locations but also to increase prices.”
Hamburg Airport MD Christian Kunsch shared: “Hamburg Airport has become a pawn in what are actually federal political disputes. The airlines want to use the example of Hamburg to flex their muscles in order to demonstrate their power in the upcoming fee negotiations at other German airports. The airlines are appearing to collaborate to amplify their grievances about high tax burdens on airlines at the federal level.”
