Several hundred farmers in tractors, opposed to a reform of taxation on diesel, disrupted access to Frankfurt airport, the largest in Germany, on Saturday, the city’s police said. “Traffic is disrupted around the airport. People going to the airport are asked to use public transport,” Frankfurt police warned in the morning on X (formerly Twitter). Around midday, police estimated that 400 tractors were taking part in the demonstration, while the Hessian state farmers’ association announced up to a thousand agricultural vehicles.
Early in the afternoon, police reported that “the protest at the airport has been officially ended by the organizers. All temporary closures have therefore been lifted.” A spokeswoman for the Hessian farmers’ association told AFP that the action took place “peacefully”. The aim was to oppose the proposed reduction of diesel subsidies and to draw attention to farmers’ concerns about their competitiveness.
Do not prevent passengers from taking their flights
It was planned to demonstrate around the airport while leaving the access routes to the terminals free, so as not to prevent passengers from taking their flights, the spokesperson said. Germany, renowned for the quality of its social dialogue, has nevertheless seen an increase in social conflicts in recent months, in a context of deterioration in purchasing power following inflation. In addition to the massive mobilization of farmers, there are other social movements which are weakening the government coalition of Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is struggling with record unpopularity.
Several airports in Germany were paralyzed on Thursday by a strike by security personnel to put pressure on collective bargaining in the sector. The pilots’ union at Discover, a subsidiary of the German airline group Lufthansa, has called for a new 48-hour strike between Sunday and Monday. Pilots are demanding in particular the introduction of a salary scale and regulations on flight missions and rest times.
Last week, the country was hit by a multi-day strike by train drivers at state-owned rail operator Deutsche Bahn.