Dhe Ministry of Defense (BMVg) has rejected criticism of the son of department head Christine Lambrecht (SPD) traveling from Berlin to northern Germany. The minister had applied for a ride in a government helicopter and “accepted 100 percent of the costs in accordance with the guideline,” said a spokesman in Berlin on Monday. The flight took off from the headquarters in Berlin on April 13 and led to a visit to the troops in Ladelund in Schleswig-Holstein.
Lambrecht, as Minister of Defense, is entitled to make requests for aircraft that are ready to fly if the trip is carried out in the course of an official activity, and determines the persons accompanying them, “who have to bear different cost rates depending on the federal interest,” said the spokesman. And: “Flight and reimbursement of costs therefore took place in full compliance with the guidelines for the use of aircraft of the BMVg flight readiness.”
Accusation: The son has already traveled with him several times
Business Insider reported that Lambrecht’s 21-year-old son flew in a government helicopter for an Easter holiday with his mother. After the visit to the troops, the minister drove to Sylt together with bodyguards from the Federal Criminal Police Office. According to the report, there were already other trips by the son.
The chairwoman of the defense committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP), said on Monday on the television channel “Welt” that she could not yet comment on it, but that it was an unusual process. Strack-Zimmermann: “I can’t judge what kind of flight it was, whether the minister was on the road anyway. The whole thing is not really correct, we all know that.” She assumes that the minister can explain the case.