Government toughens rules for security at airports
Climate activists repeatedly storm into the airports in Berlin and Munich and disrupt operations there. The German government is now pushing through a reform that provides for penalties including imprisonment for such actions.
The Federal Cabinet has passed a tightening of the Aviation Security Law to prevent radical climate activists and other disturbances on airports. "Anyone who intrudes onto airport grounds, glues themselves to runways, and thereby significantly disrupts air traffic, not only risks their own life," explained Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser. Such incidents are also dangerous for many bystanders. Transport Minister Volker Wissing said: "I hope that this legislative tightening will deter activists and prevent disruptions during the current peak travel season."
The core of the planned reform, which still needs to be decided by the Bundestag, is the creation of a new provision that penalizes "premeditated, unauthorized intrusion" not only onto the runway but also onto the start and landing strips, if this endangers the safety of civil aviation.
Whoever cuts through a fence and then blocks a runway will face a prison sentence of up to two years or a fine in the future. The attempt should also be punishable. Until now, only a fine has been imposed in such cases.
The premeditated, unauthorized intrusion into the part of the airport that experts call the "airside" should be punishable with up to five years in prison if someone carries a weapon or hazardous substances with them or if it is about enabling or concealing another crime.
The police union (GdP) welcomed the planned reform but emphasized that it was not enough. In the view of GdP Vice President Sven Huber, airport operators must improve the technical protection. "The long fences around airports are hardly securely monitored with mere manpower." It is therefore important to invest more in surveillance and alarm technology. The police union also called for legally anchored, uniform national security standards. Unlawful actions by climate activists have occurred, for example, at the airports in Munich and Berlin-Brandenburg.
The Federal government is proposing to amend the Aviation Security Law, targeting the last generation of climate activists who disrupt operations at Berlin and Munich airports, with harsher penalties. These penalties include imprisonment for deliberately intruding onto airport grounds, disrupting air traffic, and endangering civil aviation.
In Japan, similar measures are being considered following high-profile disruptions at airports, as political leaders acknowledge the need to balance climate activism with airport security and operations.
