How I got stranded in Abu Dhabi with Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock

Behind the story - How I got stranded in Abu Dhabi with Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock

Making-of is the name of our new format. We want to give you a personal look behind the scenes, tell you about our everyday journalistic work and our research. We are starting with a short series in which we look back on our moments in 2023.

It reminded me of one of those outside bets from "Wetten, dass...?": Pilot A. claims that he will manage to land in Abu Dhabi three times within 24 hours in a government plane with the German Foreign Minister on board - and spray 80,000 liters of aviation fuel over the Persian Gulf twice in the process. He would have won the bet. But I had no idea when we descended for the first time and my most absurd two days of 2023 began.

August 13: We fly to Australia, New Zealand and the Fiji Islands for the Women's World Cup, the return of cultural assets, the opening of a German embassy - Germany is looking for new, close partners in the Indo-Pacific, and it's an important trip for the minister. And I want to accompany her in the press entourage. On the way to Australia, we are only supposed to make a brief refueling stop in the United Arab Emirates. Quickly disembark, tea and luggage in the VIP terminal, a quick chat with the local ambassador - and off we go.

80,000 liters of kerosene fogged over the Gulf

Half an hour after taking off again, the flight captain reports on the on-board radio. Technical problems, the take-off and landing flaps cannot be retracted, we are returning to Abu Dhabi. But first we have to get rid of the freshly refueled aircraft fuel, otherwise the plane would be too heavy to land. And suddenly, through the porthole window, we see a white plume of fog shooting out of a nozzle on the wing. Kerosene, right and left, one ton per minute, for more than an hour - 80,000 liters.

One ton per minute: before the defective government plane can land in Abu Dhabi again, kerosene has to be drained.

It doesn't feel good. What are we actually doing here, more or less directly above the place where the climate conference is due to take place in December? Sure, there's no alternative right now, but a few old bows for indigenous Australians, a greeting at the new embassy in Fiji - is that worth all the madness here? On the other hand, diplomacy is a political art form in which the performative part is celebrated extensively. The gesture, the ceremony, the personal conversation.

The breakdown show of the air force

The exceptionally friendly flight commander comes to us in the back of the wooden class to explain and reassure us. There was no danger. And: it's a technical problem that has never happened before.

What happens more often, however, are technical problems with government aircraft. As far as that is concerned, the past year seemed like a breakdown show.

In May, for example, I was next door in Doha, the capital of Qatar, with a flat tire. Annalena Baerbock too. The trip to the Gulf region had already begun with a bad omen. Even before departure from Berlin, the plane had reported a defect. All other government planes were fully booked. When the Chancellor travels, he always has his own replacement plane, called a "hot spare", which is inviolable for all other members of the government, even if they get into trouble.

Upper stings lower.

So the Foreign Office acquired a gray air force Airbus. It is often deployed when nothing else works. Last year, for example, it had to rescue a delegation from the Minister of Finance that was stranded in Washington after a breakdown. That morning, the plane was supposed to transport soldiers in accordance with its intended purpose - more precisely, Ukrainian soldiers who had completed their training on Leopard tanks in Germany and now wanted to return home. Now they had to wait for a replacement from Cologne-Bonn.

Upper stings lower. It was to take its revenge.

Flat-footed in the desert

In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, everything was still fine. The Airbus also flew to Doha, Qatar, without any problems. But when it was due to return to Berlin, the tire went flat. It hadn't burst, but so much air had escaped overnight that the result was the same: a flat tire.

Dohar Airport: Flat tire on the Foreign Minister's Airbus

We thought, no problem, surely a plane like that has a spare tire. Answer: No, at least not for such short trips as the one originally planned to Poland. We thought, but at such a huge hub like Doha, surely it will be possible to find a spare tire. No, at least not one that corresponds exactly to this prescribed super-special Bundeswehr specification. It had to be flown in. From Cologne-Bonn, where the Luftwaffe's air base is located, which certainly made a lot of sense when the German government was still based in Bonn. Never mind, Berlin couldn't have been closer from the Gulf.

A few hours' wait, what's the big deal, especially under the Arabian sun? That's true. But only for journalists traveling with them. Anyone who has ever experienced how nervous the protocol gets when the departure times of the delegation column are delayed by a few minutes will get an idea of how tightly timed such trips are. Two capitals in one day is not uncommon. Major delays and mishaps can ruin weeks of detailed planning, as their counterparts usually feel the same way.

August 14: When most of the kerosene has fogged up, we land in Abu Dhabi for the second time, this time in the middle of the night. The local embassy has long since been informed. Thanks to their help, we take the bus for a few hours to one of those luxury hotels that look no different in Singapore than they do in Rio. The technicians try to fix the problem. The diplomats try to save the trip. The journalists report back home.

The second attempt in the evening. The fault has not been found, but a test flight has gone without a hitch. Second farewell at the airport from the German ambassador. On boarding, someone jokes: "How do you say 'See you soon' in Arabic?" If only he had left it alone.

The take-off is normal, as far as you can tell from wooden class. But I wait in vain for the relieving buzz that indicates the flaps are retracting. I look out of the window. No wonder, the flaps still haven't retracted a bit. A little later, the flight commander and the foreign minister come back to us in the back and the small monitor on the back of the seat in front reads: Take-off: Abu Dhabi. Destination: Abu Dhabi. Of course, 80,000 liters of kerosene have to be nebulized again beforehand.

I haven't been to Australia yet. Instead, I took a cab to Dubai - and the trip was worth it for this sentence alone. Only from the neighboring emirate was there to be a flight to Germany that day, not to Berlin, but to Hamburg at least. I had booked the ticket that very night. But that wasn't going to help me either. The machine refused to check me and my luggage in. Instead, it started beeping frantically. A friendly airport employee accompanied me to a counter where I was told that the flight was overbooked. But they had a nice hotel...

As I found out later, the Foreign Minister had also abandoned her plan to continue the journey on a scheduled flight. She also flew back to Germany. Together with the official delegation. From Dubai.

Upper stings lower.