Behind the story - With Mohammed and Markus Söder: Flying in times of war
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.
New Yorkers have John F. Kennedy, JFK, their home airport. My gateway to the world is called Franz Josef Strauss, which is unfortunately not abbreviated to FJS in international airport language, but to MUC for Munich. This is where my trips abroad for stern begin, to Helsinki, Riyadh or Palma de Mallorca. And I actually thought I was on first-name terms with every gate there. Until I flew to Tel Aviv the other day.
Terminal 1: the departure board directs me to area F, an area that was previously completely unknown to me. Cabs are not allowed to stop here, there is an access control in front of the building and federal police officers patrol the hall with machine guns at the ready on a raised circuit. Prison or gate? On the online portal "Vielfliegertreff", they refer to this part of the airport simply as "Departure F".
This is where check-in takes place for all security-relevant scheduled flights in Munich, which in Germany unfortunately means: all departures to Israel, even in peacetime. After the Hamas massacre on October 7, the Israeli airline El Al is the last connection option from Germany to Tel Aviv. Lufthansa suspended its flights for the rest of the year shortly after the attack. Of over 100 airlines that once flew to Israel, two handful remain, including providers that I try to avoid because they sound a bit like a crash news item on the daily news.
My luggage tag is yellow, most Israelis' is green - not a good sign
El Al seems to me to be a more trustworthy provider. The planes are equipped with sensor-controlled missile defense systems. And they also take security seriously in departure F. Compared to the interrogation of an El Al employee, the immigration questioning at US airports seems like insignificant small talk.
Things I want to know before I fly to Tel Aviv: Who paid for the flight? (The stern.) Why did your organization send you of all people? (My boss can answer that better.) Do you have a girlfriend? (No.)
The gentleman leafs suspiciously through my passport. I explain that I was on vacation in Bali and had reported on an earthquake in Turkey. The guard on flight LY354 seems convinced, but then sticks a yellow ribbon around my suitcases. The Israelis next to me get a green one. I don't take this as a good sign.
And indeed: after the baggage check by the federal police without any objections, El Al leads me into a barren room. My hand luggage is meticulously double-checked, the Spiegel magazine is crumpled, the lozenge packet is inspected, neither of which seems to arouse any further suspicion, because I am allowed to board: I am allowed to board and fly.
I'm still being checked in the terminal, while Markus Söder is already sending selfies from the plane
On the way to the airport, I spot a fellow Bavarian who has cleverly avoided the chaos of the security check. Markus Söder, sunk deep into his business class seat, rests his chin on his chest and peers into his cell phone. While I was still stuck in Hall F, he had already posted a selfie from the cabin on Instagram. You'd have to be prime minister. In terms of flight time, however, we are the same, Söder and I. Three and three-quarter hours from Munich to Tel Aviv.
My first trip there in October was already a cross: Israel had not yet launched its ground offensive in Gaza, I flew via Thessaloniki because all connections were fully booked, presumably by reservists and journalists. Before landing, we did extra laps over the Mediterranean because the rocket alarm was blaring on the ground and somewhere on the tarmac of Tel Aviv Airport, Chancellor Olaf Scholz was being evacuated.
The more interesting conversation partner on the flight is sitting further back
This time, only the reporters' questions revolve around him. And about Söder. Somewhere above central Turkey, he makes his way to the first rows of economy class to speak to the press entourage accompanying him on his state visit. I'm sitting in row 40 and am not flying to Israel because of Söder. I want to travel to the north of the country, to the border with Lebanon, where there is daily fighting between the Israeli military and the terrorist group Hezbollah. I want to talk to various Israelis about how this year has changed them and what hopes they have for 2024.
For Mohammed, for example, seated diagonally in front of me, an Arab Israeli who has been in Germany for 20 years and is a dentist in Ulm, he is currently flying home to present his newborn son to his family there. He would have preferred to fly with Ryanair or Lufthansa, he says. He had a bad experience with El Al - as a man with dark eyes and a full black beard, as Mohammed. Category: yellow ribbon.
We touch down gently in Tel Aviv. No alarm. Unfortunately, no suitcase either. Because of all the checks, my luggage didn't make it into the belly of the Boeing. I meet Mohammed again at the lost-and-found counter. My suitcase, completely ransacked, will only be returned to the hotel two days later.
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- The last connection option from Germany to Tel Aviv in times of unrest is the Israeli airline El Al, which equips its planes with sensor-controlled missile defense systems.
- In Munich's Terminal 1, El Al handles check-in for all security-relevant scheduled flights to Israel, even in peacetime.
- During a trip to Tel Aviv, journalist Mohammed encountered strict security measures at the airport, including federal police checks and yellow luggage tags for certain passengers, while German politician Markus Söder was already on the plane, sending selfies from his business class seat.
- Mohammed, an Arab Israeli dentist based in Ulm, experienced a bad experience with El Al due to his appearance, but chose to fly El Al again to Israel with his newborn son, having been assigned a yellow ribbon, a sign of increased scrutiny.
- The Israeli airline El Al, with its strict security measures and sensitive destinations, provides a unique travel experience that can be both safe and nerve-wracking, especially for those who are familiar with the historical and current tensions in the Middle East.
Source: www.stern.de
