Frankfurt Airport Anticipates 200,000 Daily Passengers

DALLAS - Frankfurt Airport (FRA) anticipates the highest passenger volume since the start of the COVID-19 crisis in the coming days.

As many as 200.000 passengers per day are expected during the first vacation week in Hessen and Rheinland-Pfalz (July 22–24) as well as other peak days, the operator Fraport announced on Tuesday. That's about 75% of pre-pandemic levels.

According to German news outlet handlesblatt.com, up to 1250 aircraft depart from and land at Frankfurt per day for 285 destinations.

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Preparing for Lengthy Wait Times

Fraport advises travelers to check in at least 2.5 hours prior to departure. Returning passengers are warned that their luggage may have to wait a long time. "We are happy that people are traveling again. However, the rapid growth in transportation presents us with significant challenges as well," according to Fraport Manager Alexander Laukenmann.

Due to a staffing shortage in the ground handling services, there have been issues at the busiest airport in Germany in recent weeks. According to Fraport, four-digit numbers of pieces of luggage were frequently left behind and had to be forwarded since they could not be loaded in time.

The airport and airlines were reportedly unprepared for the increasing demand for travel following the COVID-19 slump. Company executives acknowledged that the personnel planning process had been flawed. The number of travelers is still far below the pre-pandemic level. Although June's 5 million passengers were the greatest monthly total since the Corona outbreak, they were still 24,1 percent behind June 2019.

Featured image: Frankfurt Airport via Facebook