The German aviation industry is urging the federal government to allow the use of the kerosene pipeline system built by NATO for wartime purposes. In a letter addressed to the Ministries of Finance, Transport, and Economics, various industry associations demanded that the strategic kerosene reserves be released.
According to reporting by “Der Spiegel”, the letter was titled: “Middle East Crisis: Urgent Measures to Maintain Germany’s Connectivity”. Within the document, the three major lobbying groups, including the Federal Association of German Air Transport Industries, warned that worsening kerosene supply bottlenecks would have severe consequences for Germany. They called for immediate governmental action, specifically arguing that the EU should include kerosene shortages as an extraordinary circumstance under the EU Air Passenger Rights Regulation. Doing so would mean that passengers would not be entitled to compensation if their flights were cancelled.
This confidential letter, reported by “Der Spiegel”, was prepared for a video conference involving industry representatives and state secretaries from the Ministries of Transport and Economics, discussing the escalating energy crisis. The aviation representatives argued that oil consortiums had only guaranteed kerosene supply until mid-May, and the oil managers could not promise anything for the period afterward. They therefore appealed to government officials to pressure these companies for more concrete information.
Separately, Lufthansa had previously announced that, due to kerosene shortages, it would cancel approximately 20,000 short-haul flights through the autumn. Furthermore, “Der Spiegel” reported that the company had contacted Deutsche Bahn (the German rail network) regarding the issue.
