Could the seemingly impossible really happen this fall? Could Berlin Brandenburg Airport finally open, only nine years later than planned? Lufthansa seems to be planning on that being the case…
In this post:
Lufthansa schedules Berlin Brandenburg flights
It has today been announced that Lufthansa will be moving all Berlin flights from Berlin Tegel (TXL) to Berlin Brandenburg (BER) as of November 8, 2020.
Austrian, Brussels, and SWISS will also move operations to Brandenburg Airport as of November 8, while Eurowings will move operations to the airport on November 4, a few days earlier.
Eurowings will be the first Lufthansa Group airline to move to BER
Lufthansa has announced the following as some noteworthy transition flights:
- LH1955 bound for Munich on November 7 will be the last Lufthansa flight from Berlin Tegel
- LH173 bound for Frankfurt on November 8 will be the first Lufthansa flight from Berlin Brandenburg
Once all is said and done, Lufthansa will operate around 700 flights per week to the airport, carrying around 33,000 passengers.
Lufthansa will move to BER on November 8
Lufthansa Lounges at Berlin Brandenburg
While the details are still limited, it’s not surprising that there will be a Lufthansa Lounge at the new BER Airport. It will be located in Terminal 1 (Main Pier North), and will cover an area of about 1,600 square meters, or about 17,000 square feet.
The lounge will have separate Business and Senator areas:
- The Business section will be open to Star Alliance business class passengers and Frequent Traveller members of the Lufthansa Miles & More program
- The Senator section will be open to Star Alliance Gold members, HON Circle and Senator members of the Lufthansa Miles & More program, and connecting Lufthansa first class passengers
The only other detail so far is that Lufthansa says the lounge will have a view across the airport apron and of the Berlin skyline.
The new airport will have a Lufthansa Lounge
Lufthansa calls for more Berlin Airport investments
Interestingly Lufthansa Group uses much of the press release about the new airport to call on better public transport to the airport, and also to urge the airport to be competitive on costs.
Harry Hohmeister, Lufthansa’s Chief Commercial Officer, said the following:
“Berlin is a fascinating and cosmopolitan city that attracts people from all over the world. That is why Berlin needs an efficient airport. This also includes even better connections between BER and local public transportation as well as to the long-distance rail network. More ICE connections to Rostock, Dresden or Hamburg could strengthen intermodal traffic. That would be good for passengers and for the environment.
It is important that the modernization of the airport continues in the future. The BER has to be competitive, both in terms of quality and costs.”
Why is Berlin Brandenburg Airport a big deal?
For those of you wondering why any of this is a big deal, it’s because of what a mess Brandenburg Airport has been. Construction on the airport started in 2006, and it was supposed to open in 2011.
That was the first of 10 planned opening dates that have been missed for the airport. Furthermore, the airport had an initial budget of €2.83 billion, but at this point the budget has increased to €7 billion.
In November 2019 it was announced that the airport will open in October 2020, so it’s nice to see that they’re pretty confident with that schedule.
Bottom line
Lufthansa seems pretty confident about Berlin Brandenburg’s opening date, and has moved scheduled operations to the new airport as of November 8, 2020.
Here’s to hoping that schedule sticks, because Berlin is oh-so-dearly in need of a new airport.
@Colin it's a 'leave a reply' section, so yes everyone can say the hell we want to... Nevertheless the blogger can also set a disclaimer 'I don't give a sxxx about anything readers say, just want to earn $$$$'
Bahahahaha. Not going to happen. #sucker
Shucks, I was really hoping LGA would finish before BER. Now that would have been WOW worthy!
I first became aware of this airport during its first year of construction and remember thinking: "Wow, at least when I visit Berlin I'll arrive into a brand new airport soon". Starting that first year 2006, I've completed two university degrees, had a long engagement, got married, had three kids, learned Arabic, German and Bahasa Indonesian languages, restored a WWII jeep, and painted my mother's house three times.
And after all that, this damned...
I first became aware of this airport during its first year of construction and remember thinking: "Wow, at least when I visit Berlin I'll arrive into a brand new airport soon". Starting that first year 2006, I've completed two university degrees, had a long engagement, got married, had three kids, learned Arabic, German and Bahasa Indonesian languages, restored a WWII jeep, and painted my mother's house three times.
And after all that, this damned airport is still not complete! Hopeless. Just hopeless.
I'll eat my hat if it opens in November. Berlin government is too incompetent and too corrupt to ever get this place open.
And Tempelhof should never have shut down.
I use TXL most weeks, will miss it a lot if it does eventually close. It mostly works well and is quick and convenient. Maybe this is why most locals are so blasé about the continuous delays to BER - most people like TXL. Although hopefully when/if it eventually opens Berlin will get some more and useful direct flights.
Ironically I am actually planning TXL to FRA on that day as part of a RTW trip. Looked at flights last weekend and they were all going from TXL, now they are all going from the new airport. Not just LH173
@Daniel, why do you think it’s upon you to tell others what words they can use to describe an event on their own blog?
@VT-CIE
BER is actually the IATA code for all airports in the Berlin area (TXL, SXF, and the defunct THF). Only when the new airport opens, and the others close, will BER turn into an IATA code for a single airport.
BBI on the other hand, at least used to be, is the official acronym for Berlin Brandenburg International.
WOW
Very childish word.
Nothing solid about the editorial input here!!
Pigs will fly with the opening of Brandenburg.
What happened to James? (who wrote the linked post on BER)
TXL, the best city airport in the world, will be dearly missed. Tears all along.
Still holding a boarding pass from years ago. Never going to happen.
The post that you linked to "The Sad Tale of Berlin Brandenburg Airport" was one of the best items I've read on your site. It was really well written and comprehensive and I remember it to this day.
Don't worry something will happen to stop this from happening. In true Brandenburg fashion it'll be something ridiculous that delays it. We'll get to September and it'll be announced that planes can't land at the airport.
Wow is when Lufthansa grounds 150 planes because of Covid-19.
While I really hope that BER actually opens this time, we are talking about people who, among other things, forgot that smoke rises, so I'm not holding my breath.
Any chance this is a pressure-play by the airlines? Clearly LH Group is referring to cost-containment at BER, but are they also holding their feet to the fire on the date? Most of the previously announced dates didn't involve the airlines making any schedule changes - certainly not this far out.
What makes this different from a LH perspective?
@aaron Aeroflot has also introduced a stunning new business class that Ben has yet to mention! Their new A350s are sporting it now
@DTS: BBI is Bhubaneswar Airport in India. Brandenburg's code is BER. Indeed the BER code itself has turned into a laughing stock in Germany.
Well, it would be the ultimate irony, and certainly ‘wow-worthy’, were they to open in the context of potentially the biggest downturn in aviation since 9/11 ( ...here’s hoping it doesn’t have to get to that point).
BBI opening would be "wow" worthy. Yet, I believe it when I see it.
Ben, please enough with the "Wow" headlines. Save it for something Wow-worthy, please.
@ Daniel -- Brandenburg Airport opening *is* wow-worthy, if you ask me!! It's only a decade and five billion dollars late!
As a Berlin based travel agent, I don't believe for a second this is gonna happen on time.
I went through all of the flight changes the first time around and it was a mess, yet everybody expected it.
It's gonna be the same this time around, don't get your hopes up.
Aeroflot and S7 have also announced they will begin flying from there as well, at around the same time (late October/early November).
https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/288417/aeroflot-files-berlin-bradenburg-schedule-from-late-oct-2020/
https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/288159/s7-airlines-plans-berlin-brandenburg-service-in-early-nov-2020/