BREAKING: Berlin’s Brandenburg Airport closed after climate activists cause disruption

The unauthorised entry of climate activists onto a runway at Berlin’s Brandenburg Airport led to the hub being closed.

As confirmed by Berlin Police on Twitter this afternoon, Thursday, November 24, air traffic at Brandenburg Airport was suspended. This was the result of climate activists from the Last Generation group glueing themselves to the tarmac at Terminal 5.

‘In an airport area that is not open to the public, we encountered several people who had previously gained unauthorized access and some glued themselves’, read the post.

The environmental group was calling for the government to stop subsidising air travel and urged people to avoid flying. According to Berlin police, six people were detained for entering the Greifswalder Straße/Danziger area, as reported by German news outlet Bild.

Flights scheduled to land in Brandenburg were diverted to Leipzig, Hanover, and Dresden. The Flightradar website also showed that individual planes were circling not far from the city of Berlin.

+++ Flugverkehr am BER eingestellt +++

Das Flugzeug ist kein Verkehrsmittel für Normalbürger:innen. Die meisten Menschen – etwa 80% – sind noch nie geflogen.
Ein wohlhabendes Prozent der Bevölkerung verursacht allein etwa die Hälfte der flugbedingten Emissionen. pic.twitter.com/Avfg5tDeqw

— Letzte Generation (@AufstandLastGen) November 24, 2022

++ Approach to Berlin Airport blocked ++

Several cars with hazard warning lights slowed down until they came to a complete stop. The approach to #BER from Berlin is now blocked.

This is just the beginning!#LetzteGeneration #A22Network#UniteAgainstClimateFailure! pic.twitter.com/SMB0SIwBlg

— Letzte Generation (@AufstandLastGen) November 18, 2022

Bild managed to obtain footage showing the activists cutting holes in the fences adjoining the runways. In a video that was streamed live on YouTube, from around 4 p.m. the activists could be seen walking around the runway, sitting down and eventually sticking themselves to the tarmac. Others rode bicycles around the site.

About ten minutes after the start of their action, blue lights could be seen in the live stream, and police officers arrived shortly after. Around one hour later the video was apparently taken offline by YouTube: “This video has been removed because it violates YouTube’s community guidelines,” it said where the video was previously seen.

The activists were finally detained by Berlin police said an airport spokesperson adding that the runways remained closed. This was to allow the authorities to search for the presence of more eco-protesters.

According to Bild, Dresden airport was subsequently placed under extreme pressure with the facility seriously undermanned to deal with the extra traffic.

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