Lufthansa Cargo has warned that shipments may be delayed as handling times are longer than normal at Frankfurt and Munich airports and said it has introduced measures including additional staff to help normalise operations.
The cargo arm of Lufthansa said in a flight information update on its website that handling times were longer due to “exceptionally high cargo volumes and existing handling backlogs caused by heat-related technical constraints”.
Lufthansa Cargo stated: “As a result, the processing of shipments may be delayed.” It stated that there was a possibility of some shipments being rebooked.
“Together with our partners, we have implemented a range of operational measures, including additional handling crews, to gradually reduce the backlog and further stabilize operations,” the carrier added.
Lufthansa Cargo’s main hubs are located at Frankfurt Airport, Munich Airport, and Vienna International Airport.
The carrier stated that a temporary cargo transit embargo is in place for all routings via Munich arriving between Tuesday, 07 July, 00:00 and Thursday, 09 July, 23:59 local time.
Shipment types exempt from this restriction include Build-Up (BUP), Valuable Cargo (VAL), Emergency Shipments (BXO) and smaller Zoom shipments (XOS). Road Feeder Services (RFS), as well as local acceptance.
Countries in Europe are increasingly experiencing higher summer temperatures and more heatwaves than in the past, meaning air cargo operations are having to become more resilient by using and introducing infrastructure and equipment that can withstand high temperatures.
Meanwhile, the carrier also recently confirmed it is continuing to evaluate its options to get its fleet of Airbus A321 freighters back into the skies after they were temporarily grounded as a result of cuts made to sister airline Lufthansa CityLine that had been operating the aircraft.