Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) faced significant disruptions to air traffic on the morning of February 13, 2025. After overnight snowfall, an unusually large amount of snow lay on the runways of the capital's airport, which made clearing work more difficult and led to lengthy delays. In particular, the time required to clear snow from the runways caused the number of punctual flights to drop significantly.
According to a BER spokesperson, who responded to a query from the German Press Agency (dpa), the massive snowfall caused significant delays in air traffic. The large amount of snow that fell overnight meant that the runways had to be cleared at great expense. This took significantly longer than usual, meaning that numerous aircraft had to take off late.
"The areas are now largely free again," said the airport spokesman. Nevertheless, air traffic remained disrupted for several hours. Another factor that contributed to the delays was a restriction on landings imposed by the German air traffic control. Due to the weather conditions, the number of landings was limited to 15 per hour. This measure was temporary and initially applied until around 10 a.m. The BER spokesman assured that the airport staff were doing everything they could to make up for the delays as quickly as possible.
Impact on the flight schedule and passengers
The weather conditions meant long waiting times for many passengers. Many passengers had to wait while airport checks and clearance work were carried out. It wasn't just delayed take-offs, landings were also affected, which made the overall situation even more difficult. The number of flight delays rose significantly, as the affected aircraft usually landed or took off late.
According to the BER spokesman, however, there was a slight improvement around 10 a.m. He stated that the airport would probably be able to return to normal operations around this time as soon as the clearance work was completed and the landing restrictions were lifted. "We are doing our best to resume air traffic quickly," the spokesman continued.
BER Airport still prepared for snowfall
Snowfall in the capital region is not uncommon, but the airport has increasingly invested in expanding its winter services in recent years. Since the opening of BER in 2020, continuous improvements have also been made in this area to increase the efficiency of the clearance work and ensure that air traffic can be restored quickly. Nevertheless, the current delays show how challenging the weather conditions can be even for a well-equipped airport.
According to the current weather forecast, winter conditions are expected to continue in the coming days, forcing BER Airport to prepare for possible further snowfall and the associated difficulties. The airport's winter service will probably have to be deployed more intensively in the coming weeks in order to maintain air traffic and minimize unnecessary disruptions.
The unusually heavy snowfall at BER has once again shown how much air traffic depends on weather conditions. Even though the airport has invested heavily in expanding its winter service in recent years, the airport was not unaffected by the effects of the snow masses. Passengers who flew from or landed at BER that morning had to expect significant delays, which exacerbated the already stressful travel conditions. While the situation began to stabilize around 10 a.m., it remains to be seen how the weather will continue to affect the coming days. Passengers should therefore always expect possible delays, especially in winter conditions.
and 
Comment