After seven years, WISAG lost the license to plan the airport at Frankfurt Airport again, and Swissport international came. Did that somehow become apparent? Stuhr: No. Nobody expected us to do that. Especially since we knew that everyone involved in the airport, i.e. the airport operator Fraport AG, the airline seconds and the employee representative – all users of the airport – are very satisfied with us. We have obviously did a good job in the past seven years, which apparently did not impress the responsible Hessian Ministry of Economic Affairs, because on August 22, 2024, they were informed in writing that from February 2025 they will no longer have their own license to make airport at Frankfurt Airport .Stwl: We both needed one day to digest and analyze it. What happened there? How could that happen? What options do we have now? These questions had to be answered quickly, but then they quickly knew that they would go against the decision because they consider it illegal: Yes. First of all, it was important for us to personally inform our employees at the airport about the new location. You shouldn’t learn about third parties. We then always went to the airport and informed about current steps and developments. With your decision to take action against the decision, you immediately excluded a transfer of business according to the paragraph 613a BGB, which in such cases often is carried out. The new licensee then takes over the device and staff from the previous service provider – for example, they negotiated it with the Acciona seven years ago. Swissport maintains them that they have prevented a smooth takeover of the license because they reject the transition. For this reason, it was immediately clear that we would like to keep our highly qualified 500 employees in Frankfurt aircraft and offer them a perspective. Apart from that, they are part of the Wisag family. We also pursue a pronounced growth strategy at other airports such as Düsseldorf or Munich. So we need our experts ourselves in any case-and quite a few people like to switch to other locations on a voluntary basis to work in the establishment of a WISAG station. Location in Frankfurt: You stay in Frankfurt in the plane production, even though you Have lost your own license for it? Ruck: Yes, that’s right. At the same time, we have not only been working as a subcontracter for the Fraport Ground Service subsidiary since the new license. We have already looked after some Lufthansa daughters under this roof in recent years. Very important: This cooperation is indefinitely and has nothing to do with the current license question. It does not end – as part of the October 31st, which is why you can now step in and continue to handle the large -scale aircraft that Swissport only wants to use it from autumn? Ruck: Yes. But I have to make it clear: the handling of the widebodys does not depend on the competitor and not on the license in question, but solely on Fraport and the airline. If they want to work with us, we will be happy to handle these aircraft. How many men and women work for WISAG in the aircraft production at Frankfurt Airport? Ruck: Around 500 in the plane manufacture, if you add check-in, boarding gates, cleaning and other services, it is about 1450. It is also that the employees on the apron must be highly qualified. For example, you have to be able to manage an aircraft with a tug in a confined space. Discussion: What exactly do you doubt about the procedure of the advance license allocation? Stuhr: The main procedure is still running, so reluctance is required for us here. However, we can say that we have looked closely at the allocation of points. Question: And you have discovered mistakes? Stuhr: In principle, such an application must always contain a plausible weighing up between the reliability of the services and economy. To put it simply, a serious offer cannot actually exceed a certain number of points due to this necessary consideration. In our view, however, more points were awarded in the procedure to competitors than could have been awarded on the basis of realistic calculations. How can this be? Stuhr: The procedure is a very theoretical. You write concepts for weeks and create a so -called sample quantity calculation. In the end they produced four thick file folders. If I understood the correctly, the procedure in Frankfurt is based on a realistic flight schedule, for which license applicants then have to present their concepts. St. On the basis of it, for example, you describe which device you use where, how many employees are used, which training courses are intended and other quality criteria. But in the end there is a lot of experience. What do you mean? So can an applicant present an ideal concept that he cannot realize on the apron if he wants to work profitably? Stuhr: In any case, it is now becoming apparent that the process can generate far away results from reality, on the basis of which a license is then awarded. This is also the reason why we consider this practice to be unlawful and pursue the legal process. Confidence that the award procedure is in need of reform. The current case in Frankfurt shows the obvious. Ruck: You have to keep in mind that it is primarily about the operational stability of the airport company in Frankfurt. Various industry associations have now recognized this and are calling for a reform of the regulation on ground handling services on airfields. It is clear that something has to happen. More asked about the topic: All relevant officials at the airport, operator, airline seconds and the employee representative have voted to give WISAG again. That should be the decisive factor? Ruck: We mean that with a distant way. The users are heard, nothing more. The best way to assess the users is whether a service provider meets the requirements. And the Frankfurt hub is so complex and sometimes fragile that experience is needed, so it is not the users, but an external expert who ultimately decides on behalf of the ministry about who gets the license – possibly on the Base of imaginatively decorated plans. The EU can’t want that either? Stuhr: The EU only stipulates that the market must be open. The interpretation of the EU requirements varies in the individual countries. For example, there is no tendering process in Amsterdam, but a free market, and permission must be applied for at the airport. Only in Germany is the allocation so closely regulated. What is the more complicated in Frankfurt than elsewhere, because the airport operator is also a provider of all ground traffic services, especially the aircraft production. This is the only reason why the Ministry of Economic Affairs works as a decision -maker: that is right. You could basically stay with the tender model in Frankfurt. But the practice would have to get a much greater weight. At the moment it is the case that the ministry decides who receives the license on the basis of an expert opinion. But the responsibility for safe and smooth aircraft production on the apron then lies completely with the airport operator. We are unable to assess whether this is in the sense of the airport operator.
Go to source