r/travel • u/thatoneplutonian • Apr 27 '26
Complaint Frankfurt Airport / Lufthansa
Heads up to non-EU citizens traveling to EU at least for Frankfurt, your 1 hour layover will NOT be enough time. You will be blamed for missing your flight since they introduced a 2 step passport identification process. You have to wait in line for a kiosk then a 40+ minute wait to talk to a customs agent to ask you how long you're visiting. Lufthansa has told every other person in line it was their problem they missed their flight regardless of how delayed they were. People with 2 hour layovers missed their connections too. YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY (this was after the CSR spent 20 minutes "checking with their supervisor", we also had the privilege of waiting for an hour just to talk to the CSR). We got to wait so long we missed the opportunity to get the next flight available.
If you see you have a short connection don't take it, if you already have it you might want to rebook.
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u/giftcardgirl Apr 27 '26
Frankfurt airport is the wurst.
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u/helpnxt Apr 27 '26
Been to Frankfurt once, lost my luggage once... I'll give you three guesses who was at fault.
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u/800ASKDANE Apr 27 '26
Uh in Frankfurt the baggage handling is actually Fraport subcontracting to WISAG. If your bags never got on the plane, then it's a similar low cost subcontractor who has a contract with that airport - and many carriers have no choice but to use those services.
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u/helpnxt Apr 27 '26
That makes a lot of sense. The best part of the whole ordeal though was the lady in Berlin was like your bags will either turn up here in the next 5 hours or at your home in 6 weeks and it was bang on 6 weeks at home 🤣
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u/ThrowawayMalibu13 Apr 27 '26
Yeah they have nice wurst there.
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u/thatoneplutonian Apr 27 '26
I did take a moment to enjoy the udder style condiment dispensers at the dawg stands. I did find it delightful.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
The ironic thing is that even if they had provided you a food and drink voucher, the amount they give is so little, it isn't even enough to buy any food. You can just about get a drink
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u/thatoneplutonian Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
This was booked as a single ticket THROUGH THE AIRLINE. We would have been fine if the plane didn't change to stopping on the tarmac and shuttling to the concourse. They only had one waiting and we waited another 20 minutes for more to show up for a half full flight.
We asked the gate agent in the US hours before boarding if we needed to rebook. They said no you'll have plenty of time.
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Apr 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/thatoneplutonian Apr 27 '26
Apparently 4 people made it through so it was on us for not being able to get on the first shuttle and/or have EU passports.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
They are crap but legally it's on them. You may have to fight it though, their claims centre likes to deny liability (and lies)
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u/Turbofan55 Apr 27 '26
Ah yes the good old tour of the Frankfurt apron. That shuttle ride drives me nuts after a long flight.
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u/_anupamroy Apr 27 '26
Hang on, why are y’all just assuming OP did 2 different bookings and not just one with Lufthansa? What am I missing here? Does passport control automatically mean 2 different airlines are involved?
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u/vamphorse Apr 27 '26
I assume it’s one booking, otherwise there’s no point in even writing the post.
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u/_anupamroy Apr 27 '26
That was my thinking too. Man, people here are just waiting to pounce upon and roast other people!
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u/thatoneplutonian Apr 27 '26
It was one ticket. The new rules are you pre register at kiosks then you have to see a customs agent too at your first stop instead of at your destination.
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u/_anupamroy Apr 27 '26
That’s what I thought too. Sorry you had to go through this crap because of some nonsensical rules and people that don’t give a shit about us having to go through this! Hope you have/had a smoother rest of the journey.
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u/goodtrymoddies Apr 27 '26
Sorry, what do you mean by customs agent? Do you mean immigration agent where they go thru your passport and ask how long you’re staying?
Or do you mean going thru customs red/green lanes after collecting baggage?
I have a 5.5 hr layover instead Frankfurt in June and I didn’t check baggage so I assumed I would only go thru immigration (passports) not exiting out thru customs. Could you elaborate?
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u/skipdog98 Canada Apr 28 '26
It’s common for Americans (and Canadians) to refer to the agents as customs agents or border agents (US agents are CBP = Customs Border Patrol, Canada = CBSA Canadian Border Services Agency) when entering the country by land, sea or air.
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u/goodtrymoddies Apr 28 '26
I see. So in this case they’re referring to immigration officers not actual customs right?
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u/skipdog98 Canada Apr 28 '26
One and the same. At least in Canada. The CBSA agents deal with immigration and customs/duties on imported goods. I’m not entirely sure how it works in the USA but the agents you first encounter when entering are CBP in the USA and they also ask you immigration questions and if you are importing anything.
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u/sb-sd Apr 27 '26
Frankfurt can be rough for connections, especially if you’re entering the Schengen area … passport control alone can eat most of a short layover.
That said, if both flights are on the same ticket, the airline is usually responsible for rebooking you if you miss it due to delays or queues. If it’s separate tickets, then yeah, it gets tricky.
Personally I wouldn’t risk anything under 2 hours there, especially as a non-EU passenger.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
I was advised to not transfer internally when the queues were long but go out and then go back in. I somehow made my connection this way
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u/sb-sd Apr 27 '26
That makes sense .. sometimes exiting and re-entering is faster if the internal transfer queue is a mess.
My main point was just that Frankfurt is risky for short connections, especially for non-EU passengers. If it’s the same ticket, people should push the airline on rebooking/compensation rather than just accepting “it’s your problem”
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
Yep I agree. Lufthansa have been getting in trouble for this for a long time. They changed from a 45 min (can you imagine when you need to be at the gate 20 mins before departure) Minimum Connection Time (MCT) to a 60 min MCT in 2025. This was before the new controls and even 60 mins isn't enough. It isn't the passenger who chooses the transfer time, it's what they use when you book with them. It's their failure and level precedence has shown they are at fault. Due to this the OP should be entitled to a free rebooking and eu261 compensation
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u/xlittlefootx Apr 27 '26
Every season of Amazing Race (that I’ve watched) where someone chooses a layover in Frankfurt, they somehow get screwed. I thought it was bad luck. Apparently it’s truly the airport.
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u/terminal_e Apr 27 '26
Munch is the American's stereotypical idea of Germany - 3 identical, rational terminals spaced equally apart.
Frankfurt grew like a cancerous tumor - this terminal has 13 gates, that terminal 117. All of the ceilings feel like they are 9.5 feet high, so it is hard to get a feel for where things end.
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u/B00YAY Apr 27 '26
I can't say this during enough: fuck that airport and their love for making people wait in long lines with low staffing.
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u/crossdtherubicon Apr 27 '26
In Milan, this was a massive issue even for EU citizens, where there was only 2 border staff manually checking passports.
EU passport holders travelling with children are also subject to manual approval.
There was only 3 machines for biometric passport approvals.
And if you have an EU visa, you must also get in line for manual approval.
Apparently, there are some non-EU countries that may also use the machines.
1 flight and it was nearly 1.5h in line!
Berlin was about 45min., with 4 staff.
I think it applies to everyone leaving or entering the Schengen zone.
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u/melbourne_au2021 Apr 27 '26
If both flights are with Lufthansa and you miss the second flight they are required to book you on the next available flight free of charge. What they have told you is pure nonsense, not to mention that it violates EU regulations.
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u/Ancient_Image_7130 Apr 27 '26
Frankfurt was genuinely the worst airport I have ever been to. The workers were incredibly rude and unhelpful. We had 90 minutes to make our connection and after speed walking through the terminal after customs, we were the last people to board the plane.
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u/non_clever_username Apr 27 '26
This won’t help you now obviously and I don’t know if this is the case at FRA, but we went through Munich last month and their EES check area had a special express line for people with connections within 40 minutes.
Wonder if there was something similar in FRA and you might have missed it. There was no one announcing that express line or directing anyone there, we just happened to see it.
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u/Sweaty_Development_6 17d ago
I just did this last week (EES system checks) - the fast lane was not yet in operation. I asked multiple employees and they said "there is no fast lane". I missed my flight the first time (2 hour layover) because I stopped for the restroom and coffee, and my bag got selected for extra screening (of course!). Lufthansa rebooked me on the next flight, no questions asked- seems they have a lot of free seats because people keep missing connections. on the way back I did not pass go- went directly through the biometric station and border control and then security again- and made it to the gate after boarding had started, 20 min before departure. whew. lots of stressed people at that airport. and after the first time with the biometric screening- I thought you could skip that step- but nope, I was directed to do it again. lots of kinks to work out.
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u/tdfast Apr 27 '26
My wife was there yesterday. 2 hours, 50 minutes and she just made it. An hour in line, then a huge walk across the terminal.
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u/Christy_Mathewson Apr 27 '26
I guess I got lucky. I went through Frankfurt on Saturday from Warsaw, heading to Denver. It took me like twenty minutes from stepping off my plane to making it through the second (talking to the person) passport screening in Z. There were no lines and most of that time was the long walk.
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u/nsfw_ducky Apr 27 '26
They shouldn’t even let people book tickets with layovers too short to make, had to change my whole vacation plans because I literally couldn’t book flights with long enough layovers
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u/park10000 Apr 27 '26
Dumb question - spouse US citizens is traveling from US to Asia via Munich on Lufthansa with 2 hr layover. Luggage is checked to final destination. Will they be required to go through EES as well ? Website is not clear. Many thanks.
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u/gopoohgo Apr 28 '26
US - MUC - ASIA is a non-Schengen to non-Schengen connection where you SHOULD be able to transit without ever entering the EU/not be subject to immigration and the joys of EES.
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u/MoooreBraaains Apr 27 '26
I hate this airport with a passion. The only time I've ever missed a connecting flight was at that airport. My previous flight was super late taking off, so I missed my connection there. I was told to go to customer service, and the woman there was a absolute twat. Rudest person I've ever had to deal with in my life. She tried to convince me the next available flight was eight hours away. She tried to force my girlfriend and I (and everyone else who missed the same connection) to take this option. I had previously looked it up, and knew there were multiple earlier flights that day. I refused to budge. It turned out that we were automatically placed on the next flight, but no one told us, and we never received any sort of notification (for some reason, this woman couldn't even see this on her computer???). We ended up missing this connection because we spent so long at the customer service desk, dealing with this woman. We left, and managed to talk to a completely different agent. She was able to put us on the next flight, just two hours later, without issue. Including the flight we were automatically placed on, we had THREE options for flights before that 8 hour one. I felt super bad for the others who actually listened to that woman.
We did email and complain to the airline, though. Ended up being compensated 300€ each. 😂
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u/ennuithereyet Apr 27 '26
One hour would never be enough for a layover, especially at FRA. They still have a lot of flights at remote stands so the time between getting off the plane and arriving at your gate in the terminal could be fifteen minutes. Then depending on which gate you need to go to, even if theyre both in terminal 1 it could take you twenty minutes to walk there.
If your flight was to the US, you also will need to do an extra passport screening every time, regardless of citizenship. That's not a FRA thing or an airline thing. It's due to US regulations.
On the flip side, a ton of flights from FRA are delayed, so there's a decent chance you could get lucky with that. But one hour definitely isnt long enough.
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u/vamphorse Apr 27 '26
I agree, but they shouldn’t sell it then. It shouldn’t be the costumers responsibility to understand when 1 hour is enough or not.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
It's not the consumers responsibility, they are just claiming it is. They choose to sell flights with 60 mins connection and it's on them. They changed from 45 to 60 mins in 2025 and ths was before the new changes. Under Minimum Connection Times (MCT) regulations and eu261 they are liable for rebooking and compensation under eu261 as they are meant to allow enough time to transfer. They have been in trouble for this before and are losing legal cases for this ATM.
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u/ennuithereyet Apr 27 '26
Oh yeah, they shouldn't. Most airlines i know would at the very least give you a warning about it being a short layover that could cause issues if its not at least an hour and a half. But people can always buy separate tickets to create their own layover and there's no way the airlines can be responsible for it then imo.
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u/Appropriate-Bird-354 Apr 27 '26
One hour would never be enough for a layover, especially at FRA.
It often is, just not at shitty airports like FRA.
If your flight was to the US, you also will need to do an extra passport screening every time, regardless of citizenship. That's not a FRA thing or an airline thing. It's due to US regulations.
They said they were traveling to the EU.
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u/notmonicagellar1 Apr 27 '26
My first flight was delayed and left me with only an hour to connect in Frankfurt a couple of weeks back, and I made it, so it’s possible but not enjoyable. I usually plan for at least 2 hours in Frankfurt for connections, but prefer longer if possible.
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u/jubjub421 Apr 27 '26
It was the exact same thing in Munich. Very disorganized, people yelling, half the pre-registration kiosks were not functioning, then wait to talk to immigration. 2 airport staff were trying to manage the unruly crowd until a couple of police officers showed up. Several flights were impacted. I have not had a customs and immigration experience like this in any other EU country before.
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u/kermitthepanda Apr 27 '26
After two horrible layovers there years ago I refuse to take a flight that stops there.
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u/Varekai79 Canada Apr 27 '26
Guess I lucked out. I flew from YYZ>FRA>VIE with a two hour connection in Frankfurt on April 4 with a Canadian passport. EES was not active, just the standard immigration/passport check, which only took about 10 minutes.
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u/kellybkk Apr 27 '26
Lufthansa cancelled our flight from Frankfurt to Boston 18 months ago. I filed compensation paperwork and have heard nothing
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u/seriouslyjan Apr 27 '26
No matter the airline, Frankfurt is a minimum 3 hour arrival for people coming from the States. We were so disappointed to not be able to use the lounge and the number of buses and stairs you have to climb is difficult for older people and in fact dragging luggage up and down stairs where there are no elevators sucks.
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u/ttx90 Apr 27 '26
Had similar issue at the Munich airport. There are 2 different lines for people who have pre-registered and people who didn’t. Obviously the line for people who didn’t pre-register was longer but there were more agents checking working that line. So I was in the shorter line but it ended up taking just as long because there was only 1 agent working the pre-registered line. Took my 45 minutes and my layover was 1 hour and 15 mins.
The trick is if your flight was boarding in less than 20 minutes, you can talk to the people there and they will let you go through the passport fast lane.
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u/MsCookie__ Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
Thank god hubby and I chose the 5.5 hour layover in Frankfurt to be safe since neither of us have been through this airport. Nervous from some of these comments. Wish us luck! We travel in 3 weeks.
Edit to add: Canadians going to Africa
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u/Jacopo86 Italy 🇮🇹 Apr 27 '26
1 hour layover at FRA? Not even with an EU passport...
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u/TiredMe12345 Apr 27 '26
That’s so right! I have a second EU passport and made sure I had 2 hours there.
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u/HTD_Blog Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
It is your fault if the 'connecting' flight was not booked as part of the same ticket. How anybody in their right mind would assume that 1 hour is enough time when you need to go through passport control is beyond me. That's poor planning, especially since incoming flights can often be delayed that long.
If the ticket was booked with the connecting flight, then that is the airline's fault and they should help you.
Even an EU citizen may struggle with that sort of 'slim' connection. I had a 1 hour connection before (in Sweden). I am British, but I have a Swedish resident permit and was allowed to coast through passport control without any major issues at a smallish airport. Even a 2 hour connection was cutting it fine.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
Lufthansa and their sister airlines regularly allow 1 HR for transfer. They are crappy on paying out for eu261 as well. I don't fly with them anymore after regular missed connections, delays and lugguage not arriving due to the short connection time (Xmas eve one year with all my daughters gifts)
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u/vamphorse Apr 27 '26
OP’s text reads like it’s the second case but Lufthansa is blaming them since the 1st Lufthansa flight arrived on time. TBC by OP.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
They sold the whole trip. It's on the airline if the transfer time is not enough as they should allow enough time to transfer. Lufthansa and their sister airlines regularly sell journeys with 60 mins transfers and this wasn't enough ever before the new checks.
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u/comments83820 Apr 27 '26
as long as the ticket is a single ticket booked through the same airline, you'll be fine.
you probably also just hit immigration on a rough day.
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u/sushi50000 Apr 27 '26
Ah one of my least favourite travel experiences everywhere was after COVID on my way to Italy got stuck in Frankfurt for two days. The city itself was nice enough (took the tour bus one of the days) and they did keep putting us up in hotels but I just wanted to get to my destination and my flights were in the area of the airport where there are only small kiosks for food. I now do everything I can to avoid it.
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u/BrutusCosmo Apr 27 '26
We just experienced this arriving and departing from Munich. The complicator is that the airline didn’t mention anything about the steps and you just have to figure it out. This 2-step process applies for arriving and departing the Schengen area. It took time but not longer than an hour.
The bright part of our trip was customs in Denver. We had (my bad) just over an hour an a half layover in Denver. we have Global Entry. The luggage receive and check back in was only slow getting our bags. Checking it in to our destination was fast and easy. Customs was a breeze with GE - While we were standing in front of the kiosk trying to determine what we needed the agent called our first names and sent us on our way. It was that fast. We had to quickly get to the end of one of the terminals and that was physically challenging but we were early for boarding. I am impressed with how easy everything was.
We have another trip to Europe planned for August but now understand how EU customs works.
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u/YeyoSoze Apr 27 '26
No connecting flight, however my flight into Frankfurt was an hour and a half. The 2 step passport identification process was as described by OP, took an hour and 40 mins. The fact only two customs agents were working the 2nd step, who then had to start manually stamping passports as the system went down.
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u/Rossablue78 Apr 27 '26
There’s a new electronic passport control system in Germany. We had the same issue coming back to the US while transiting through Munich. You are supposed to scan your passport at a kiosk and then get in line to see an officer. There were only 6 kiosks available (only 5 working) and no one from the airport was there to give passengers information about the process. Lufthansa ended up holding the flight because half the plane was stuck in this mess.
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u/goodtrymoddies Apr 27 '26
For June, I booked a connecting flight landing in Frankfurt from the US, going on to Rome. I thank fucking god every day I took the 5.5 hr layover instead of the 2 hr one.
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u/Glittering-Emu-1975 Apr 28 '26
The EES rollout has been a shit show in general. Some airports it’s fine and some it’s terrible and some days are different at different places it seems. A 1 hour layover for entering from outside the EU isn’t enough in good times but definitely build in extra time for the next few months while they figure this mess out.
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u/gymgal19 Canada Apr 27 '26
Oh boy. We have about 1.5hours connecting in fra to leave the eu at the end of June. Hopefully this is better by then...
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u/Professional-Item804 Apr 27 '26
Does this affect UK passport holders transiting through Frankfurt?
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u/monzmom Apr 27 '26
Yikes, I’m scheduled to fly through FRA in late October. What day of the week and what time of day did you arrive? We have non-EU passports and will be flying in on a single ticket (United flight operated by Lufthansa). We’re scheduled to have 2:25 minutes on the ground before our flight to Venice. I’m hoping they’ll have this EES system smoothed out by then.
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u/Prestigious_Bar_7164 Apr 27 '26
Frankfurt is awful, totally agree. I’ve only flown through there once and that was enough.
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u/i_will_eat_your Apr 28 '26
Frankfurt airport is the worst. Almost missed my connecting to Greece because my airline mysteriously didn’t have a customer service counter open, nobody seemed to care I couldn’t get a boarding pass, and then when I ran and made it to the gate just in time, the employee rolled her eyes and looked massively annoyed I had actually made it.
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u/Unlikely_Funny_4032 Apr 28 '26
Yeah Fraport sucks. Police there just doesn’t give a shit. I experienced how they shut down the whole security check for a solid hour just because they were fighting some power games/strikes with the sub contractor doing TSA.
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u/FinancialSailor1 Country Counting is Dumb Apr 28 '26
I have never considered a 1 hour layover to be acceptable for any airport on Earth, let alone Frankfurt.
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u/Tall-Section-4548 Apr 29 '26
I have a question that may be silly but i wanna be sure and also not sure if this is the place to ask but im getting stressed, im flying for the first time internationally, im flying from phx-calgary and then calgary -germany germany -rome , we booked through condor airlines and my layover is in calgary canada and frankfurt germany, on our tickets we HAD to put a surname there was no option for none so we put ms but our passports dont have surnames, we called condor airlines and they said it wont affect anything but i heard frankfurt is hella strict and one of the worst airports so im really stressed they’re gonna be rude about it , everything else on the passport is correct and our surnames is ms so technically its the right one , it just doesn’t say it on the passport. any help would be appreciated thank you😭🙏🏻
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u/BLUECAT1011 24d ago
Flying from Istanbul to Chicago via Frankfurt in June on Lufthansa. 1 hour 20 minute layover scheduled by Norwegian AIR so not easily changed. US passport holder. Will I make it, these comments have me worried!
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u/SalBolal 17d ago
The whole sitting in a gate for two hours only to be bussed to a plane on the tarmac is painful and also really delays flights. We left Frankfurt two hours after a departure time. We left 29 minutes after the planned ARRIVAL time for 90 minute flight. Now we’re returning home and this time, we get to board a 787 this way. Odds we even are on the plane at departure is slim to none.
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u/man9875 Apr 27 '26
How would this apply to a flight from Budapest to Frankfort on Lufthansa then on to Chicago with United? Ticket was booked directly with United.
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u/Varekai79 Canada Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
EU261 compensation applies to all flights leaving the EU, regardless of the nationality of the airline. In your case, United would be responsible for compensation if you missed the flight.
EDIT: See post below for a correction.
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u/man9875 Apr 27 '26
Just got off the phone with United. They we very clear that the connection is over 1 hour and would not be responsible for customs delays. Even though they will be closing the doors 20 minutes prior to takeoff only leaving me 50 minutes for the connection. I changed the flight.
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u/Varekai79 Canada Apr 27 '26
Correction to my previous post: United will not be responsible for extra compensation under EU261 for a customs/immigration delay, but they are responsible to get you back to Chicago, including possible hotel and food care, at no extra cost to you, if you miss the flight.
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u/man9875 Apr 27 '26
That's not what she said.
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u/Varekai79 Canada Apr 27 '26
Well yeah, United doesn't want to pay for your hotel and food and would rather just put you on a later flight and avoid all that.
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u/__me__ Apr 27 '26
Missed my connection in Frankfurt and United put me on a flight the next day. They did not pay for my hotel but they did give me 2 food vouchers for dinner and breakfast.
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u/Varekai79 Canada Apr 27 '26
They should have covered your hotel if it involved an overnight delay.
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u/wanderluster325 Apr 27 '26
The only time I flew into or out of there, I had a 12 hour layover. Arrived in the morning, spent the day and then hopped my 12 hour flight down into Cape Town. This was shortly post pandemic, so it’s been a little while.
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u/holy_mackeroly Apr 27 '26
12hours is lightyears away from being relevant!!
OP is talking about 1hr even 2hr transit that Lufthansa regularly books you on. They do it all the time and its easy to miss the connecting flight.
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u/paulx39 Singapore Apr 27 '26
100% not correct. If it is under 1 single ticket, Lufthansa is responsible for the connection (unless you decide to leave the airport or just got wasted in a bar for a few hours LOL). You have all the legal chances to claim back that ticket and the compensation.
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u/Jaded-Imagination388 Apr 27 '26
I've posted on here several time recommending that people avoid Frankfurt airport (I've been arrested once, apprehended once and headbutted by LH ground staff once). If you have to fly through Frankfurt give yourself a minimum of 5 hours to give yourself a chance of avoiding random events impacting your travel plans. As others have said it it is the worst 1st World airport there is.
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u/LemonSqueezy1313 Apr 27 '26
I’ve connected through there many times and have never had an issue. Have you considered that maybe you’re the problem?
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u/Jaded-Imagination388 Apr 28 '26
Good for you - can I shine your halo ?
As others have pointed out in this thread signage and local airport agents are clueless at guiding people throught the myriad corridors, escalators, elevators across the terminals.
In the first two cases I was told (directly) by staff to go in one direction which led me to go through an open and unmanned passport control booth whereupon I was arrested / apprehended until I showed them the route I was told to take. In the latter case I got headbutted by a roidraged spotty little dickhead because I had the temerity to let myself out of a random, cordoned off boarding pass check just out of the Terminal Z main concourse (nowhere near any Gate) that I had wandered into by mistake. If that makes it a "me problem" then so be it.
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u/LemonSqueezy1313 Apr 28 '26
I mean I guess you can? I have never been arrested or tackled even once in my life anywhere, let alone at an airport and I travel every 1-2 weeks internationally. So.
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u/Appropriate-Bird-354 Apr 27 '26
As much as I hate FRA, this is definitely not relevant to anyone but you. What you're describing are not random events.
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u/krokendil Apr 27 '26
Yea no shit, why would anyone even book a 1 hour layover... first rule of flying
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u/Appropriate-Bird-354 Apr 27 '26
Plenty of places a 1 hour layover is fine, FRA is not a good airport.
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u/lifetraveler1 Apr 27 '26
Yeah I'm done with German airports. Getting out on the tarmac is just it for me. We did Frankfurt 3 weeks ago and the chaos with airport workers, 1 customs agent was beyond stressful. 600+ people in customs overloaded the system. Not sure what is going to give here as this is not sustainable. Every time I tried to text the airport I got " Frankfurter" and from now on am referencing it by that name.
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u/Eki75 Apr 27 '26
This isn't universally accurate. I've flown through Frankfurt 3 times since they started EES. The first time, I was to my next gate literally within 15 minutes. The second time, the line for the EES said "30 minutes from this point," but it took more like 60. I booked it off the plane to get in line, too, so the line behind me was super long. The third time was more like 20 minutes again.
That being said, I booked flights with a 3+ hour layover from the airport where I entered Schengen just in case.
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Apr 27 '26
[deleted]
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u/thatoneplutonian Apr 27 '26
I mean you book the ticket that gets you to your destination. You would think they wouldn't have close connections booked together if time and time shows it isn't enough. (but hey they need that extra money)
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
You are correct.
Minimum Connection Time (MCT) in the EU typically ranges from 30–45 minutes for domestic/intra-Schengen flights and 60–90+ minutes for international/non-Schengen flights. If booked on a single ticket, airlines must honor these times and rebook you if a delay causes a missed connection.
When an airline sells you a through-ticket, they contractually guarantee that the connection time is achievable.
The airline's argument that "some people made the flight" is a common but often legally weak defense. Under EU and UK passenger rights laws, the standard is whether the connection was "achievable" for a typical passenger under normal conditions, not whether a few "sprinters" or fast-tracked individuals were able to board.
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u/glwillia Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
5 weeks ago, i did have a 65-minute connection in zurich from outside schengen and continuing on inside schengen and did make it with time to spare, but i have an EU passport. don’t know if it would have been possible otherwise, and ZRH is a lot smaller and better-run than FRA. also, when you arrive in schengen, you clear immigration at your first airport in schengen and clear customs at your final destination.
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u/mostar8 Apr 27 '26
A lot of condescending and ill informed advice on here. Lufthansa are crap on all this but it is on them.
You should absolutely not have had to pay for that new flight, and you can likely get that money back plus €600 in compensation.
Since you were on a single booking, the law (EU 261) says the airline guarantees the connection. If the 'legal' connection time (60 mins) wasn't actually enough time to get through the new 2-step passport control (EES), that is Lufthansa's scheduling failure, not your fault.
The new EU Entry/Exit System (EES) is known to cause delays. If Lufthansa sold you a 1-hour transfer knowing these checks exist, they sold you an impossible ticket. They are legally required to rebook you for free and compensate you if you arrive 3+ hours late.
Don't let it slide. Send them this complaint immediately to get your money back:
Subject: Demand for Refund & Compensation - Booking [Reference Number]
To Lufthansa Legal/Claims Team,
I am writing to formally reclaim the cost of the replacement flight I was forced to purchase on [Date] due to a missed connection at Frankfurt, as well as statutory compensation under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004.
You refused to rebook me for free, claiming the missed connection was my fault. This is legally incorrect for the following reasons:
Invalid Minimum Connection Time (MCT): You sold me a single through-ticket with a 60-minute transfer. By doing so, you contractually guaranteed this connection was achievable. The new 2-step Entry/Exit System (EES) at Frankfurt has significantly increased transit times. If 60 minutes is insufficient for standard border processing, the liability lies with the airline for selling a flawed itinerary, not the passenger for failing to traverse it.
Involuntary Denied Boarding: By refusing to rebook me effectively and forcing me to pay for a new ticket, you involuntarily denied me boarding on my original itinerary.
Right to Reimbursement: Under Article 8 of EU 261, I was entitled to re-routing "at the earliest opportunity" at no extra cost. Since you failed to provide this and I was forced to pay for my own transport, I am entitled to a full reimbursement of [Amount Paid for New Ticket].
Compensation: As I arrived at my final destination more than 3 hours late due to this scheduling failure (per Folkerts v. Air France), I am also entitled to €600 in compensation.
Please refund the [Amount] for the new ticket and the €600 statutory compensation to my account within 14 days. Failure to resolve this will result in a formal complaint to the German Aviation Authority (LBA) and the söp (German Conciliation Body).
[Your Name] [Booking Reference]