Passengers traveling through Germany on February 12, 2026 are facing one of the most disruptive aviation days in recent years as a coordinated strike by Lufthansa pilots and cabin crew hits the airline’s main hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. With up to 1,800 flights canceled or severely delayed and hundreds of thousands of travelers affected, the walkout is rippling through global schedules and forcing last minute changes to business trips, holidays, and long-planned family reunions.
What Is Happening at Lufthansa on February 12
The disruption centers on a 24 hour strike called by Vereinigung Cockpit, the union representing Lufthansa pilots, and UFO, the Independent Flight Attendants’ Organization for cabin crew. The industrial action runs from 00:01 to 23:59 local time on Thursday, February 12, 2026, and targets Lufthansa’s mainline operations and Lufthansa Cargo. Departures from German airports are the primary focus, with the greatest concentration of cancellations at Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport, the airline’s two largest hubs.
Lufthansa had already begun canceling flights on February 11, thinning out its schedule in anticipation of the strike to avoid last minute chaos at check in desks and boarding gates. The airline has said that it expects regular operations to resume on Friday, February 13, but warns that some residual delays and aircraft rotations may still be felt into the following day as aircraft and crews are repositioned.
While the strike officially affects only a single day, the knock on effects for international connections, long haul services, and tightly timed itineraries mean that the disruption is stretching well beyond Germany’s borders. Travelers whose journeys depend on a smooth connection through Frankfurt or Munich are finding themselves having to reroute via other European hubs or postpone travel entirely.
Why Lufthansa Pilots and Cabin Crew Are Striking
The dispute has two overlapping fronts. For pilots, the central issue is pensions. Vereinigung Cockpit has been negotiating for months over changes to Lufthansa’s retirement system, which has shifted away from a traditional defined benefit model toward a capital market based scheme. Pilots argue that the new structure exposes their retirement income to far greater financial risk and erodes the security they were promised when they joined the airline.
Union representatives say they have held multiple rounds of talks with management without reaching a breakthrough. Among their key demands is a substantial increase in the airline’s monthly pension contribution per pilot, which they argue would restore a fair balance between the profits Lufthansa has started to post again after the pandemic and the long term financial safety of the workforce. Management counters that the union’s demands would significantly increase annual pension costs and jeopardize efforts to keep the airline competitive in a volatile global market.
Cabin crew, represented by UFO, are striking over a wider mix of issues. One highly charged point is the planned shutdown of Lufthansa CityLine flight operations, a regional subsidiary whose closure would affect around 800 jobs. The union accuses Lufthansa of refusing to negotiate an adequate social plan for affected cabin crew and of using restructuring to push down conditions. UFO is also pressing for progress on several collective agreements covering work schedules, pay, and protections for personnel facing reorganization.
Frankfurt and Munich: Epicenters of the Disruption
As Lufthansa’s primary intercontinental gateway, Frankfurt Airport is bearing the brunt of the February 12 strike. The majority of long haul departures operated by Lufthansa from Frankfurt are expected to be grounded for the day, including flights to North America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Many short haul feeder services within Europe, which normally funnel passengers into Frankfurt for onward connections, have also been canceled, cutting off links for travelers departing from smaller cities.
For travelers, the impact at Frankfurt is visible in drastically reduced departure boards, long lines at rebooking counters, and the unusual sight of idle aircraft parked at remote stands. Passengers arriving in Frankfurt on long haul flights that still operate are frequently finding their onward Lufthansa connection canceled, forcing them to stay overnight in the city or switch to trains and other airlines where seats are still available.
Munich, Lufthansa’s secondary hub, is experiencing a similar near standstill for the airline’s departures. Although some flights operated by partner carriers and unaffected subsidiaries are still taking off, the typical dense web of Lufthansa services has thinned dramatically. Travelers report that alternative routes via Zurich, Vienna, Amsterdam, and Paris are quickly filling up as people attempt to bypass Frankfurt and Munich entirely.
How Many Flights and Passengers Are Affected
Industry estimates suggest that up to 1,800 Lufthansa flights may be canceled or heavily disrupted during the 24 hour strike period, impacting roughly 220,000 passengers. These figures include both mainline and cargo operations across the country, with Frankfurt and Munich accounting for the majority of cancellations due to their role as hubs. Secondary German airports such as Berlin, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Cologne, and Stuttgart are also seeing significant disruption, particularly on feeder routes into the hubs.
Lufthansa has not publicly confirmed the final number of flights removed from the schedule but has acknowledged that the scale of the strike makes a near normal timetable impossible. The airline has focused on operating a limited core schedule where feasible, prioritizing certain long haul services and coordination with partner airlines in the Star Alliance network.
In practice, the disruption is being felt across the broader European network as well. Aircraft and crews that would normally circulate through Germany are not in position, leading to delays and cancellations on routes where Lufthansa or its partners rely on shared fleets and code share agreements. For travelers connecting from North America or Asia, this means that a flight to Europe might depart on time, but the onward leg from Frankfurt or Munich will simply not exist on arrival.
Which Flights and Airlines Are Affected or Operating
The strike specifically targets Lufthansa mainline operations and Lufthansa Cargo flights departing from German airports. Lufthansa CityLine flights are also heavily affected, particularly at Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, Bremen, Stuttgart, and several other major German airports where the regional subsidiary normally operates frequent services. Many CityLine departures are canceled outright for the day.
By contrast, several Lufthansa Group carriers are operating on a largely normal schedule. Eurowings, which focuses on point to point leisure and regional flights, is not part of the strike and continues to operate, although its flights are busier than usual as travelers seek alternatives. Discover Airlines, the long haul leisure subsidiary, is also reported to be operating its schedule, subject to typical day of flight adjustments.
Other European and international airlines using Frankfurt and Munich as destination or transit points are not directly involved in the strike. Their flights may still face indirect disruption due to air traffic control flow measures, constrained gate availability, and volume around the hubs, but they are not canceling services on the same scale. For some passengers, rerouting to an itinerary that uses carriers such as Swiss, Austrian, Air France, KLM, or British Airways has offered a way to bypass the worst of the disruption.
Lufthansa’s Response and Rebooking Policies
Lufthansa has activated its disruption management protocols, including wide scale rebooking, flexible ticket rules, and a focus on keeping passengers informed through digital channels. Travelers whose flights are canceled are being rebooked where possible on alternative Lufthansa Group services, partner airlines within Star Alliance, or, for short haul routes within Germany, on rail services operated by Deutsche Bahn.
The airline is asking passengers not to go to the airport if their flight is listed as canceled and to instead manage their bookings via the Lufthansa app or the airline’s customer service channels. Those who must travel on February 12 are urged to check their flight status shortly before departure, as last minute changes remain possible while crews and aircraft are reassigned throughout the day.
In keeping with European passenger rights regulations, Lufthansa is also obliged to provide duty of care to affected travelers, which may include meals, refreshments, hotel accommodation, and transport to and from lodging when overnight stays are necessary. Where no suitable rebooking options are available, passengers can request a refund for the unused portion of their ticket. The airline has indicated that it is working to honor these obligations, though the sheer number of affected travelers means that queues and response times can be lengthy.
Passenger Rights Under European Regulations
Under EU Regulation 261, travelers whose flights are canceled or significantly delayed due to airline staff strikes are often entitled to compensation, in addition to the refund and rerouting options. The precise amount depends on flight distance and the length of delay at the final destination, with compensation typically ranging from 250 to 600 euros per person in qualifying cases.
The key point for passengers is that industrial action by an airline’s own staff is generally considered within the carrier’s control for compensation purposes, unlike severe weather or air traffic control strikes. As a result, many Lufthansa customers affected by the February 12 strike may have valid claims for financial compensation once their journey is complete or definitively canceled.
To preserve their rights, travelers are advised to keep all documents related to their trip, including booking confirmations, boarding passes for any segments flown, and receipts for extra expenses such as meals, hotels, and alternative transport. Claims can typically be filed directly with the airline or through specialized claims companies once the full extent of the delay or cancellation is clear.
Practical Advice for Travelers Caught in the Strike
For those planning to travel on or around February 12 via Frankfurt or Munich, the most effective strategy is to avoid same day Lufthansa departures from German airports if any flexibility exists. If travel is not urgent, postponing the trip by a day or two can dramatically reduce stress and the risk of missed connections. Many travelers have found that simply moving their departure to Friday or the weekend eliminates the need for complicated rerouting.
Where travel cannot be postponed, rerouting via alternative European hubs on unaffected airlines is often the most reliable solution. Flights connecting through Zurich, Vienna, Paris, Amsterdam, or London may be more resilient on the strike day, although many of these routes are now heavily booked as word of the disruption has spread. Booking early and being open to indirect routings or different departure times increases the chances of securing a seat.
Within Germany, rail is an important lifeline. High speed ICE services connect Frankfurt and Munich to cities such as Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, and Düsseldorf, and are generally less affected by airline labor disputes. Lufthansa has long standing cooperation with Deutsche Bahn, and many passengers whose domestic flights are canceled can switch to train travel at no extra cost. Even for those without official airline rebooking, buying a rail ticket can be quicker and less stressful than waiting for a limited replacement flight.
What This Strike Means for Future Travel Through Germany
The February 12 strike highlights the fragility of complex hub and spoke networks that depend on highly synchronized operations at central airports. For leisure and business travelers alike, it is a reminder that when labor relations break down at a major carrier, the consequences are felt across continents. The combination of pilot pension disputes and cabin crew concerns over job security suggests that deeper structural issues at Lufthansa remain unresolved.
If negotiations between Lufthansa and the unions fail to progress after this action, further strikes later in 2026 cannot be ruled out. For frequent travelers who depend on Lufthansa’s network, it may be wise to build more contingency into future itineraries, including longer connection times and flexible tickets that allow for rerouting on other carriers if necessary.
For now, the immediate priority is getting stranded passengers where they need to go and restoring some semblance of normality to operations at Frankfurt and Munich. Once aircraft are back in position and cabins are full again, attention will inevitably turn back to the negotiating table. Whether management and unions can find a compromise that balances financial sustainability with fair working conditions will shape not only Lufthansa’s labor peace, but also the reliability of one of Europe’s most important air transport networks in the months and years ahead.