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BDL Connectivity Atlas: These key destinations are missing from the route networks of German airports

The interactive map compares canceled and new routes, as well as frequency reductions and increases on existing routes. The data shows a clear picture: since 2019, German airports have lost hundreds of flight connections, while only a smaller number of new routes have been added. A shift in destinations is also evident—away from major European and global business hubs and toward more tourist-oriented destinations and routes serving primarily visiting friends and relatives (VFR) traffic.

Berlin, for example, has lost destinations such as Toulouse, Turin, or Belfast, while Chișinău, Timișoara, or the seaside resort of Sharm El-Sheikh are new additions. Glasgow and Liverpool have each lost nearly 90 percent of their service, whereas Hurghada and Dalaman are recording growth rates of several hundred percent.

Overall, while the number of existing routes with increased frequencies is larger than those with frequency reductions, this initial impression is misleading. On an annual basis, 120,000 additional flights are offset by more than 370,000 cancellations. For every additional flight on an existing route, three flights to other destinations have been cut.

The background to this development is primarily government-imposed location costs for air traffic departing from Germany, which have nearly doubled since 2020. As a result, Germany ranks only 28th out of 31 European countries in air traffic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic, while air traffic across the rest of Europe has long reached new record levels.

The BDL’s Connectivity Atlas illustrates this development in an interactive map for the most important German airports. It shows which connections have been lost and how regional connectivity has changed since 2019.

Discover the interactive map now

 

Footnote: All figures represent the capacity planned by airlines for a full year, last retrieved on August 31, 2026. Therefore, the cancellation of a route in the third quarter is initially depicted as a reduction on an annual basis.

Overview

In total, 1,678 routes with at least 50 one-way flights each were operated in air traffic to, from, and within Germany in 2019, representing a total of 1.7 million flights. In 2026, only 1,544 routes with nearly 1.4 million flights are expected to be operated.

Against 473 completely discontinued routes, there are 349 newly introduced routes. On 567 routes that continue to be served, the number of offered flights has decreased by more than 370,000. While this is countered by increases on 613 existing routes, these add up to only 120,000 flights. For every additional flight on an existing route, three flights to other destinations have been cut.

As a result, the number of routes decreased by 8 percent, and the total number of flights fell by 18 percent. Domestic German air traffic has been particularly hard hit by these reductions, with a disproportionate drop in routes and frequencies that do not serve as feeder connections to the Frankfurt or Munich hubs (-55 percent in routes, -83 percent in flights). In addition, many routes and frequencies to major European cities such as Zurich or Warsaw have disappeared. Tourist-oriented connections to Southern Europe have been less affected, while long-haul traffic remains overall at a level similar to 2019.

Furthermore, all flights to and from Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine had to be suspended due to the war.

In Detail

Berlin (BER)

In 2019, 162 destinations were served directly from Berlin; by 2026, that number dropped to 150. The number of flights decreased significantly by 28 percent. The top routes discontinued in Berlin since 2019:

  • Berlin – Toulouse
  • Berlin – Innsbruck
  • Berlin – Turin
  • Berlin – Krakau
  • Berlin – Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden
  • Berlin – Singapur

Significant frequency reductions occurred on the following routes:

  • Berlin – London: -21 Prozent
  • Berlin – Zürich: -23 Prozent
  • Berlin – Vienna: -38 Prozent
  • Berlin – Munich: -62 Prozent
  • Berlin – Frankfurt: -33 Prozent
  • Berlin – Amsterdam: -36 Prozent
  • Berlin – Cologne/Bonn: -83 Prozent

Bremen (BRE)

In 2019, 30 routes were offered from BRE. By 2026, this number fell to just 20. Today, 28 percent fewer flights are offered compared to 2019. The most significant cancellations:

  • Bremen – Paris
  • Bremen – Girona
  • Bremen – Hurghada
  • Bremen – Faro
  • Bremen – Porto
  • Bremen – Vilnius

Routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Bremen – Munich: -27 Prozent
  • Bremen – Frankfurt: -57 Prozent
  • Bremen – Zürich: -66 Prozent
  • Bremen – Stuttgart: -87 Prozent

Düsseldorf (DUS)

In Düsseldorf, the number of directly served destinations was reduced from 172 in 2019 to 156 in 2026. Over the same period, the number of offered flights fell by 26 percent. Among the most important discontinued routes are:

  • Düsseldorf – Stuttgart
  • Düsseldorf – Nuremberg
  • Düsseldorf – Glasgow
  • Düsseldorf – Basel
  • Düsseldorf – Linz
  • Düsseldorf – New York
  • Düsseldorf – Tokyo

Significant frequency reductions occurred over the same period on these key routes:

  • Düsseldorf – London: -41 Prozent
  • Düsseldorf – Zürich: -43 Prozent
  • Düsseldorf – Munich: -46 Prozent
  • Düsseldorf – Vienna: -37 Prozent
  • Düsseldorf – Paris: -39 Prozent
  • Düsseldorf – Berlin: -82 Prozent

Erfurt (ERF)

In 2019, two routes were offered from Erfurt. Since then, one additional route has been added. The number of flights increased from a low baseline by 190 percent.

Newly added:

  • Erfurt – Hurghada

Frankfurt (FFM)

From Frankfurt, 288 routes with at least 50 flights were offered in 2019, compared to 274 today. Over the same period, the number of flights dropped by 12 percent. The most significant completely discontinued routes are:

  • Frankfurt – Innsbruck
  • Frankfurt – Pamplona
  • Frankfurt – Bristol
  • Frankfurt – Friedrichshafen
  • Frankfurt – Münster / Osnabrück
  • Frankfurt – Osaka
  • Frankfurt – Ottawa

High-volume routes from Frankfurt with significant frequency reductions include:

  • Frankfurt – London: -27 Prozent
  • Frankfurt – Amsterdam: -16 Prozent
  • Frankfurt – Berlin: -33 Prozent
  • Frankfurt – Madrid: -15 Prozent
  • Frankfurt – Brussels: -27 Prozent
  • Frankfurt – Lisbon: -19 Prozent

Hahn (HHN)

In 2019, 43 routes were offered from Hahn. By 2026, this number increased slightly to 45. The number of flights rose by 37 percent. The most significant cancellations:

  • Hahn – Naples
  • Hahn – Riga
  • Hahn – Lisbon

Routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Hahn – Rome: -70 Prozent
  • Hahn – Chania: -60 Prozent
  • Hahn – Vilnius: -17 Prozent

Newly added:

  • Hahn – Barcelona
  • Hahn – Catania
  • Hahn – Chișinău

Hamburg (HAM)

In Hamburg, the number of directly served destinations rose slightly from 106 to 109. However, the number of flights declined by more than 13 percent. The most significant cancellations since 2019:

  • Hamburg – Köln/Bonn
  • Hamburg – Prag
  • Hamburg – Nuremberg
  • Hamburg – Edinburgh
  • Hamburg – Nantes
  • Hamburg – Krakau
  • Hamburg – Göteborg

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Hamburg – London: -23 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Munich: -33 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Vienna: -24 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Amsterdam: -19 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Stuttgart: -64 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Düsseldorf: -76 Prozent
  • Hamburg – Stockholm: -34 Prozent

Newly added:

  • Hamburg – Tirana
  • Hamburg – Bozen
  • Hamburg – Chania

Hannover (HAJ)

In 2019, 73 destinations were served directly from Hanover; by 2026, that number dropped to 64. The number of flights decreased by 16 percent. The top routes discontinued in Hanover since 2019:

  • Hannover – Warschau
  • Hannover – Stuttgart
  • Hannover – Budapest
  • Hannover – Helsinki
  • Hannover – Manchester
  • Hannover – Brussels

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Hannover – Palma: -29 Prozent
  • Hannover – Munich: -40 Prozent
  • Hannover – Zürich: -44 Prozent
  • Hannover – Paris: -31 Prozent
  • Hannover – Vienna: -19 Prozent
  • Hannover – Frankfurt: -26 Prozent

Cologne/Bonn (CGN)

In Cologne/Bonn as well, the number of offered destinations has decreased, dropping from 119 to 99. The number of flights was reduced by 19 percent. The most significant routes discontinued since 2019:

  • Cologne/Bonn – Hamburg
  • Cologne/Bonn – Dresden
  • Cologne/Bonn – Madrid
  • Cologne/Bonn – Salzburg
  • Cologne/Bonn – Copenhagen
  • Cologne/Bonn – Warschau
  • Cologne/Bonn – Leipzig

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Cologne/Bonn – Berlin: -83 Prozent
  • Cologne/Bonn – Munich: -66 Prozent
  • Cologne/Bonn – London: -22 Prozent
  • Cologne/Bonn – Zürich: -47 Prozent
  • Cologne/Bonn – Mailand: -53 Prozent
  • Cologne/Bonn – Lisbon: -40 Prozent

Leipzig (LEJ) und Dresden (DRS)

In 2019, 50 routes were offered from Dresden and Leipzig. By 2026, this number fell sharply to just 29. A total of 40 percent fewer flights are offered today compared to 2019. The most significant cancellations:

  • Leipzig – Munich
  • Leipzig – Düsseldorf
  • Dresden – Cologne/Bonn
  • Dresden – London
  • Dresden – Amsterdam
  • Dresden – Stuttgart

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Dresden – Frankfurt: -33 Prozent
  • Leipzig – Frankfurt: -31 Prozent
  • Dresden – Munich: -47 Prozent
  • Dresden – Zürich: -52 Prozent
  • Dresden – Düsseldorf: -83 Prozent
  • Leipzig – Vienna: -32 Prozent

Lübeck (LBC)

In 2019, no scheduled flights were offered from Lübeck. In 2026, three routes are served.

Newly added:

  • Lübeck – Palma de Mallorca
  • Lübeck – London
  • Lübeck – Malaga

München (MUC)

From Munich, 221 destinations were directly accessible in 2019; in 2026, this number fell slightly to 214. However, the number of flights decreased significantly by over 20 percent. The most important discontinued routes are:

  • Munich – Pisa
  • Munich – Glasgow
  • Munich – Łódź
  • Munich – Triest
  • Munich – Leipzig
  • Munich – Pisa

Newly added:

  • Munich – Bengaluru
  • Munich – San Diego
  • Munich – Bahrain

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Munich – London: -31 Prozent
  • Munich – Hamburg: -33 Prozent
  • Munich – Zürich: -21 Prozent
  • Munich – Düsseldorf: -46 Prozent
  • Munich – Vienna: -34 Prozent
  • Munich – Berlin: -62 Prozent

Münster/Osnabrück, Dortmund, Paderborn

At the airports Münster/Osnabrück, Dortmund, and Paderborn, the total number of offered routes was reduced from 68 to 58. The number of flights remained nearly unchanged. The most significant cancellations are:

  • Dortmund – Munich
  • Dortmund – Vienna
  • Dortmund – Porto
  • Dortmund – Krakau
  • Münster/Osnabrück – Frankfurt
  • Münster/Osnabrück – Groningen
  • Paderborn – Frankfurt

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Dortmund – London: -63 Prozent
  • Dortmund – Sibiu: -24 Prozent
  • Dortmund – Kutaissi: -19 Prozent
  • Münster/Osnabrück – Munich: -23 Prozent
  • Paderborn – Munich: -82 Prozent

Newly added:

  • Dortmund – Istanbul
  • Dortmund – Warschau

Nürnberg (NUE)

In Nuremberg, the number of offered routes has also slightly decreased, falling from 58 to 53. The number of flights likewise saw a minor drop of 4 percent. The most significant discontinued routes:

  • Nuremberg – Zürich
  • Nuremberg – Munich
  • Nuremberg – Düsseldorf
  • Nuremberg – Warschau

Major routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Nuremberg – Paris: -36 Prozent
  • Nuremberg – Frankfurt: -19 Prozent
  • Nuremberg – Budapest: -57 Prozent

Rostock-Laage (RLG)

In 2019, three routes were offered from RLG. Of those, two were completely discontinued by 2026. Compared to 2019, 64 percent fewer flights are offered today. The cancellations:

  • Rostock – Munich
  • Rostock – Palma de Mallorca

The only remaining route is Rostock – Antalya, showing a 50 percent increase.

Saarbrücken (SCN)

In 2019, 11 routes were offered from Saarbrücken. By 2026, this number fell to 8. The number of flights decreased by 46 percent. The most significant cancellations:

  • Saarbrücken – Luxemburg
  • Saarbrücken – Fuerteventura
  • Saarbrücken – Munich

Routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Saarbrücken – Hamburg: -85 Prozent
  • Saarbrücken – Berlin: -55 Prozent
  • Saarbrücken – Palma de Mallorca: -17 Prozent

Stuttgart (STR)

The number of destinations dropped from 120 to 101. The number of flights decreased significantly by 35 percent. The most significant cancellations since 2019:

  • Stuttgart – Düsseldorf
  • Stuttgart – Hannover
  • Stuttgart – Birmingham
  • Stuttgart – Graz
  • Stuttgart – Lyon
  • Stuttgart – Brussels
  • Stuttgart – Helsinki

Routes with significantly reduced frequencies are:

  • Stuttgart – Vienna: -46 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – Berlin: -76 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – Palma: -24 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – Amsterdam:-21 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – London: -39 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – Hamburg: -64 Prozent
  • Stuttgart – Zürich: -54 Prozent

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