Air Berlin may be in deep financial trouble, and the problems are starting to show up in a series of cancellations and flight delays.
The airline, which grew from a small discount carrier to a major international airline, cancelled 5 flights between Berlin and Hamburg. The disruptions also affected Tuifly, a smaller carrier that has some of its flights operated by Air Berlin on ‘wet leases.’ A number of Tuifly’s flights in Frankfurt and Hanover were hit by crew shortages.
Air Berlin, a OneWorld member, is Germany’s second-largest airline, and is partly-owned by Etihad Airlines. It’s struggled for a while and has recently reported a record €447 million loss. It has announced a plan to shed 1200 employees and to turn 40 of its planes over to Lufthansa.
