Judges dismiss suit filed against BER planning permission

On Monday, 31 July 2012, the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerwG) dismissed a suit filed by the Kleinmachnow local authority as well as suits by private persons against the planning permission decision reached for Berlin Brandenburg Airport. Suits were filed with the BVerwG against the planning permission decision as the plaintiffs saw their rights violated by the flight path specifications for BER.

Airport CEO Dr Rainer Schwarz: "Today's decision is clear and unambiguous. The approval for the airport is legally valid and has been confirmed by the decisions of the highest German constitutional court authority. The judges of the Federal Constitutional Court have thereby confirmed the go-ahead for the most important future project in the region around the capital. I am certain that, despite our current problems, we will lead the airport to success. Citizens from Berlin and Brandenburg rightly expect an efficient airport offering better connections to the world than the old Schönefeld and Tegel Airports. The new links offered by our airline partners will also give rise to new opportunities and perspectives for Berlin-Brandenburg."

The Berlin-Brandenburg policy in the field of air transport has been pursuing a clear course since the consensual resolution in 1996: the closure of the Tegel and Tempelhof city airports as well as expansion of Schönefeld Airport to become Berlin Brandenburg Airport Willy Brandt. For economical as well as noise-related reasons, the closure of Tegel and Tempelhof city airports and the bundling of air traffic at BER represents a milestone: in 2004, 225,800 people in our region were affected by a permanent noise level of 55 dB(A) every day with overall passenger figures of 15 million. In 2023, a mere 59,600 will be affected despite passenger figures doubling (source: National Development Plan for Airport Location Development, 2006).