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In July, summer holidays begin in almost all Swiss cantons, as in many other countries. Very busy at that time at the largest Swiss airport in Zurich-Kloten.
60 different airline companies provide direct service from Zurich to 187 different flight destinations in 71 countries. Before the pandemic, there were more than 200. There are 141 short- and medium-haul destinations from Amsterdam to Cyprus, and 65 long-distance destinations from Bangkok to Washington.
Despite the continued trend towards holidays and train travel in Switzerland, flight demand is again approaching pre-Corona record numbers. Last year, 22.6 million passengers traveled via Zurich, which corresponds to 70 percent of the 2019 level (pre-Corona).
This number will continue to increase this year. Switzerland is already re-delivering 86 percent of its flight capacities in 2019, with many other airlines the number is even higher for Zurich. Airlines are reporting very good occupancy rates and tour operators expect continued growth in demand.
The big run has begun
Busy during peak hours will be great. And this is the 75th anniversary of Zurich Airport’s existence. Egypt, Greece and Italy, North America and the Indian Ocean are especially popular, according to major tour operators.
Blick visited Zurich Airport just before the start of the summer vacation. Editor Jean-Claude Raemy spoke to people whose job it is to keep the complex microcosm of the airport in Kloten ZH operational so that passengers can fly smoothly. Angela Rickli control the passengers. Sanel Svraka He goes to the planes by bus. Katja Furst von Arx transports the luggage to the right place. Nicole Gertsch And Adrian Slemenjak secure the borders. Deborah Wuthrich protects engines. pascal busser manages the air traffic in the tower. They are all part of the Blick am Flughafen summer series and will be available to watch on Blick.ch, Blick TV and Blick in the coming days.
Blick visited Zurich Airport just before the start of the summer vacation. Editor Jean-Claude Raemy spoke to people whose job it is to keep the complex microcosm of the airport in Kloten ZH operational so that passengers can fly smoothly. Angela Rickli control the passengers. Sanel Svraka He goes to the planes by bus. Katja Furst von Arx transports the luggage to the right place. Nicole Gertsch And Adrian Slemenjak secure the borders. Deborah Wuthrich protects engines. pascal busser manages the air traffic in the tower. They are all part of the Blick am Flughafen summer series and will be available to watch on Blick.ch, Blick TV and Blick in the coming days.
Last year, airlines and airports were surprised and in some cases depressed by the rapid increase in demand. There was increased cooldowns and the occasional chaos. This summer shouldn’t be like that anymore. Airlines and airport service providers have increased staff numbers. The Zurich cantonal police, which is responsible for security and controls at Kloten, could use more staff to better deal with the airport rush hour.
There were sometimes longer queues at Easter and spring break. “Wait times were sometimes long, but it would be an exaggeration to talk about chaos,” airport spokeswoman Bettina Kunz told Blick. In principle, Zurich Airport works reliably. It is not for nothing that it has always won the Airport Service Quality Award as Europe’s best airport (category 25 to 40 million passengers) over the past seven years.
During peak hours, people can use early check-in. The advantage over simple online check-in at home is that the luggage has already been checked in. All you have to do is pass the security check on the day of the flight.
However, not all airlines offer the night before check-in. In Zurich this is possible with the following airlines:
- Lufthansa Group (Switzerland, Edelweiss, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines): The night before check-in is possible during check-in hours 23 hours before departure. Passengers wishing to check-in the night before are kindly requested to avoid the following peak hours: 06:00 – 07:00 / 07:45 – 09:00 / 10:00 – 12:00. Note: It is not possible to check-in the previous evening at Eurowings. Lufthansa Group passengers can use 20 self-bag-drop machines during working hours up to 23 hours before departure.
- Chair: Check-in the night before is possible between 20:00 and 22:00 every day. This is free for passengers with the Comfort fare; All other passengers aged 2 and over will be charged CHF 10 per person.
- vulture: The previous night’s check-in is possible from 18:00 to 20:00 (row 5). Economy Class guests are charged CHF 5 per passenger.
- AirFrance: Check-in the night before is possible between 19:00 and 21:00.
- KLM: The previous night’s check-in is possible between 19:00 and 21:00.
- Croatia Airlines: The night before check-in is possible during check-in hours 23 hours before departure. Passengers are kindly requested to avoid the following peak hours: 06:00 – 07:00 / 07:45 – 09:00 / 10:00 – 12:00.
During peak hours, people can use early check-in. The advantage over simple online check-in at home is that the luggage has already been checked in. All you have to do is pass the security check on the day of the flight.
However, not all airlines offer the night before check-in. In Zurich this is possible with the following airlines:
- Lufthansa Group (Switzerland, Edelweiss, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines): The night before check-in is possible during check-in hours 23 hours before departure. Passengers wishing to check-in the night before are kindly requested to avoid the following peak hours: 06:00 – 07:00 / 07:45 – 09:00 / 10:00 – 12:00. Note: It is not possible to check-in the previous evening at Eurowings. Lufthansa Group passengers can use 20 self-bag-drop machines during working hours up to 23 hours before departure.
- Chair: Check-in the night before is possible between 20:00 and 22:00 every day. This is free for passengers with the Comfort fare; All other passengers aged 2 and over will be charged CHF 10 per person.
- vulture: The previous night’s check-in is possible from 18:00 to 20:00 (row 5). Economy Class guests are charged CHF 5 per passenger.
- AirFrance: Check-in the night before is possible between 19:00 and 21:00.
- KLM: The previous night’s check-in is possible between 19:00 and 21:00.
- Croatia Airlines: The night before check-in is possible during check-in hours 23 hours before departure. Passengers are kindly requested to avoid the following peak hours: 06:00 – 07:00 / 07:45 – 09:00 / 10:00 – 12:00.
A lot of work for the holiday chat
To ensure everything goes according to plan, the airport’s tiny universe employs 27,400 people in 300 companies. This includes restaurants, hotels, driver services, cleaners and airport staff.
But not only airport employees are necessary for everything to work. Travelers can do their part, too. Good preparation and early arrival at the airport – at least two hours before departure – is half the battle. A bit of peace. After all, the best weeks of the year…
Source :Blick
I’m Tim David and I work as an author for 24 Instant News, covering the Market section. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, my mission is to provide accurate, timely and insightful news coverage that helps our readers stay informed about the latest trends in the market. My writing style is focused on making complex economic topics easy to understand for everyone.
