Munich airport pushes ahead with federal deportation terminal despite civil backlash

The supervisory board of Munich Airport has approved plans to build a dedicated deportation terminal, paving the way for Germany to expand its deportation capacity despite opposition from civil institutions.

The facility will be used exclusively by Germany's Federal Police and is intended to significantly increase the number of deportations carried out from the airport, as German media reports.

According to documents from the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the terminal would be capable of processing up to 100 deportations per day on scheduled commercial flights. At full capacity, it could also facilitate two charter deportation flights daily.

Refugee organisations and civil society groups have strongly opposed the project, warning that the facility could become a national—or even Europe-wide—hub for deportations. Ahead of the board's decision, campaigners urged members to reject the plans.

Following the vote, Munich Airport said the building would be constructed by Flughafen München GmbH and leased to the federal government.

"The planned building will be constructed by Flughafen München GmbH and subsequently leased to the federal government." The airport operator stressed that the building would be used solely by the Federal Police.

It added that the airport company would merely provide the infrastructure and would not be responsible for deportation operations.

Munich's newly elected mayor, Dominik Krause of the Green Party, is also opposed to the project, publicly announcing ahead of the election that he would vote against the project.

"Large-scale deportations should not be part of Munich Airport's business model," he stressed.

Munich Airport is jointly owned by the State of Bavaria (51%), the German federal government (26%) and the City of Munich (23%). Together, Bavaria and the federal government hold a clear majority, allowing them to secure approval for the project despite opposition from the city's representatives.

Employee representatives on the airport's supervisory board also opposed the plans. The two board members representing the Verdi trade union had announced before the vote that they would reject the proposal.

By Nazrin Sadigova