Berlin Airport gets fourth CEO in just four years

Further delays in the long-awaited opening of Berlin’s Willy Brandt Airport after the dismissal of Karsten Mühlenfeld and the installation of his replacement, Engelbert Luetke Daldrup, as Chief Executive. Berlin Mayor Michael Müller, who is also chairman of the airport’s supervisory board, said on Monday that Daldrup, who was deputy minister for strategies for Berlin and airport policy in Berlin’s regional government, would succeed Mühlenfeld.
This is the third time the project chief executive has been replaced since its long-term head, Rainer Schwarz, was dismissed in 2013. Principal reasons given for Mühlenfeld’s dismissal have been to do with continual delays and overruns on the project which was originally due to see Berlin’s new and much-needed airport open in 2011. The new international airport has been beset by delays caused by red tape and technical problems related to smoke ventilation systems, cabling and the doors.
However the firing of the project’s construction head, Joerg Marks, without consultation with the airport’s supervisory board, and his replacement with former Deutsche Bahn manager Christoph Bretschneider by Mühlenfeld was seen as the last straw. The project chiefs position was not helped by the fact that in January he had advised that the opening date of 2017 would not be possible, but without giving any indication of when the new date might be. Marks has since been reinstated.
The opposition has criticized the sacking of Mühlenfeld, who is an experienced engineer. “His sacking means the last person with specialist experience in the leadership of the airport has gone – that shows what months of chaos can do,” said Herbert Behrens, transport spokesman for Die Linke (the Left party).
The German capital is served by two former cold war airports – Tegel in the north west of Berlin and Schoenefeld to the south east. Tegel is due to close once the new airport opens, but by the time that happens it is understood that the new airport will be too small to cope with rising passenger demand.
Tegel and Schoenefeld served 33 million passengers last year while the new hub is set for initial capacity of 27 million. However the airport company says it can be expanded to serve up to 45 million passengers.