Lufthansa reportedly pays Jewish passengers barred from flying £16,000 

Lufthansa is reportedly paying £16,000 to each Jewish passenger who was barred from boarding one of its flights earlier this year.

The airline had previously apologised after apparently barring all visibly Jewish passengers from a flight due to a mask dispute with a few passengers who happened to be Jewish.

It was reported that there was a dispute between staff managing the boarding of flight LH1334 from Frankfurt to Budapest on 4th May and some visibly Jewish passengers, reportedly over the wearing of masks. The pilot then apparently decided that no visibly Jewish passengers were to be allowed on to the flight, regardless of whether they were part of the same group or were prepared to wear a mask.

A video was recorded appearing to show a member of the airline’s ground staff explaining to a passenger that he was being prevented from boarding because he was Jewish.

The Jewish passengers were predominantly American and many had flown from New York in order to visit the grave of a Hasidic rabbi. Around 100 passengers were affected.

The German airline apologised and said that it was investigating the incident, which has caused an uproar in the Jewish world.

In a statement, the airline said: “Although we are not commenting on the details, we can confirm that Lufthansa endeavors to settle the claims with all of the passengers denied boarding on 4th May, 2022.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.