Dozens of flights were delayed and several were canceled at Stuttgart airport after a cable fire interrupted operations on Wednesday night, causing domain effects on Thursday.
According to the airport website, at least eight exits and five arrivals were canceled, while another 60 flights experienced delays.
An airport spokeswoman explained that some of the cancellations were not only due to the blackout, but also because certain airplanes could not reach Stuttgart after the incident.
The fire exploded in an operations building located away from the passenger terminals. Airport officials confirmed that passengers were not directly at risk. However, the fire damaged the airport energy supply system, which in turn affected the critical infrastructure, including track lighting.
As security caution, flight operations were suspended for about an hour on Wednesday night. The exits stopped for the rest of the day, although the track was reopened later at night to allow some arrival flights.
Several flights scheduled for Stuttgart were diverted to other German airports, including Munich, Nuremberg and Frankfurt, to minimize the interruption. Despite the operational reverse, no passenger suffered injuries during the incident.
Two firefighters involved in the emergency response were taken to the hospital for medical controls after being exposed to smoke, although their conditions were not reported as serious.
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For Thursday morning, flight operations had partially resumed, but residual delays and cancellations continued. The airport authorities advised passengers to monitor updates from their airlines before traveling, since the schedules remained subject to changes, while the systems were gradually restored.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and the scope of the damage to the installation has not yet been determined. The airport operator has not provided a schedule for the complete restoration of services, but said that the safety and restoration of critical infrastructure are still the immediate priorities.
Stuttgart airport, one of the most busy regional centers in Germany, manages millions of passengers annually and serves as a key link for national and international trips. Any interruption at the airport generally causes a reduction effect for surrounding transport networks and connection flights, which makes the incident a significant challenge for passengers and airlines equally.
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