German airline fined for 'discriminating' against Jewish passengers
The US Department of Transportation has imposed a historic $4 million fine on Lufthansa for refusing to allow 128 Orthodox Jewish men to board. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
Lufthansa has been hit with a $4 million penalty by the US Department of Transportation for purportedly discriminating against a group of Jewish passengers.
On Tuesday, the DOT revealed that the airline barred 128 Jewish passengers, predominantly clad in traditional Orthodox clothing, from boarding their connecting flight in Germany in May 2022.
The department received more than 40 complaints from Jewish travelers ticketed for a journey from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York to Budapest, Hungary, with a layover in Frankfurt, Germany.
The investigation determined that Lufthansa denied the entire group boarding due to alleged misbehavior by a few individuals. Reports indicated that some passengers had reportedly refused to follow the airline's face mask policy.
“Based on the alleged misconduct of some passengers,” the department stated, Lufthansa staff “treated them all as if they were a single group and denied them boarding,” even though many of the affected passengers did not know each other or were not traveling together.
German media at the time noted that the airline’s personnel singled out passengers identifiable as Jewish by their skull caps or sidelocks. A video captured during the incident purportedly showed airline staff informing travelers that “everyone has to pay” for the mistakes of a few.
The fine imposed on Lufthansa marks the largest ever levied by the DOT for discrimination.
“No one should face discrimination when they travel, and today’s action sends a clear message to the airline industry that we are prepared to investigate and take action whenever passengers’ civil rights are violated,” stated US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
In response to the incident, Lufthansa expressed that it has fully cooperated with the DOT throughout its investigation. The airline had previously apologized, asserting a “zero tolerance for racism, antisemitism and discrimination of any type,” and noted that it later reached a settlement with most of the excluded Jewish passengers.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
On Tuesday, the DOT revealed that the airline barred 128 Jewish passengers, predominantly clad in traditional Orthodox clothing, from boarding their connecting flight in Germany in May 2022.
The department received more than 40 complaints from Jewish travelers ticketed for a journey from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York to Budapest, Hungary, with a layover in Frankfurt, Germany.
The investigation determined that Lufthansa denied the entire group boarding due to alleged misbehavior by a few individuals. Reports indicated that some passengers had reportedly refused to follow the airline's face mask policy.
“Based on the alleged misconduct of some passengers,” the department stated, Lufthansa staff “treated them all as if they were a single group and denied them boarding,” even though many of the affected passengers did not know each other or were not traveling together.
German media at the time noted that the airline’s personnel singled out passengers identifiable as Jewish by their skull caps or sidelocks. A video captured during the incident purportedly showed airline staff informing travelers that “everyone has to pay” for the mistakes of a few.
The fine imposed on Lufthansa marks the largest ever levied by the DOT for discrimination.
“No one should face discrimination when they travel, and today’s action sends a clear message to the airline industry that we are prepared to investigate and take action whenever passengers’ civil rights are violated,” stated US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
In response to the incident, Lufthansa expressed that it has fully cooperated with the DOT throughout its investigation. The airline had previously apologized, asserting a “zero tolerance for racism, antisemitism and discrimination of any type,” and noted that it later reached a settlement with most of the excluded Jewish passengers.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
