18-Hour Hostage Situation Ends at Hamburg Airport with Child Unharmed

Local police in Hamburg have reported the successful resolution of an 18-hour hostage situation at Hamburg Airport, which involved a 35-year-old man and his four-year-old daughter. The man had driven through a security barrier onto the airport tarmac, parking his car under a plane.

According to authorities, the man eventually surrendered to the police “without resistance” and was subsequently arrested. The child appeared to be unharmed.

The incident, which unfolded on Saturday night, resulted in the disruption of several flights to and from the airport. While operations have resumed, significant delays persist.

The situation began at approximately 20:00 local time when the suspect drove his car onto the airport’s apron, the area designated for aircraft parking. Police reported that the man fired his weapon into the air and threw burning bottles from his vehicle. There were concerns about the potential presence of explosives.

The vehicle was brought to a halt near a commercial flight preparing for takeoff. All passengers on board were safely evacuated, and the airport’s security perimeter was secured.

The man’s motivations appeared to be related to custody disputes with his ex-wife. He expressed dissatisfaction with the authorities’ decisions concerning the custody arrangement and sought to travel to Turkey with his daughter. Following an argument and the mother’s complaint of suspected child abduction, he had taken the child without permission, which was not the first time he had faced such accusations.

The airport is now focused on resuming operations as quickly as possible to accommodate the 286 scheduled flights with around 34,500 passengers on Sunday. Hamburg’s mayor, Peter Tschentscher, expressed his wishes for strength and recovery for the mother, the child, and her family after the conclusion of the hostage situation.