A nationwide failure of the Federal Police's IT systems has thrust Germany's major airports into turmoil, leading to significant delays in border controls and unleashing a storm of criticism against Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.

As of Friday, airports in Berlin, Frankfurt, and Düsseldorf have resumed normal operations following the debilitating technical glitches.

However, other major airports are still grappling with the aftermath.

The disruption, which primarily affected non-Schengen entry points, forced border control officers to revert to manual processing of documents—a cumbersome process compared to the automated system usually in place.

This resulted in protracted wait times and growing queues, posing a severe logistical headache for airports already strained by post-holiday traffic.

A Federal Police spokesperson acknowledged the "nationwide system outage," indicating that the automated system crucial for Schengen Information System (SIS) compliance had become inoperative.

The nation’s IT teams are scrambling to rectify the issue, although a resolution timeline remains elusive.

Criticism has been swift and pointed.

Heiko Teggatz, head of the Federal Police Union, lambasted the government’s failure to allocate sufficient funds for IT modernization despite repeated requests.

"It was only a matter of time before something like this happened.

This chaos is a direct result of a misguided security policy," he declared, urging a 150 million euro increase in the federal police's budget to stave off similar crises in the future.

At Frankfurt Airport, the nation’s largest, the fallout was comparatively manageable, though manual processing tasks have pushed officers to their limits.

In Düsseldorf, there were severe delays affecting flights to and from the non-Schengen zone.

Airports like Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden faced unique impediments, with flights unable to depart, leaving hundreds of passengers in a holding pattern.

While regular operations have resumed in some airports, many remain mired in confusion and delay.

The situation has reignited debates over the adequacy of Germany’s airport infrastructure and the federal government's role in safeguarding it against similar disruptions.

The interior ministry, along with federal crime offices, continues efforts to diagnose the failure's root causes while managing the repercussions that this unexpected bottleneck has unleashed.

Passengers, returning from international holiday destinations, are bearing the brunt of these systemic inadequacies, underscoring the urgent need for technological resilience in critical national infrastructure.

As the BKA works alongside its partners to address the current malaise, Minister Faeser faces mounting pressure to ensure that the nation’s borders, digital and physical, remain secure and functional.