Lufthansa was fined $4 million by U.S. regulators, who accused the German airline of discriminating against 128 Jewish passengers by stopping them from making a connecting flight due to the alleged misbehavior of a few fliers.
The passengers, who were going from New York City to Budapest in May 2022 for an annual memorial event in honor of an Orthodox rabbi, weren’t allowed to board a connecting flight in Frankfurt, Germany, the U.S. Transportation Department said.
On the first leg of the flight, some passengers said they were told by the crew to wear face masks and not to stand in the aisles. The passengers said they didn’t see anyone that didn’t comply. Lufthansa at the time required passengers to wear a face mask, while U.S. and German law prohibit passengers from assembling in aisles or galley areas during a flight.
The captain of the flight informed a Lufthansa security manager of misbehavior by passengers traveling on to Budapest. No specific passengers were identified, according to the Transportation Department. Still, the airline put a hold on more than 100 passengers’ tickets.
In Frankfurt, the gate staff called the names of passengers allowed to board, and left the 128 travelers waiting at the gate “confused and upset” as the plane left, the Transportation Department said.
Most of the 128 passengers were wearing clothing worn by Orthodox Jews, such as black hats, pants and jackets. They told the Transportation Department that they were treated like they were a group of one, even though many didn’t know each other, “because they were openly and visibly Jewish.”
In a video posted to social media a few days after the flight, a Lufthansa employee talking to an upset man at the Frankfurt airport says, “It was Jewish people who were the mess.” The man replies, “Jewish people on the plane made a problem, so all Jews are banned from Lufthansa for today?” She answers, “Just for this flight.” The video was verified by Storyful, which is owned by News Corp, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal.
Lufthansa tweeted an apology several days after the flight, saying it regretted that “the large group was denied boarding rather than limiting it to the non-compliant guests.”
The Transportation Department said the $4 million fine is the largest it has issued against an airline for civil-rights violations. Half of the fine must be paid within 30 days. The other $2 million was credited to Lufthansa for paying back the affected passengers.
Penalties for civil-rights violations by airlines are somewhat uncommon, as proving discrimination can be difficult. Airlines are more commonly fined for customer-service violations such as not providing required refunds.
“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,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg .
According to the Transportation Department, Lufthansa said the passengers were denied boarding due to an “unfortunate series of inaccurate communications, misinterpretations, and misjudgments,” and its employees didn’t discriminate against customers. Lufthansa rebooked most of the passengers on flights the same day.
Lufthansa said Tuesday it has cooperated with the Transportation Department and will continue to have a dialogue with Jewish organizations and advocacy groups. It said it has created antisemitism and discrimination training for its employees.
Jewish organizations have called out rising antisemitism in the U.S. and other countries in recent years, a problem worsened since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas last year and the ensuing war in Gaza.
Jonathan Greenblatt , the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish advocacy group, said in a post on X that the incident “was clear antisemitism” and that the airline blamed “Jews as a group for the alleged actions of a few.”
The Transportation Department said it had a right to investigate the Lufthansa incident because the flight originated from the U.S. and Lufthansa’s foreign air carrier permit requires it to obey U.S. laws.
Write to Joseph Pisani at joseph.pisani@wsj.com
