DOT Slaps $4 Mln Fine On Lufthansa For Discriminating Against Jewish Passengers

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Tuesday announced a $4 million penalty against Lufthansa for discriminating against Jewish passengers who were traveling from New York City through Frankfurt to Budapest in May 2022.

Based on the alleged misconduct of some passengers, Lufthansa prohibited 128 Jewish passengers - most of whom wore distinctive garb typically worn by Orthodox Jewish men - from boarding their connecting flight in Germany.

Despite many of the passengers not knowing each other nor traveling together, passengers interviewed by DOT investigators stated that Lufthansa treated them all as if they were a single group and denied them boarding for the alleged misbehavior of a few.

The penalty is the largest ever issued by DOT against an airline for civil rights violations.

"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 U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "From cracking down on long tarmac delays to ensuring passengers are properly refunded, our department has strengthened our enforcement efforts to hold airlines accountable for their treatment of passengers, and we will continue to push the industry to serve passengers with the fairness and dignity they deserve."