Ombudsman

In many cases where a large service provider with numerous employees regularly handles a very large number of customer contacts, discrepancies, conflicts and open questions can also arise. This also and especially applies to the area of security screening at civil airports, since here a security task under official supervision and control has been assigned to the civil airport operator or a contractually obligated private company for execution. Passenger and baggage controls are expected to be carried out at the highest security level and at the same time efficiently and in a customer-friendly manner. In addition to the binding requirement to comply with legal requirements and official directives, the additional goal of customer orientation requires special measures and precautions in order to:

  • reach agreement with passengers on consensual and comprehensible solutions in the event of differences of opinion.
  • seek understanding of the respective point of view and the implications thereof.
  • offer justified compensation for damage caused during security checks as a gesture of goodwill, without acknowledging liability outside the legal framework.
  • refer enquiries about security controls to the appropriate authorities, such as:
  • Security screening procedures for special cases such as pacemakers.
  • Classification of items in hand baggage and/or hold baggage in terms of allowed or not allowed.
  • Classification of items/substances in relation to IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations
In order to realise these ambitious goals, competence, impartiality and empathy are required. For this reason, the Ombudsman's Office for Security has been in place at Vienna Int. Airport since 1 June 2013 as an independent organisational unit uninfluenced by any special interests. Founded by Dr. Leo Lauber (retired), it acts in coordination with the liability holder Flughafen Wien AG and is supported by experts in quality assurance, security control and customer orientation.

It is primarily intended to function as a service institution for all those persons for whom a security check is legally ordered, but at the same time, for reasons of fairness, also to take into account justified concerns of the security control employees. However, the Ombudsman's Office for Security cannot make any independent decisions within its area of responsibility, nor can it intervene directly in operational security control processes but can only make recommendations. With the establishment of the Ombudsman's Office for Security, Vienna Airport is pleased to be able to offer its valued passengers and customers a wide range of assistance in connection with security controls, which is unique for our airport in Europe.

The Ombudsman's Office for Security is an independent institution and can be reached during office hours from Monday to Friday exclusively at  ombudsstelle-sicherheit@viennaairport.com


With kind regards
Security Ombudsman Office