About Stefan Schulte
In February 2013, Stefan Schulte, as Chairman of the Executive Board of Fraport AG, participated in the opening ceremony of the company's new corporate headquarters. The building, which took two years to plan and construct, was inaugurated alongside board member Anke Giesen, works council chair Claudia Amier, and supervisory board member Karlheinz Weimar. Schulte described the new facility as featuring open-plan standards and team workspaces, stating that the design would enable faster and better knowledge transfer among employees and shorten distances between administrative units, leading to time savings. He also noted that the modern ambiance was intended to help employees feel at home.
Schulte highlighted the building's sustainability features, including a photovoltaic system on the south facade to power electric vehicles in the garage. He explained that the roof uses a foil membrane instead of glass, with adjustable layers of dotted foil to control sunlight entry, comparing the system to a variable blind. The German Sustainable Building Council awarded the project a Gold certificate for its energy efficiency standards.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Stefan Schulte's recent appearances.
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Transcript (12 segments)
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Host0:00
Frankfurt Airport is determined to build Terminal 3 on the site of the former US airbase, with opening planned before 2021. Construction is set to begin next year. Fraport presented two new studies today arguing that Terminal 3 is indispensable. Passenger numbers rose from about 51 million in 2009 to 58 million in 2013. The airport operator is pushing for expansion, with studies predicting 70 million passengers by 2020 and 86 million by 2030. Terminals 1 and 2 are reaching capacity. The Green economics minister is playing for time but says the building permit for Terminal 3 is likely unassailable. The Left party criticizes broken promises. The airport is majority-owned by the state of Hesse and the city of Frankfurt, and the supervisory board has a majority for construction. Airport CEO Stefan Schulte said today he looks forward to Terminal 3, and he is now in the studio.
Fait accompli? Does the Green economics minister have to get used to it and adjust over the next few months? Mr. Schulte, good evening first of all.
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Stefan Schulte3:23
Good evening. We have examined this intensively. Today we presented two independent studies that show clearly rising passenger numbers, but a smaller increase in flight movements. So we see the trend: larger aircraft, more passengers. And I believe, in the interest of the region, we should really have a good airport that we can all be proud of. Because a building doesn't make noise, but it offers service, good processes, space, and air. That's what we want to achieve for the future.
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Host3:54
You are not satisfied with the old Terminal 1 anymore, are you?
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Stefan Schulte4:00
We are very satisfied, it's really a workhorse, it's excellent. We have invested a lot, but we also look 20, 30 years ahead. Terminal 1 is from the 70s, Terminal 2 from the 90s. I believe, after everything we have seen and presented today, we really need Terminal 3.
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Host4:16
Where does this high passenger volume come from? It's supposed to reach up to 90 million. Will these also be low-cost carriers taking off and landing here?
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Stefan Schulte4:23
No, we will develop this airport further in the intercontinental sector, naturally with a very strong European base. Germany still accounts for only 8% of our traffic. The key point is: we want good processes, we want pleasant service, but we need positions for wide-body aircraft. We have more and more large intercontinental planes, and after a 10-hour flight from Singapore or wherever, they expect to arrive directly at the building, be processed through a good building, and exit, not be bused from the apron.
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Host4:58
You are simultaneously squandering a historic opportunity. The airbase is gone, you could have implemented an Atlanta solution, four runways side by side, and simply eliminate the northwest runway and the western runway. Can you?
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Stefan Schulte5:12
Well, now it's really about additional terminal capacity, not the northwest runway. That works excellently, we have good punctuality again. But now the issue is: we are reaching capacity limits. You don't want to always stand in line as a passenger. We are running into that at immigration, emigration, security checks. Above all, we no longer have enough positions where the large aircraft, which are increasingly coming to Frankfurt, can be serviced at the building. So it's about quality, quality and service. That's why we need Terminal 3.
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Host5:40
Will the metropolitan area tolerate so much air traffic? Air traffic is growing much slower than expected, that's good. We have more time.
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Stefan Schulte5:47
There will be more modern, quiet aircraft, yes, and we remain committed to active and passive noise protection; we will not let up there. But a building itself makes no noise; it's a quality issue that we can offer really good handling here in the future for such an attractive region.
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Host6:05
You want to be proud of it. Thank you for visiting, airport CEO Stefan Schulte.
