Deutsche Post Ceases Air Delivery Permanently
The German state postal service, Deutsche Post, has announced the cessation of letter and parcel deliveries by air transport on domestic routes. The last domestic flight operated by Deutsche Post, from Berlin to Stuttgart, took place on March 28. This initiative by the German postal service aims to reduce CO2 emissions, as reported by The Mayor.
From now on, postal deliveries within Germany will exclusively use road and rail transport. Calculations indicate that each letter delivered in Germany will now be accompanied by an 80% reduction in carbon emissions. Deutsche Post will continue to ensure fast delivery of letters between northern and southern Germany, utilizing various means of transport, including Sprinter vans.
Internal postal flights have served in Germany for 63 years as an efficient means of mail delivery, especially during the night. In the early 1960s, air transport was the fastest method for delivering mail and parcels, seen as crucial for effective communication as other instant messaging methods were not yet developed.
Over the years, the volume of mail transported this way gradually decreased: six planes operated routes between Stuttgart-Berlin, Hanover-Munich, and Hanover-Stuttgart (in both directions), carrying about 1.5 million letters nightly, averaging approximately 270,000 items per plane.
In modern times, quick delivery of domestic mail by the next working day is no longer the primary focus of universal postal services, leading to Deutsche Post's decision to discontinue internal air mail. However, it is noted that international air mail routes operated by Deutsche Post are not currently planned for cancellation.
The Gaze publication also reported that seven coal power plants were shut down in Germany on Easter. This action signifies the decommissioning of approximately 2100 megawatts of brown coal energy production capacity, according to the German energy operator RWE.
It's worth noting that Germany's plans to reduce its coal dependency to combat climate change were disrupted by Russia's military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.