Why are flight cancellations so high in Europe?

According to the ranking of German airports, Frankfurt Airport has the highest flight cancellation rate in Europe at 5.64%, followed by Munich Airport (3.03%), Berlin Airport (1.82%), London Airport (1.42%), and Düsseldorf Airport (1.42%). Among the top five airports with the highest flight cancellation rates in Europe, four are in Germany. In terms of airlines, Lufthansa has "lived up to expectations" by topping the list of European airlines with the most flight cancellations. In fact, as early as the beginning of 2024, Lufthansa's cancellation rate had already reached a high of 5.99%, almost double that of the same period last year (2.97%). Among all Lufthansa flights in 2024, 12,792 flights were cancelled, with a cancellation rate of 2.88%. Close behind are British Airways (2.06%), KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (1.60%), Swiss International Air Lines (1.45%), and Eurowings (1.42%). In contrast, the flight cancellation rates of TAP Air Portugal, Ryanair, and Iberia are all far below 1%, with a cancellation rate of approximately 1% being considered the normal average. Regarding flight delays, out of 822,394 flights in Germany in 2024, 182,326 flights were delayed by at least 15 minutes. Although Germany's delay rate did not win the "crown", its 22.17% delay rate still placed it sixth in Europe. Such a high delay rate has caused great inconvenience to passengers' travel. Portugal topped the list with a delay rate of 26.20%, followed by Greece (25.77%), Switzerland (25.54%), the Netherlands (23.13%), and Turkey. Overall, almost one in every five flights in Europe (19.07%) was delayed by at least 15 minutes. Additionally, currently, Germany does not have the capability to manufacture passenger aircraft. Germany was a defeated country in World War II, and its national industrial economy was completely destroyed. At the same time, the victorious countries also prohibited Germany from developing any aviation-related work for the next 50 years. At the end of World War II, the Soviet Union first occupied Berlin, Germany, obtaining most of the technical data and equipment and forcibly taking away a small number of engineers. At the end of World War II, the Office of Strategic Services of the United States launched a secret operation: Operation Paperclip, which aimed to recruit talents from Nazi Germany. The United States gained most of the German engineers and a small amount of data, while Germany itself lacked aviation technology talents, which was also one of the reasons for the lag in the development of German aviation engines. Currently, the research and development of aviation engines has become a highly technical and competitive field, with only a few countries and enterprises possessing core technologies. American companies like GE and Pratt & Whitney, as well as British company Rolls-Royce, almost monopolize the market. These giants not only have rich technological accumulation but also firmly hold the core patents of the industry. In contrast, although Germany has a strong basic industry, it lacks depth in technological accumulation and can only rely on international cooperation.