The tunnel ramp is located directly in front of Klein Borstel station on U-Bahn line U1.

A railway to the airport has been discussed since the 1960s, including as a possible extension of the original route of U-Bahn line 4, on which work was abandoned in 1974.

However, work was again delayed by water leaks during construction in 2004 and the line was finally opened to regular traffic on 12 December 2008.

The track is designed for a maximum speed of 80 km / h[5] and electrified with the third-rail DC system used by the Hamburg S-Bahn.

Hamburg Airport (Flughafen) station has a 140 metre long central platform and is therefore suitable for the assembly of trains.

[7] Within days of the application the government distanced itself from the proposal, as modification would have led to significant costs for, for example, the reprinting of timetables and maps.

Critics of the proposed change also suggested that an internationally oriented place like the airport station should use an English name.