Benschop: maximum number of travelers and fewer flights at Schiphol in summer | Inland

Benschop outlines a dilemma during the press conference: “Should we announce restrictions or do you let it come to it? We don’t let it get to it. We are responsible for our passengers and their safety. That is why we have decided to intervene now so that people know in time what is going to happen.”

According to Benschop, the problems at Schiphol are too big to solve on a voluntary basis. The CEO therefore states that canceling flights in consultation with the slot coordinator, who coordinates all take-off and landing rights, is the best option. Benschop states that other major European airports such as Heathrow in London and Frankfurt airport are also taking similar measures.

Schiphol says it will help airlines that divert to other airports and incur additional costs as a result. In addition, Schiphol is well aware that airlines and travel organizations can file claims with the airport. “We will also address that.”

Get on

Benschop does not think about resigning. He said that during the press conference. Benschop sees it as his “great task to tackle things. And I feel supported in that too.”

Earlier, the Schiphol CEO had already said he wanted to stay. Benschop has recently received a lot of criticism. For example, he would have been too absent when the problems came to light during the May holidays. He was also on holiday during that period and went out on the water with a boat on King’s Day. Benschop himself maintains that he kept in touch with the rest of the management from a distance.

Schiphol will make a decision within two weeks about possible measures to limit the number of travelers in August. In the near future, the airport hopes to gain more clarity about what exactly is possible. Then it is clear, for example, whether there are more security guards available and how many there are. Schiphol expects to be able to process more travelers in August than in July.

‘Unmanageable queues’

The airport slot coordinator will consult with the various airlines to achieve the numbers. In July, according to Schiphol, there are about 13,500 seats too many every day if all planes are completely full.

Schiphol is taking the step to prevent ‘unmanageable queues’. As a result, many travelers would miss their flight and unsafe situations could arise for both travelers and employees. There are staff shortages at the airport, especially at security. This has resulted in queues extending outside the departure hall in recent times.

During the corona period, the travel world was almost completely at a standstill, but it is recovering faster than expected. Schiphol says it has taken into account a more than doubling of the number of passengers: from 25.5 million in 2021 to 60 million this year. However, on the busiest days of the last May holiday and also next summer, more travelers come than expected in that scenario.

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