Lawsuits pending to cancel Schiphol flights’ | Financial

Benschop said in the television program Buitenhof on Sunday that he needed ‘the big stick for the busiest days’ to prevent chaos this summer, such as that arose at the beginning of the May holiday. Earlier that morning, ANVR chairman Frank Oostdam had noted at WNL on Sunday on behalf of the travel industry that the airport could have seen the crowds coming and that people want to get back on the plane after two years of corona misery.

Oostdam expects that travel organizations ‘will go to court’ if Schiphol sticks to 30% fewer flights in the summer, he says in a response to De Telegraaf on Benschop’s statements in Buitenhof. This must be the ‘last option’, according to the ANVR foreman. “Schiphol must put its affairs in order, so that the number of flights is handled that the market demands. We pay for that,” says foreman Marnix Fruitema of aviation umbrella organization Barin.

According to Oostdam, the prospect of fewer flights communicated ‘too quickly’ has also given rise to doubts about whether or not to book a holiday. He also thinks that companies could still fail as a result of the problems.

Absent

While passengers have missed flights in recent weeks, security and platform personnel at Schiphol were short of hands and at a certain moment even the military police had to be called in to ensure that passengers did not overrun security, Benschop often excelled through absence. The Schiphol director defended himself by saying that he had always been ‘working very hard’ to solve problems, even from a distance.

De Telegraaf wrote earlier this week that Benschop went on holiday to Portugal with his family during the May holiday. Benschop was also in a boat with family members on King’s Day. “That sounds silly, I realize that very well,” he said. The boss of Schiphol said that he had been at home all week with a corona infection and that day “escaped and was briefly in that boat”. “I was available and reachable again for the rest of the day.”

In the meantime, however, Benschop also flew to the United States for a gala and traveled to Davos for the World Economic Forum. At Buitenhof, Benschop justified this by arguing that in addition to tackling the problems at Schiphol, he was also busy ‘building an international coalition for sustainability’ for aviation.

Driving in the rain

In the meantime, it is very busy at Schiphol on Sunday. Travelers express their frustrations on social media and show photos and videos of the crowds. For example, a video shows how people had to wait in line outside, while a huge rain shower broke out. Travelers even try to hide under their bags to stay dry.

Schiphol expects both arrivals and departures on Sunday. An airport spokesman said it is estimated that 190,000 passengers, about 10,000 more than Friday, will depart and arrive throughout the day.

It is still manageable, says a security guard. “People work well together.” There are, however, peak moments, when an enormous stream of passengers accumulates and things get stuck. No one had to queue outside yet in the early morning hours, but this changed after 10am. The line then continued outside the tents erected by the airport, raining down travelers trying to get through security.

KLM dismayed

KLM is dismayed at sticking to the cancellation of flights. The airline “wants to work on other, more effective options than cancellation first, with more security guards, spreading flights and using other airports as the most important,” said a spokesperson. “Schiphol is not yet at the level of 2019 – it is worrying that this is already causing such problems due to shortages in Schiphol security. We will continue to look for solutions together.”

The cancellation of flights at Schiphol in the high season has broader consequences for the economy, analyzes Koninklijke Horeca Nederland. “The cancellation of scheduled flights also means fewer guests in the Netherlands for hotels, catering, museums and other culture. As a result, they will also lose income. The catering industry cannot use any additional setbacks, as the sector is trying to survive after corona, the shortage on the labor market and inflation,” says director Dirk Beljaarts of KHN.

Benschop does not think about resigning. He reiterated his statement that he is “fully motivated” to resolve the issues. Schiphol will talk to the unions on Monday about the staff shortages, promising a ‘meaningful’ pay increase for the security guards who often get around €12 an hour. “It’s not about a few percent more, of course,” said Benschop in the interview in which he announced that Schiphol is making ‘a switch’ from a policy aimed at low costs and outsourced work to quality of service. Benschop has to face the matter in the House of Representatives on Tuesday because of the chaos at the national airport.

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