Hardly a week goes by without Amsterdam airport making the headlines. This time it's the presentation of a new plan to reduce activity by airport authority Royal Schiphol Group and a ruling by a Dutch court which put the spotlight back on the Air France-KLM hub.
On 3 April, Royal Schiphol Group announced how Amsterdam Airport Schiphol can become more efficient, quieter and more environmentally friendly. Without reducing its essential role as a hub for the Netherlands and Europe.
Amsterdam Schiphol: a farewell to night flights and private jets
A number of measures will be introduced to limit CO2 emissions and noise. These measures will apply by 2025-2026.
Schiphol wants close the platform to night-time activities. No aircraft will take off between midnight and 06:00. There will be no more landings between midnight and 05:00. This measure represents a reduction of 10,000 flights per year. The Royal Schiphol Group also wants to limit the number of take-offs and landings in the late evening and early morning.
Amsterdam Schiphol also wants ban private jetswhich cause a disproportionate amount of noise pollution and CO2 emissions per passenger. The airport estimates that between 30% and 50 % of these private jet flights have no economic or social justification.. General aviation flights accounted for 6% of the total 422,000 aircraft movements recorded in 2022.
Schiphol will also adopt a stricter approach to the noisiest aircraft by tightening existing standards. Finally, the construction of a new runway for the platform will be abandoned.
This catalogue of measures would result in a 16% reduction in the number of people affected by noise pollution. The number of local residents suffering from sleep disorders would fall by around 13,000 (54 %).
KLM has already reacted to the new measures that the airport wishes to adopt. The company says it is "astonished that Schiphol is presenting proposals unilaterally. They will have considerable consequences for airlinesIt is only through a collaborative and sectoral approach that the aviation industry will be able to achieve a balance between its activity and the climate. It is only through a collaborative and sectoral approach that the aviation industry will be able to achieve a balance between its activity and the climate".
Court lifts authoritarian curtailment of movements
While there is once again a furore over the new measures proposed by the airport, a positive decision has been taken in favour of the airlines by a Dutch court.
The latter ruled in favour of IATA and a dozen airlines. They had lodged a legal appeal against a Authoritarian reduction in the number of flights at Schiphol from 1 November 2023.
The government had announced "experimental regulations". reducing movements from 500,000 to 460,000 on that date. Before a new threshold of 440,000 flights was authoritatively set.
Willie Walsh, Director General of IATAThe company has thus " welcomed the judge's decision. In this case, the aim was to ensure compliance with the law and international obligations.. The judge understood that the Dutch government had breached its obligations. He has bypassed the procedures that would have made it possible to examine his desire to reduce the number of flights at Schiphol.. This decision brings vital stability for airlines this year using Schiphol. And it maintains the choice and connectivity that passengers value." .
IATA and the airlines believe that the "Balanced Approach" rule advocated by the European Union is the correct procedure for managing the impact of noise in consultation with all the players concerned.
