Passengers arriving at and departing from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) have again experienced many delays and long queues this week.
Dutch airport officials blame the disruption on a lack of staff, which has particularly affected security checkpoints. On Monday, Schiphol management was forced to ask airlines to cancel more than 80 flights from 16:00 to 23:00.
The cancellation of numerous flights meant that for thousands of passengers this day turned out to be disastrous: huge queues formed outside the airport.
In addition to everything, Schiphol advised coming to the departure in advance, so that there was enough time to go through the airport procedures. As a result, many travelers spent several hours inside the terminals waiting for their flights to depart – more than 600 were delayed.
During the summer, security personnel received a temporary salary increase, but the bonuses were discontinued at the end of the summer season. The result is the dissatisfaction of specialists and the subsequent dismissal.
The airport apologized for the situation and assured us that it intends to hire 80 new security personnel who will be ready to work by October.
One of Europe’s busiest airports, Schiphol, has been struggling with a range of problems for months. Interruptions began in April and continue to this day, including the cancellation of hundreds of flights for which all tickets are sold.
In August, a glitch in the airport’s baggage claim system affected thousands of passengers on connecting flights on Dutch flag carrier KLM.
In May, for the first time, airport authorities asked airlines to reduce schedules to reduce delays caused by a surge in passenger traffic and a movers’ strike. Like London Heathrow Airport (LHR), Schiphol has introduced a limit on the number of passengers in the summer season. He intends to extend the restriction until October.
Passenger traffic at Schiphol Airport currently stands at 67,500 and is expected to rise to 69,500 in October before the Dutch government deliberately reduces it to just 60,000 in 2023 to combat air pollution.