Schiphol facing more flight cuts despite gov't promise that downsizing is not the goal

The government may need to lower the number of flight movements allowed at Schiphol Airport next year even further due to disappointing results from calculations on reducing noise pollution. Minister Barry Madlener (Infrastructure) is preparing to convey the “disappointing” message to the Cabinet, sources told the Telegraaf. It will be a blow to the PVV Minister, who previously promised that “downsizing is not the goal” for Schiphol.

Madlener previously said that Schiphol would be allowed between 475,000 and 485,000 flight movements next year. But calculations from two external agencies, who have been studying noise reduction measures at the airport for months, show that a bigger cut may be needed. They advised the Minister to adjust the lower figure of his “bandwidth” to 466,000 flight movements next year. The Amsterdam airport is currently allowed 500,000 flight movements per year.

According to the newspaper’s sources, Madlener must now determine a definitive figure for flight movements and then change it in his “balanced approach” that must soon be submitted to the European Commission for advice.

The package contains numerous measures to limit the number of people impacted by noise pollution from Schiphol. In addition to cutting the number of flight movements, KLM will only use its quietest aircraft at night, airlines will be encouraged to focus more on fleet renewal, Schiphol will charge more for using noisy aircraft, and planes will need to meet stricter noise standards if they want to fly overnight.