Nearly 450 flights cancelled, delayed at Schiphol Airport amid snowy, windy weather
Passengers flying in and out of Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam will potentially face significant delays and flight cancellations, the airport and European air traffic center Eurocontrol warned on Friday. Snow and strong winds were already causing problems during the morning hours at the airport, with airlines announcing dozens of cancellations and hundreds of delays early on.
Airlines cancelled 56 departing flights, and announced delays ranging from a few minutes to several hours on 137 other scheduled departures. A total of 58 arriving flights were also cancelled by 10 a.m., and 197 more faced various delays. About 15 flights also faced delays at Eindhoven Airport, primarily outbound flights, and eight more departures were impacted at Rotterdam The Hague Airport, according to the airports' respective websites.
Eurocontrol warned of "very high delays," saying that all air traffic in and out of Amsterdam was likely to be affected during the day. The center also warned of continuing problems due to Storm Anna, which was expected to bring "wintry showers and fresh to strong winds for parts of Benelux, Poland, Germany and Czechia," the organization wrote in a bulletin.
"Showers will be a mix of rain and snow for many, but some showers inland and over higher ground will bring snow accumulations. Further snowfall also expected for Sweden and Finland."
"Are you flying from or to Schiphol? Check the current flight information before leaving for the airport or contact your airline," the airport wrote in a statement to passengers. Located just outside of the capital in Haarlemmermeer, Schiphol was included in an area affected by two weather warnings from the KNMI, the national meteorological office.
The strongest wind gust recorded in the area was about 85 kilometers per hour on Friday morning, and sustained winds remained meddlesome. The area was also covered by an alert for slippery conditions, meaning some passengers may have difficulty getting to and from the airport.
The A5 running along the west side of the airport was expected to be shut down in both directions through 1 p.m. after a truck collided with a guardrail.
