Whether you’re planning a Halloween getaway, a Christmas visit to friends, or even a Valentine’s Day trip, it looks like your flight out runs the risk of being cancelled last minute.
Schiphol announces plans to cap the number of passengers departing the airport at 50,000 per week until at least March 2023.
This comes from reports at NOS that, despite the efforts that have already been made in the airport to lessen the stress on employees, the situation has become ‘hopeless’.
Looks like, despite the prompt exit of Schiphol CEO, Dick Benschop, the chaos at the major airport continues to reign.
No hope for Schiphol
CEO of KLM airlines, Marjan Rintel, expresses despair at the situation to the NOS; “KLM has previously said that limiting the number of passengers cannot be a long-term measure, but it now seems that way.”
It seems like Schiphol’s only solution to these issues is to cancel hundreds of flights, while also limiting the number of flight tickets sold to prevent the possibility of cancellation for passengers.
One can imagine that the employees in the airport are tired of dealing with disappointed travellers. 🥱
A slap on the wrist
From the end of 2023, Schiphol will not be allowed to operate any more than 440,000 flights per year.
This is the first time the number of flights departing the airport has been cut. Seems like a reasonable measure, but it leaves us wondering; just how long is this chaos going to last?
Staff shortages continue
What’s the biggest contributing factor to the chaos at Schiphol?
READ MORE | Chaos at Schiphol: why the biggest Dutch airport is struggling so much
Well, aside from the lack of management, structural problems, bad working conditions, and forgotten bags… what were we talking about, again?
Oh, yes. The staff shortages. 🥴
It comes as absolutely no surprise that Schiphol is struggling to find enough staff to deal with demand.
The airport temporarily raised wages during the summer months, but as we approach autumn, this wage was taken away, and with it, disappeared many of the security guards.
Schiphol, it seems, needs to find better ways to entice people in to work for them.
Joost van Doesburg of the FNV union says; “The rosters need to be better and the pay needs to be increased significantly to attract people. And I doubt whether the problems will be solved by the end of March. So these measures may have to be continued for longer.”
Seems simple, really. Better pay plus better conditions plus better working hours equals a smooth running airport.
What do you think of the cancellations at Schiphol? Tell us your thoughts in a comment!