Amsterdam flights in jeopardy as the Netherlands cuts slots

By cainNovember 4, 2023No Comments3 Mins Read

The Dutch government’s impending capacity restrictions at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport will have far-reaching implications for airlines beyond the upcoming 2024 summer season, with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines being the most affected. Air Serbia and Croatia Airlines, which maintain regular flights to Dutch cities, are not at risk of being denied the right to continue operating, as they both have so-called “historic slot rights” However, airlines that have historically served the airport are entitled to 3.1. % fewer slots than before. Schiphol Airport will reduce the number of flights allowed to its current annual limit of 500,000 flights from March 31, 2024, when the Dutch government’s much-criticized experimental plan to reduce noise pollution and carbon dioxide emissions comes into effect. The number of flights will be reduced from 460,000 to 460,000.

Airlines without historical rights, such as US newcomer JetBlue, have not been allocated slots for next summer and will be forced to cancel operations. A total of 24 airlines have been denied slots for next summer. Schiphol Airport’s largest airline, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, will be the most affected.based on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines could suspend more than 30 destinations from its network, with Belgrade, Zagreb, Istanbul, Porto and Tel Aviv all likely to be removed or reduced, according to leaked documents from last year. Although the Dutch airline has not officially specified or confirmed which routes will be affected, its CEO Marjan Lintel said this week: “KLM Royal Dutch Airlines “We expect the European network to shrink.” As a result of the reduction in the number of flights at Schiphol Airport, we expect that in the summer of 2024 there will be 17 fewer flights per day. ” KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, along with other airlines, is challenging this reduction in court, citing potential risks to its future and Schiphol’s hub function.

Transavia, which maintains flights between Amsterdam and Ljubljana, is considering transferring capacity to other Dutch airports such as Rotterdam and Eindhoven. The low-cost airline, which also strongly opposes the Dutch government’s capacity cuts, hopes the plan will be struck down by the courts or the European Commission, but until either of those things happens, the airline will Preparations have begun for the difficult summer of 2024. season.

This winter, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Transavia Airlines have increased their frequency or capacity to most cities in the former Yugoslavia. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines operates twice daily flights to Belgrade and Zagreb and once weekly to Split. This means flights to the Serbian and Croatian capitals are up from seven weekly flights last winter, but down from five weekly flights to Split. Meanwhile, as previously reported, Transavia Airlines has begun the transition from an all-Boeing company to an all-Boeing company, and from December 21st, the Ljubljana route will be changed from a 189-seat B737-800 to a 232-seat A321neo. The number of flights is increasing. -Airbus aircraft. Ljubljana will be one of the first destinations in its network to be serviced by the new type of aircraft. Air Serbia maintains eight weekly flights between Belgrade and Amsterdam this winter (up from seven weekly flights last winter), while Croatia Airlines flies daily from Zagreb to the Dutch city.