The court in Haarlem, in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands, began on Tuesday March 21 the examination of an appeal brought by KLM and ten other airlines, including Easy Jet and Delta Airlines, against the government’s plans Dutch, which intends to limit movements at Amsterdam-Schiphol airport, one of the main European hubs. KLM, an Air France ally since 2004, operates 60% of the current 1,400 daily flights there.
Mark Harbers, the Minister for Infrastructure, unveiled a plan in the summer of 2022 that was supposed to limit noise and CO emissions2 at Schiphol, 70% owned by the Dutch State. A small revolution for authorities who have always supported the exponential development of the airport but now claim to be looking for a “new balance” between economic progress and environmental concerns.
“A complex puzzle that brings together many interests”, conceded at the time Mr. Harbers. Among these interests, those of the companies which, after the pandemic, hoped to concretize the recovery of their sector by increasing the number of their annual movements at Schiphol to 540,000.
chaotic situations
The Minister intends, on the contrary, to establish a limit of 460,000 flights per year, from November. With, moreover, the obligation to limit the noise thanks to a new mode of regulation of the landings. At 1er November 2024, the bar will be reduced to 440,000 annual flights and by 2027 new, more severe ceilings should be introduced for emissions and noise.
The authorities will also have to decide, in 2024, on the fate of Lelystad airport, located about fifty kilometers from Amsterdam. Owned by Schiphol Group, it is currently closed for reasons related to nature protection, but it was supposed to relieve Schiphol at the time of the big departures. Last summer, Amsterdam airport experienced chaotic situations linked to a lack of staff which forced it to limit the number of flights.
To justify its appeal to the courts, KLM deplores a lack of consultation, the questioning of previous agreements and the failure to take into account a series of elements, including the ongoing renewal of its fleet, with aircraft cleaner and quieter, or the use of new fuels that are supposed to reduce emissions. The Dutch company also evokes the practical impact of a measure which will lead to a difficult revision of landing and take-off rights with the possible loss, for it, of some 80 daily flights.
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