The high court has decided the Government’s plan to reduce flights by 12% can go ahead.
An appeals court in the Netherlands has ruled that the Dutch government can continue with plans to reduce Amsterdam Airport’s annual flight capacity. First announced in March of this year, the motion is designed to reduce noise pollution and help the country meet its climate goals.
The decision was swiftly met with pushback from airlines at the airport, who will be significantly impacted by the measure to reduce the annual cap to just 440,000 flight movements by 2024, down 12% from the current limit of 500,000.
Who will be affected?
Leading the pushback is flag carrier KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, by far the largest airline at Amsterdam’s Schiphol International Airport (AMS). The carrier announced in March that it had joined forces with fellow affected carriers, including Delta Air Lines, Corendon, easyJet, and TUI, to contest the decision. They were joined by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in launching a legal challenge, citing violations of EU regulations and international open skies agreements.
On Wednesday, April 5th, a judge at the Noord-Holland court ruled that the Dutch government had not followed the correct procedure to cut the number of flights. According to European rules, any state wanting to reduce the flight capacity of any airport can only do so after consulting relevant stakeholders, including the airlines. A process that did not happen before the announcement of the restrictions.
The Dutch government swiftly appealed the ruling, leading to this week’s decision.
What are the options?
The decision is not likely to have an immediate impact as flights are still not fully operational. Carriers are still rebuilding their network capacity, and the airport had just 400,000 movements last year, down from its 2019 peak of 497,000. If sustained, the decision will apply to the operating year 2024, for which tickets are already on sale, and it can potentially be extended by one year.
The new limits would disproportionally affect smaller airlines trying to connect to the leading European hub. New entrants like JetBlue already face significant difficulties obtaining slots. The flag carrier’s parent company Air France-KLM will be more able to rearrange its capacity to meet continued demand or to shift future growth to partner Air France at its Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) hub.
Fellow Skyteam member Delta Air Lines is also set to be affected by the changes. The carrier flies from several of its hubs to Amsterdam, feeding connecting traffic onto KLM’s European and Asian networks. When reached for comment by Simple Flying, a spokesperson for the airline highlighted its existing commitment to sustainability:
“Delta acknowledges the appellate court’s decision regarding the Dutch government’s proposal to reduce flight movements at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. We are reviewing the decision and considering our options.
“Our commitment to sustainability and noise reduction remains. We will continue to prioritize investments in more fuel-efficient and quieter aircraft, as well as support the increased production and availability of sustainable aviation fuel.”
Friday’s decision can be appealed to the Dutch Supreme Court.
KLM has separately introduced plans to decrease noise levels while maintaining the same number of flights at AMS. The program consists of 44 measures to improve the living environment for Schiphol’s neighbors, including phasing out all flights between midnight and 05:00, banning private jets and the noisiest planes, and abandoning a previously announced project for an additional runway.