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Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport announced on Thursday it would limit the number of travellers this summer and cancel flights to avoid congestion following long queues in recent weeks.
“Not intervening would mean unmanageable queues and many travellers would miss their flight. That would lead to unsafe situations for both travellers and staff,” the airport said in a statement.
“Schiphol has let airlines and travel organisations know that a limit needs to be placed on the number of travellers that can depart from the airport every day,” it added.
A tight labour market has meant there are too few security staff to carry out the necessary checks on all travellers wanting to fly, a situation replicated at other European airports.
Schiphol believes the maximum number of travellers it can handle per day rises to around 72,500 in August.
But it said consultations with airlines over new limits had now been completed and the maximum passenger limits set for the period July 7-31, although more talks with airlines would follow.
Following the lifting of Covid-19 measures, Schiphol says it expects 60 million passengers this year, up from 25.5 million in 2021.
But more travellers than expected passed through the airport during spring and winter with summer promising to be even busier.
“We are taking this measure with an unbelievably heavy heart. Everyone at Schiphol and all our partners want nothing more than to welcome all travellers with open arms, especially after the impact coronavirus has had,” Schiphol CEO Dick Benschop said in a tweet.
“A lot is possible at Schiphol this summer, but not everything. Setting a limit now means that the large majority of travellers will be able to travel from Schiphol in a safe and responsible way,” he added.
Benschop said that similar measures were due to be introduced at Frankfurt and Heathrow, without giving further details.
The Federation of Dutch Travel Agencies (ANVR) announced earlier Thursday that it will take legal action to compel the airport to pay compensation over cancelled flights.
Several European airports including France’s Charles de Gaulle have struggled to cope with passenger flows due to staff shortages as the travel industry recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.