Amsterdam's Schiphol airport will reduce daily passenger numbers by 18% until at least 31 October due to labour shortages, it has said.
Details
Schiphol, one of Europe's busiest airports, continues to grapple with long lines mainly due to a shortage of security staff, leading to some travellers missing their flights.
"This decision is bad news for passengers and for airlines," Hanne Buis, chief operating officer of the Royal Schiphol Group, said in a statement. "The reduction is necessary to guarantee the safety of our passengers and employees."
Airline KLM, which is part of Air France-KLM, said Schiphol's decision was "disappointing".
The airport said its decision would reduce average passenger numbers through the airport to 54,500 a day for the rest of September and to 57,000 in October.
On Thursday 15 September, the airport's chief executive, Dick Benschop, handed in his notice after measures he took to overcome the crisis proved insufficient.
Travel at Schiphol has been disrupted on and off since April. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled, and queues have become routine.
KLM Disappointed With New Passenger Curbs At Schiphol Airport
The above news followed news that airline company KLM, which is part of Air France-KLM, criticised as "disappointing" a decision by Amsterdam's Schiphol airport to place further curbs on the number of departing passengers.
Short notice of the move would affect its passengers and reputation, the firm said in a statement.
"KLM will make every effort to ensure that passengers who have already booked tickets will in fact be able to travel," it said, adding that those willing to fly later could rebook flights at no extra cost.
Airport authorities had said daily passenger flow would be cut by 18% until at least 31 October because of labour shortages.
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