Schiphol is looking to cancel all night flights within the next two years. Royal FloraHolland expects this measure to have an indirect impact on the transport of flowers from Africa and South America to the Dutch national airport.
Interim CEO Ruud Sondag announced that Schiphol aims to end all night flights. The measure seeks to restore the confidence of local residents, with landings only allowed from 5 a.m. and take-offs from 6 a.m.. It will take effect at the end of this year and must be fully implemented by 2025.
The measure as proposed by Schiphol will not directly impact flower imports, according to Royal FloraHolland. There are no nightly arrivals of aircraft carrying flowers at Schiphol. Some planes carrying flowers land between 5 and 6 a.m., which will still be allowed.
Nevertheless, the auction believes that the cancellation of all night flights will affect floriculture indirectly by increasing the number of daytime flights and thus putting more pressure on the day slots. Also, this decision will increase the uncertainty among air carriers about Schiphol. It may cause them to divert to other airports, already an ongoing trend in recent years.
Court bans Schiphol scale-down
The situation surrounding Schiphol has been uncertain for some time. The government wants the airport to scale down from 500,000 to 440,000 flights per year. While this would constitute a contraction of 12%, the air cargo industry expects the impact on air cargo volumes at Schiphol to be even greater, leading to a contraction of 30-35%. For now, however, the courts have put a stop to the scale-down at Schiphol.
As early as in October 2022, airfreight lawyer Frans Vreede warned at the Nieuwsblad Transport Luchtvrachtcongres (Airfreight Conference) that the intended scale-down of the number of flights would be legally untenable. Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Mark Harbers has announced that he will be launching an appeal against the court ruling.
In addition, the cabinet is seeking to alter the Luchthavenverkeersbesluit (LVB) air traffic resolution for Schiphol. Underpinning the LVB is an environmental permit which includes regulations regarding CO2 emissions, nitrogen reduction, noise pollution and traffic congestion. This permit may force Schiphol to downsize even further.
In 2022, 50 percent of the flowers flown into the Netherlands from Africa and South America arrived at Schiphol airport. The other half destined for the Netherlands entered the country through Maastricht, Brussels and Liege airport.
