Schiphol expects it to be slightly less busy on Monday than last weekend, but the crowds continue, a spokesperson told NRC. In recent days, the airport called on airlines to move flights to other airports or dates. Schiphol will not make this call on Monday.
Schiphol cannot yet say how much longer than usual passengers will have to wait on Monday. “It varies from time to time.” The airport did say that peak traffic was observed around 2 p.m. in recent days. Schiphol emphasizes that passengers have the best to be able to approach an airline if they want information about what time they need to be present for their flight.
A spokesperson for the airport could not yet say how many travelers Schiphol expects on Monday. On Sunday, about 70,000 passengers departed. That was 10,000 more than on Saturday. On average there will be until May 8 174,000 travelers per day travel from, to or via Schiphol, Schiphol reports on its website. There are not yet as many travelers as before the corona crisis, but according to Schiphol it makes little difference at busy times.
Due to the major staff shortages, the airport has been struggling with enormous crowds for more than a week. The shortages are particularly large among the handlers who take care of check-in and baggage. During the corona pandemic, the number of air passengers decreased enormously, as a result of which many staff at Schiphol lost their jobs. Not all those former employees have returned now that air traffic has resumed. Because more flights are booked during the May holidays, the pressure on the current staff increased. This led to a major strike by ground staff on April 24.