To cut down on noise and other forms of pollution, the Dutch
government is seriously contemplating reducing the number of flights into
Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.
JetBlue Airways, which just began transatlantic service to
Amsterdam last year, is taking preemptive retaliatory measures.
JetBlue revealed it asked the Department of Transportation
to ban KLM from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York if the Dutch
government decides to curb the number of airline landings and takeoffs at
Schiphol.
KLM is the national carrier of the Netherlands and opposes
any measures to trim the number of airlines at the Amsterdam airport.
"This is very harmful for KLM and endangers the network
that connects the Netherlands with the rest of the world," the airline told
the Dutch government.
Flights will be capped at 452,500 per year at Schiphol
Airport, a nearly 10 percent reduction in the number of flights from 2019.
Airlines are expected to be told by November 2 exactly how many slots they will
have.
Jet Blue and other airlines are checking to see whether any
restrictions would violate the Open Skies Agreement.
"If the Dutch Government is allowed to effectively
expel new entrant JetBlue from AMS without facing any consequential and
proportional countermeasures from the Department, other governments may decide
to follow suit," JetBlue said.
But the Dutch are serious about their efforts to curb
flights from Amsterdam.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
