THE Schiphol air cargo community is calling for freighters to be excluded from dutch government plans to reduce the number of flights from the airport next year.
The Dutch government recently announced plans to reduce the number of flights from Schiphol from November next year as part of efforts to reduce noise and environmental pollution, reports London's Air Cargo News.
The government plans to reduce the number of slots at Schiphol by 12 per cent from the current 500,000 per year to 440,000. If a previously planned increase to 540,000 is taken into account, the reduction is 20 per cent.
However, Dutch freight and logistics association evofenedex called on the government to make a distinction between types of flights when reducing the number of slots in order to maintain cargo capacity at Schiphol.
The group said that cargo flights account for around 2.5 per cent of the number of flights at Schiphol and make an important contribution to Schiphol's economic significance.
'Entrepreneurs use airfreight for the shipment of high-value and time-sensitive goods such as high-tech machines and pharmaceutical products,' evofenedex said.
'Cargo flights have also played an important role in the shipment of medical and urgent goods during the corona pandemic.'
Cargo flights have been under pressure at the airport since 2018 when Schiphol began to reach its maximum number of slots and the many cargo flights that operate using ad-hoc slots came under pressure.
To meet this challenge it was agreed that a certain amount of returned slots would be prioritised for cargo flights under an agreement known as the local rule.
The plans could also put an end to the local rule, said evofenedex.
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The Dutch government recently announced plans to reduce the number of flights from Schiphol from November next year as part of efforts to reduce noise and environmental pollution, reports London's Air Cargo News.
The government plans to reduce the number of slots at Schiphol by 12 per cent from the current 500,000 per year to 440,000. If a previously planned increase to 540,000 is taken into account, the reduction is 20 per cent.
However, Dutch freight and logistics association evofenedex called on the government to make a distinction between types of flights when reducing the number of slots in order to maintain cargo capacity at Schiphol.
The group said that cargo flights account for around 2.5 per cent of the number of flights at Schiphol and make an important contribution to Schiphol's economic significance.
'Entrepreneurs use airfreight for the shipment of high-value and time-sensitive goods such as high-tech machines and pharmaceutical products,' evofenedex said.
'Cargo flights have also played an important role in the shipment of medical and urgent goods during the corona pandemic.'
Cargo flights have been under pressure at the airport since 2018 when Schiphol began to reach its maximum number of slots and the many cargo flights that operate using ad-hoc slots came under pressure.
To meet this challenge it was agreed that a certain amount of returned slots would be prioritised for cargo flights under an agreement known as the local rule.
The plans could also put an end to the local rule, said evofenedex.
SeaNews Turkey
