Balanced Approach Schiphol

Reactie

Vraag1

• Combination C is most preferred and the most optimal solution for all:
o The operational measures contemplated are the least costly and deliver sustainable long-term benefits. The Dutch government should be adjusting policies to incentivise airlines to use quieter aircraft and optimise runway allocation. It is distinctly unclear why the Dutch ministry thinks these operational measures are not achievable by NW24, and the Dutch ministry should explain why. It is blatantly insufficient that policies that “cannot be modelled” are dropped from the shortlist.
o If the operational measures are assessed to be achievable by NW24, when will they be achievable by? And when these measures are achieved, will the removed flight movements be reinstated?
o As ongoing legal challenges have shown, it is also unclear that a capacity reduction that forcefully removes slot historics (M14 or similar) will not be fast to achieve, as the Dutch ministry may have hoped. The dubious legal basis will make this a prolonged affair, and in this time, it is more productive that the Dutch ministry explores more meaningful policies to deliver the desired noise and environmental benefits.

Vraag2

• Any combination of measures that involves a reduction in flight capacity is a myopic policy misstep that will have serious and sticky negative impact.
o Airlines will be encouraged to grow its European presence via other Benelux airports. Routes take time, effort, and money to develop; airlines, once pushed to move their Benelux presence elsewhere, will face frictions in moving its presence back to the Netherlands (e.g., need to find new ground handling agents, negotiate new contracts, spend new marketing and advertising money).
o A reduction in flight capacity to the Netherlands will restrict supply, driving demand higher, and making long-haul travel to the Netherlands expensive, hurting the Dutch economy.
o While it is good that some minimum network connectivity will still be maintained, network quality is measured beyond the number of frequencies between destinations.
• We thus believe the Dutch ministry should have the compunction to reconsider its policy approach towards flight movements. It seems like the Dutch ministries have turned to a reduction in flight movements as an easy way out, because the other policies “cannot be modelled” or “take time to achieve”. There are many other means to achieve the desired noise and environmental benefits, and work should be done to pursue those options instead.