Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is pushing for a ban on private jets, hoping the proposed changes allow for a quieter and cleaner impact. Schiphol is pushing for no takeoffs between 12 and 6 a.m. and no landing between 12 and 5 a.m. as well as a ban on noisier aircraft like jets.
The airport is also pushing for no second Kaagbaan Runway, hoping the various changes will reduce the number of people experiencing noise from airport operations. Royal Schiphol Group is hoping for a quieter and cleaner move, working with airlines to allow the airport to keep the Netherlands connected, while still improving the quality of life for the community and the environment.
“Schiphol connects the Netherlands with the rest of the world,” Royal Schiphol Group CEO Ruud Sondag said. “We want to keep doing that, but we must do it better. The only way forward is to become quieter and cleaner more rapidly. We have thought about growth but too little about its impact for too long.”
“We need to be sustainable for our employees, the local environment and the world,” Sondag said. “I realize that our choices may have significant implications for the aviation industry, but they are necessary. This shows we mean business. It is the only way, based on concrete measures, to regain the trust of employees, passengers, neighbors, politics and society.”
The new system will focus on the structural reduction of both noise and CO2 emissions. The sustainable efforts to reduce emissions are in line with the Paris climate agreement rather than the number of air transport movements. The group hopes the system will be enacted by 2025-2026 and provide certainty that noise and emissions will be reduced while still stimulating innovation through aviation. Hopes are that the government will preserve the system in law.
Night-time closure will create a quieter community and the new restrictions on takeoff and landing times will translate to 10,000 fewer night flights each year. The hopes are to limit the reallocation of flights in the early morning or late night if possible. Schiphol will take a stricter approach for noisy aircraft, tightening the existing standards for the types of aircraft allowed to takeoff and land at the airport.
Private jets at Schiphol
The ban on private jets and small business aviation will limit the amount of noise and CO2 emissions per passenger. Aircraft of this type emit about 20 times more CO2 per passenger compared to a commercial flight. Roughly 30 to 50 percent of private jet flights at the airport are to destinations like Ibiza and Cannes. Scheduled services are available for most of the destinations flown to on private jets. Traffic for police and ambulance flights will be unchanged.
The night-time closure and ban on private jets and small business aviation are expected to be applied no later than 2025-2026. Based on current models, the number of people around the airport experiencing severe nuisance from operations will fall by 16 percent, or 17,500. The number of local residents experiencing sleep disturbance will fall by 54 percent, or 13,000.
Schiphol has abandoned its plans for an additional runway, the parallel Kaagbaan Runway. The airport is requesting that the government revokes the reservation. The areas where construction for an additional runway is underway will implement the Minder Hinder (Less Nuisance) program.
Working with the government, Schiphol is setting up an environmental fund for the local community, between now and 2030 making roughly $76 million available for investments. The money will go toward investments made in innovative construction concepts, home insulation and area development for a better living environment, according to Schiphol.
Plans are to safeguard cargo by keeping 2.5 percent of the available takeoff and landing slots available for cargo. With international slot regulations, cargo flights have been fighting to keep their slots at Schiphol. Cargo can provide employment opportunities as well as provides to the economy and business environment. Cargo flights will still have to follow the new rules for noisier aircraft and the night closure.
The Quieter, Cleaner and Better plan is aimed at helping both the environment and the people. Schiphol said for too long the focus has been on low costs, but the new approach will ensure that everyone at and around the airport matter. The social agreement with the union marked the first step. It is important for the airport that there are good terms and conditions of employment for all of its employees. Schiphol has committed to better pay across all sectors, better protection for employees against emissions, less competition and the improvement of working conditions.
RELATED STORY:
Environmental protesters surround private jets at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, leading to delays, diversions
Before the COP27 U.N. Climate Meeting in Egypt in November, environmental activists stormed the fences at Schiphol, staging sit-ins in front of private jets and preventing takeoff for several hours. The protestors breached the fences and entered the airfield and a medical flight chose to divert to another airport after making its own risk assessment. Most protestors sat in front of the jets while some rode bikes in circles around the aircraft.
The aviation industry has a goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050. The potential ban on private jets and night closures will be better for the environment and the local community but does not mention the effect this will have on business aviation in the area.
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