How canceled flights to Schiphol can affect your vacation

Earlier this month, Schiphol confirmed that thousands of flights would be canceled in the summer to limit the crowd as the airport continues to face severe staff shortages. Since the news broke, various major airlines have shown how Schiphol’s decision will affect their flights.

Book a summer vacation? Here’s what we know about flight cancellations and customer rights for travelers in July and August.

KLM cancels thousands of bookings

As the largest airline operating from Schiphol Airport, KLM has been required to cancel thousands of flights to meet the goals set by airport management. KLM is forced to reduce the number of passengers by 7,000 in July.

Despite this, last week the airline announced that it was canceling only a limited number of flights this summer. KLM has not yet confirmed exactly how many flights will be canceled, but has already stopped selling tickets for the summer to limit the number of passengers.

Booked flights to KLM? The airline says all travelers affected by the cancellation will be offered an “acceptable alternative”, which is likely to mean that they will be offered seats on other flights at about the same time as the original booking: “Travelers affected by this , will be personally informed as soon as possible. “

In July and August, Transavia cancels 240 flights

As part of the KLM Group, Transavia is also a key airline operating thousands of flights from Schiphol Airport. Transavia cancels a total of 240 flights between July 7 and August 14, affecting about 13,000 bookings, but the airline said additional cancellations are possible.

70 percent of travelers were rebooked for other flights – either from Schiphol or from another Dutch airport – but the remaining 30 percent were canceled. Those affected by the cancellation should have already been notified of changes in their travel plans.

While Transavia appears to be one of the few airlines that has already reported details on how the chaos in Schiphol affects their passengers, the Netherlands Consumers Association has accused the airline of violating Europe’s passenger rights. They claim that travelers were not offered a choice between a refund or booking another flight of their choice.

easyJet protects flights to holiday destinations in southern Europe

easyJet has also confirmed that flights across Europe – including at Schiphol Airport – will be canceled due to staff shortages. While an airline spokesman said the company hopes to protect flights at the resort from cancellation, it is not yet known how many and which flights will be affected.

The spokesman explained that most cancellations would take place on routes where easyJet operates several flights a day, while flights to popular Southern European destinations such as Croatia, Greece, Spain and Portugal will be operated as planned.

70 percent of passengers affected by the cancellation will be rebooked for an alternative flight within 24 hours of the initial departure time. The remaining 30 percent will be able to request a refund or rebooking for another flight for free.

Dutch travel agencies are redirecting flights to other airports

Corendon announced that 150 flights, which were originally scheduled to depart from Schiphol, would be diverted to Rotterdam-The Hague airport, and the company said it hoped no other action would have to be taken. CEO Corendon said the company would arrange transportation to and from Rotterdam-The Hague airport for anyone affected by the changes.

TUI made a similar decision, announcing last week that flights booked for this summer would not be canceled. Therefore, most TUI holidays will take place as planned, although some travelers who booked flights in July or August will fly out of other Netherlands airports instead of Schiphol. Sunweb also redirects some passengers by rebooking them for flights with a different departure time or departing from another airport.

Some uncertainty remains for vacationers who have booked flights with other airlines. Both TUI and Sunweb have said they hope to get more information on what, for example, cancellations at KLM and Transavia will mean for travelers by mid-July.

Flights canceled? Know your rights!

Summer vacation is just around the corner, but thousands of travelers are still waiting to find out if their plans will be affected by Schiphol’s new policy. So what can you do if you are worried about plans for a future vacation?

If you have already booked flights, but now regret this decision, unfortunately, you can not do much with it. Frank Ostdam, chairman of the General Association of Dutch Travel Agencies (ANVR), said that travelers hoping to cancel their flights as a result of the chaos in Schiphol will not be able to do so for free because it is not. is considered a valid reason. TUI and Sunweb have made similar statements.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Sigrid Kaag said the Dutch government had no plans to pay compensation to travelers affected by the cancellations at Schiphol this summer, saying individual airlines should offer compensation if necessary. Kaag added that the Ministry of Finance “is not responsible for day-to-day operational management” in Schiphol: “No matter how much I think people think the government will do something, it’s not.”

Worried about how the crowd in Schiphol will affect your travel plans? Read these tips to make sure your trip went as smoothly as possible.