The end of the summer tourist season with a corresponding decrease in passenger traffic did not help Schipol Airport in Amsterdam – staff problems worsened so much that the management The airport asked for help from the army to fill the shortage of personnel. However, it is not certain that such support will be provided by the military.
Moreover, this is not the first request – as noted by local media, for the first time the airport asked for help back in May. The Dutch airport, which in the past ranked first in Europe in terms of “turnover” of aircraft and third in terms of the number of passengers, after covid was “hostage” of its own scale in the face of a severe shortage of personnel. Due to the lack of personnel for security checks – it is the most difficult to restore it, since additional checks and permits are needed – there were traffic jams and huge queues, passengers complained en masse that they were late for their flight due to huge queues for control when accessing the departure area. Probably, it was here that the leadership of Schipol expected to use the military. The second problem area is the loading and unloading of luggage.
However, most likely this request will remain unsatisfied. According to press reports, the Dutch government reacted negatively to the May request from the airport authorities, saying: “This is not a soldier's job.” This time, at least the Dutch national security and counter-terrorism coordinator (NCTV) also said that the airport does not have the authority to request such assistance from the military. “If the deployment of military personnel serves Schiphol’s business interests, there is a risk of setting a precedent for other business parties who will seek similar assistance,” the government said.
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