Photo: Afghan National Police
When reducing the number of flights in Schiphol, sufficient competition between airlines must remain. That’s what CEO Robin Hayes told US JetBlue on Wednesday, after a plane belonging to the airline landed at Schiphol Airport for the first time. “New airlines must be added. It is not good if only one airline remains and there is little competition.”
Earlier, the judge ruled that chaebol should be reduced in order to reduce noise disturbance to local residents. Next year, the airport has to reduce the number of flights from 500,000 to 460,000. In 2025, this should be 20,000 fewer trips. Despite the downturn, JetBlue has become the newest airline to operate in Schiphol since Wednesday.
JetBlue will fly to and from New York daily starting Wednesday. A daily flight between Schiphol and Boston will be added next month. The Dutch airport is JetBlue’s third European destination. The company already flies to London and since this summer also to Paris. “We expect things to be the same in Amsterdam as they are in Paris,” says Hayes. The Airbus A321 that JetBlue flies in the Netherlands can carry 134 passengers.
In addition to JetBlue, KLM, Delta and American Airlines currently fly between Schiphol and the United States. The CEO says JetBlue distinguishes itself because the airline is cheaper than competitors. According to him, Schiphol was also chosen as a new European destination because there is strong demand for cheap flights to Schiphol from the two American cities.
The CEO hopes to be able to fly more between Schiphol and the US in the future. He cannot say whether this will happen or not. “Getting slots here is more difficult than in other destinations.”
JetBlue is a low-cost airline with more than a hundred destinations. In addition to the United States and Europe, the airline also flies to Latin America, the Caribbean, Canada and the United Kingdom.
