The Hague (AFP) – Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport said Thursday it would offer airlines a 10-percent discount on airport charges due to the high price of jet fuel caused by the Iran war. The discount is a temporary measure that applies to daytime flights only from April 27 through March 2027, announced the airport, Europe’s fourth-busiest hub.
“The airport is taking this measure because airlines’ costs have risen unexpectedly and sharply as a result of high kerosene prices,” Schiphol said in a statement. “Especially in the current geopolitical situation, it is important to keep the Netherlands connected to the rest of the world and to ensure that essential flights can continue to operate.”
Dutch legacy carrier KLM announced last week it was scrapping nearly one percent of its short-haul flights that had become unprofitable due to high fuel charges. The war pitting the US and Israel against Iran has choked trade through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world’s oil was shipped before the conflict.
Airlines have trimmed routes and costs as fuel bills explode and wary passengers think twice about travel plans, a situation that could persist even if a fragile truce holds in the Middle East. Schiphol admitted there would be a “temporary negative effect” on its financial results, without disclosing an exact figure.
According to data from industry group ACI Europe, Schiphol was the fourth busiest European hub last year, with 68.77 million passengers. London Heathrow, Istanbul, and Paris Charles de Gaulle airports were the only busier hubs on the continent.
© 2024 AFP
