Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport: A Sprawling Transportation Hub

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is huge. Covering an area of 27.87 square kilometres or 2,787 hectares, it is bigger than the Dutch towns of Leiden or Delft. To put that into perspective, it is the size of 4,500 football pitches or nearly 14 times the size of Monaco. The airport has one main terminal building, split into three departure halls, and six runways, one of which handles the majority of the air traffic. Schiphol is the third busiest airport in Europe in terms of passenger traffic, serving 319 destinations and handling 68 million passengers in 2017 through 496,748 aircraft movements.

Amsterdam Schiphol Airport's size

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is huge. It covers an area of 27.87 square kilometres or 2,787 hectares, which is the same as 27,870,000 square metres. To put that into perspective, Schiphol is as big as 4,500 football pitches or nearly 14 times the size of Monaco. The airport is bigger than the Dutch towns of Leiden or Delft and is comparable in size to the cities of Delft and Leiden.

Schiphol's single terminal building, split into three departure halls, covers 650,000 square metres. When Pier A is finished, another 55,000 square metres will be added. The airport has five runways, the longest of which is the Polderbaan Runway at 3,800 metres long and 60 metres wide.

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is one of the world's largest airports and the third busiest airport in Europe in terms of passenger traffic. It is the world's fifth busiest international airport in terms of traffic, serving 319 destinations. The airport handled 68 million passengers in 2017 and 71.7 million in 2019.

Its ranking among other airports

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is one of the largest airports in Europe and the world. Covering an area of 27.87 square kilometres or 2,787 hectares, it is comparable in size to the Dutch cities of Delft and Leiden. The airport has one main terminal building and six runways, with another runway under construction.

Schiphol is the main international airport of the Netherlands and is one of the major hubs for the SkyTeam airline alliance. It is the principal hub for KLM and its regional affiliate, KLM Cityhopper, as well as for Martinair. Several other airlines, including EasyJet and Transavia, also operate at Schiphol.

In terms of rankings, Schiphol has consistently been named one of the top 15 airports in the world by Skytrax's World Airport Awards. In 2022, it was ranked as the 15th best airport in the world, and it received the award for Best Airport Website and Digital Services. It was also voted the Best Airport in Western Europe in 2020.

When it comes to passenger traffic, Schiphol has been ranked as the third busiest airport in Europe and the eleventh busiest worldwide. In 2019, it handled a record of 71.7 million passengers, and it is expected to handle over 70 million passengers with the completion of its fourth terminal hall in 2023.

In addition to passenger traffic, Schiphol is also a significant cargo hub, ranking as the fourth busiest in Europe and the sixteenth busiest worldwide. It had an annual cargo tonnage of 1.74 million in 2019.

Schiphol's main competitors in terms of passenger traffic and cargo throughput include London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Madrid, Paris Charles de Gaulle, and Istanbul.

Its history

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located 9 kilometres (5.6 miles) southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province of North Holland. Covering an area of 27.87 square kilometres (6,887 acres), it is one of the biggest airports in Europe.

History

The airport was opened on 16 September 1916 as a military airbase, with a few barracks and a field serving as a platform and runways. The name Schiphol appears in an official document from 1447 and is thought to have several origins, including:

• As a graveyard of ships. Haarlemmermeer was a big, wild water mass where many ships were lost.
• As a ship-haul, where vessels were transferred from one water to another.
• As the name of a coppice in marshy land. In the Gothic language, it indicated an area of low-lying wetland ("hol" or "holl") where wood ("scip") could be extracted.

When the First World War ended in 1918, civil aircraft were allowed to use the airfield from December 1920. The airport was often called Schiphol-Les-Bains during this period. The following year, the Fokker aircraft manufacturer started a factory near the airport. By 1940, Schiphol had four asphalt runways at 45-degree angles.

During the Second World War, the airport was captured by the German military in 1940 and renamed Fliegerhorst Schiphol. The Germans constructed decoy airfields near Bennebroek, Vijfhuizen, and Vogelenzang to confuse Allied bombers. However, Schiphol was still bombed intensively, and an attack on 13 December 1943 caused so much damage that the airfield became unusable as an active base. The Germans themselves destroyed the remnants of the airfield at the start of Operation Market Garden.

After the war ended, the airfield was quickly restored, and the first aircraft, a Douglas DC-3, landed on 8 July 1945. A new terminal building was completed in 1949, and Schiphol was decided to become the primary airport of the Netherlands. This expansion came at the cost of the small town of Rijk, which was demolished to make room for the growing airport.

In 1967, Schiphol expanded further with a new terminal area at its current location. Most of the 1967 terminal is still in use today (Departure Halls 1 and 2), as are parts of the original piers (now called C, D, and E). The A-pier (now C-pier) of the airport was modified in 1970 to allow Boeing 747 aircraft to use the boarding gates. A new pier (D, now called F) opened in 1977, dedicated to handling wide-body aircraft. The first railway station at the airport also opened in 1978.

In 1991, a new air traffic control tower was constructed as the existing tower could no longer oversee the entire airport due to its expansion. A sixth runway was completed in 2003, nicknamed the Polderbaan, with a connecting taxiway bridge crossing the A5 motorway. This runway is located quite far from the terminal building, requiring a taxi time of 10 to 20 minutes.

In 2005, a fire broke out at the airport's detention centre, killing 11 people and injuring 15. The complex was holding 350 people at the time. The investigation revealed that fire safety precautions were not in force, leading to the resignation of several government officials.

In 2012, Schiphol Group announced an expansion of the airport, featuring a new pier, Pier A, as part of Departure Hall 1. However, the construction has been delayed several times due to conflicts and design flaws.

To handle future growth, Schiphol plans to build a fourth terminal hall, expected to be completed in 2023, which will enable the airport to handle over 70 million passengers.

Its runways and terminals

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located 9 kilometres southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province of North Holland.

AMS covers a total area of 6,887 acres of land. The airport is built on the single-terminal concept: one large terminal split into three departure halls, with seven piers (B - M). When Pier A is finished, it will add another 55,000 m2 to the terminal area.

AMS has five runways, with the sixth runway, Polderbaan, located at quite some distance west of the rest of the airport. The Polderbaan is the longest and widest runway at AMS, measuring 3,800 metres in length and 60 metres in width. The shortest runway is the Oostbaan at two kilometres long, which is primarily used by small private planes. The other four runways at AMS are:

• Kaagbaan: 3,500 metres long
• Buitenveldertbaan: 3,453 metres long
• Aalsmeerbaan: 3,400 metres long
• Zwanenburgbaan: 3,300 metres long

Its passenger and cargo traffic

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is the third busiest airport in Europe in terms of passenger volume, with almost 72 million passengers in 2019. In 2023, the airport handled 61.89 million passengers, an 18% decrease from the previous year. The airport is built on the single-terminal concept, with one large terminal split into three departure halls. The terminal and its seven piers (B to M) cover a total area of 650,000 square metres.

Schiphol is the principal hub for KLM and its regional affiliates, as well as for Martinair. It also serves as an operating base for several other airlines, including Corendon Dutch Airlines, easyJet, Transavia, and TUI fly Netherlands. In total, 120 airlines fly directly to and from Schiphol, offering flights to 305 direct destinations worldwide.

In addition to its passenger traffic, Schiphol is also a significant cargo hub, ranking as the fourth busiest in Europe in terms of cargo tonnage. The airport handled 1.74 million tonnes of cargo in 2019 and 1.38 million tonnes in 2023.

To accommodate the high volume of passenger and cargo traffic, Schiphol has six runways, with the Polderbaan Runway being the longest and widest. The airport covers a total area of 6,887 acres (2,787 hectares) of land, making it nearly 14 times the size of Monaco.

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