KLM Brings Passengers Stranded in Europe to Amsterdam

Amsterdam — The Dutch airline KLM began on Whit Sunday to bring many of its passengers stranded in European countries the day before to Amsterdam.

At the same time, the airline is working hard to rebook passengers who were supposed to fly on from Schiphol airport on Saturday and missed their connections, a KLM spokesman told the ANP news agency.

The situation had eased somewhat, but it was still not certain that all stranded passengers could be picked up on Sunday. "KLM would like to stress that it is doing its utmost to offer passengers alternative flights as quickly as possible." 

Due to significant delays in passenger processing at its Amsterdam hub, KLM had reportedly decided to cancel quite a few scheduled flights from European cities from 5pm ( 1500 GMT) on Saturday.

According to ANP, a total of 42 planes flew back to Amsterdam empty. Affected passengers were sent home or accommodated in hotels. 

An ANP reporter who was flying from Stockholm to Amsterdam reported chaotic conditions. KLM did not initially say how many passengers were affected in total. The company had previously warned that up to 50 flights a day might have to be cancelled over the Whitsun, or Pentecost, weekend to keep the situation at Schiphol manageable. 

Due to major problems with handling at Schiphol, KLM had temporarily drastically reduced ticket sales at the end of May. In the weeks before, the airport had already struggled with major problems due to staff shortages in baggage handling and security.

Schiphol presented a plan of action at the end of May to prevent the even greater chaos feared for the summer. According to the plan, the airport wants to recruit more staff and pay higher wages.

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