All about air traffic in the area

You can find these numbers in our weekly report. It indicates the number of flights at Schiphol in the previous week and what the forecast is for the coming week. We update this report every Friday.

There are various flight paths to and from the runways at Schiphol. If you often hear and see aircraft from your house, there’s a good chance you live under a flight path. Do you want to know which route is associated with which runway? You can read all about the runways and routes flown by aircraft here.

You can find out using the Notifly app. This application displays how many aircraft you can expect above your location and when. You can look up to 24 hours ahead, follow live air traffic and see which runway a plane took off from or which one it is going to land on. Go to Schiphol.nl/Notifly for more information.

Check the expected peak times in our weekly report. During peak take-off times, a second runway may need to be deployed for take-off. During peak landing times, a second runway for landing may need to be used alongside the main runway. The exact start and end times of these peaks can vary slightly, depending on factors like the weather conditions and air traffic volumes.

There are almost always two runways in use at any one time at Schiphol: one for take-off and one for landing. A second runway for take-off or landing may be required at peak times. You can see where runways are currently being used on the website of Air Traffic Control the Netherlands (LVNL) or in the Notifly app. Which runway is used depends on various factors, including runway availability, the wind and weather conditions and air traffic volumes.

The weather conditions have a significant impact on runway use at Schiphol. Stormy weather, lightening, fog, wind, rain, hail and snow can pose challenges to departing and landing aircraft. Especially if wind force increases considerably, visibility is reduced due to showers or mist, or the runways become slippery because of wintery precipitation. Read more about weather conditions.

Yes, you can do that with the Notifly app. You can download the app onto your smartphone or tablet and follow air traffic around Schiphol live on a map of the area. By clicking on a plane, you'll get more information about the type of aircraft, flight number, destination or where it came from, and which runway it took off from or which one it will land on. Go to Schiphol.nl/Notifly for more information.

Schiphol and Air Traffic Control the Netherlands (LVNL), supported by the airlines, are committed to further reduce noise nuisance caused by air traffic. We do that by continuously working on measures aimed at reducing nuisance and improving the quality of the living environment. You can see the measures we are taking in terms of runway use, aircraft types, flight paths and procedures for flying during the day and at night on minderhinderschiphol.nl.

You can contact the Local Community Contact Centre (BAS) for questions, remarks or complaints about air traffic around Schiphol. You can also call them on 020 601 55 55 between 09:00 and 17:00.

We are committed to reducing aircraft emissions as much as possible. We believe that sustainable aviation is possible, by using sustainable aviation fuel and electric aircraft for example. You can read about how we want to reduce CO2, nitrogen and ultrafine particle emissions here.

The Kaagbaan Runway and Polderbaan Runway are the preferred runways. They cause relatively less noise nuisance compared to other runways. This is because there are fewer homes in the area around them. That's why we agreed, together with locals and the government, that these should be the preferred runways. Under normal circumstances we deploy the Polderbaan Runway for take-off and the Kaagbaan Runway for landing when the wind comes from a northerly direction. This is reversed when the wind comes from a southerly direction; aircraft take off from the Kaagbaan Runway and land on the Polderbaan Runway.

We can deploy the Aalsmeerbaan as a second runway for take-off or landing during peak times (alongside the Kaagbaan Runway). When the wind comes from a northerly direction, the Aalsmeerbaan Runway may be used as a second runway for landing. When the wind comes from a southerly direction, it may be used as a second runway for take-off. The Aalsmeerbaan can also be used as the main runway for both take-off and landing in the event the Kaagbaan is unavailable, which may occur due to certain weather conditions or if the runway is undergoing maintenance.

We can deploy the Zwanenburgbaan as a second runway for take-off or landing during peak times (alongside the Polderbaan Runway). When the wind comes from a northerly direction, we can use the Zwanenburgbaan as a second runway for take-off to the north, and when the wind comes from a southerly direction, we can use it as a second runway for landing from the north. The Zwanenburgbaan Runway can also be used as the main runway for take-off or landing to or from a northerly direction when the Polderbaan Runway is unavailable. This may occur due to certain weather conditions or if the Polderbaan is undergoing maintenance. The Zwanenburgbaan Runway can also be deployed for take-offs or landings from the south if the Kaagbaan Runway is not available, for instance due to weather conditions or maintenance.

The Buitenveldertbaan Runway is deployed for take-off and landing when there is a strong westerly or easterly wind, when the Polderbaan Runway and Kaagbaan Runway cannot be fully deployed. This runway can also be used as a second runway for take-off or landing when the other runways are unavailable, due to showers, limited visibility or runway maintenance for example.

In general, the Schiphol-Oostbaan Runway is used for general aviation (small planes, business flights). However, it may be used by larger aircraft as a second runway for landing under certain circumstances, such as a south-westerly storm, or when the other runways are unavailable because of runway maintenance. This may, for example, occur when the Buitenveldertbaan Runway cannot be deployed as a second runway for landing.

The six runways and surrounding taxiways at Schiphol are used intensively. In order for take-offs and landings to take place safely, these runways and taxiways need to be kept in good condition. This means that we frequently check them and carry out maintenance works. Brief maintenance, which lasts just part of a day or night, takes place on each runway once every eight weeks. Every year, regular maintenance is carried out on the runways, and this takes one to one and a half weeks. And once in seven to eight years, we do major maintenance on a runway. During this period of works, the runway is unavailable for six to seven or sometimes even ten to sixteen weeks.

Read more about the different kinds of runway maintenance here.

Short maintenance often takes place at night, but it's not possible to only do runway maintenance at night. There are several practical reasons for this. Some kinds of works are temperature dependant, for example. It's often colder at night than during the day and if the temperature drops below 5 degrees, we can no longer carry out certain works on the runway. We must also take working hours regulations into account when it comes to working at night. And some works need to be done during daylight hours, such as cutting the grass around the runways and painting markings on the asphalt. Working during weekends is not always an option because there are fewer staff available, and it is more difficult to have materials delivered on time. And we often keep the weekends free in case works during the week take longer than planned or are postponed.

No, it's not possible to cancel flights because of maintenance works. Airlines have the right to fly during their slots – agreements regarding when they are allowed to take off and land. These slots are allocated by an independent slot coordinator. These rights to fly always apply, also when runways are undergoing maintenance. That's why we move flights to other runways when works are going on.