Bad weather adds couple of weeks to Zwanenburgbaan maintenance shutdown
The major maintenance work on Schiphol’s Zwanenburgbaan Runway has had to be extended by a couple of weeks due to the recent bad weather. There was more rain than normal during this period combined with low temperatures and strong winds. These circumstances have made it impossible to lay the top layer of asphalt, among other things. Originally, the activities that started January were expected to be completed by mid-April. The expectation is now early May.
Schiphol regrets that unpredictable weather conditions have caused this delay. Schiphol is taking measures to minimise the delay. Where possible, we will work into the evenings and at night.
The airport always takes expected weather conditions into account when planning runway maintenance, but March has so far proven to be a particularly wet month. And since the planned maintenance period is approaching its end, there is now not enough time to make up for the resulting delay within the original timeframe.
Revised runway use
Aircraft that normally take off from or land on the Zwanenburgbaan Runway will make more use of the Buitenveldertbaan Runway during the remaining maintenance shutdown period. The Schiphol Oostbaan Runway may also be used for some landings, and a small proportion of flights will be rerouted to Kaagbaan Runway.
During normal operations, the Zwanenburgbaan is occasionally used in a southerly direction at night when the Kaagbaan is not available due to adverse wind or weather conditions. For the original maintenance period (January till mid-April), a waiver was obtained allowing use of the Aalsmeerbaan Runway as an alternative. This has only been needed once. Schiphol has decided not to apply for an extension to the waiver to cover the remainder of the maintenance shutdown.
Schiphol Local Community Contact Centre
Together with contactor Heijmans and our aviation partners, Schiphol is making every effort to complete the maintenance work as quickly and efficiently as possible. Residents of the area can get in touch with the Schiphol Local Community Contact Centre (BAS) if they have any questions.
Background – note to editors
Delay in final phase of maintenance The delay occurred in the final weeks of the maintenance work (in the original schedule, most of the shutdown period in April was to be devoted to testing). This was a period of rainy, cold days with high winds. Week 10 (6-12 March) saw temperatures fall to around freezing point, with snow and nighttime frosts. Week 11 (13-19 March) featured a lot of rain and strong, at times even storm-force, winds. Week 12 (20-26 March) also had several rainy days.
