On 19 September 1916, the first military aircraft landed on an area of reclaimed land following the draining of the Haarlemmermeer polder. This marked the beginning of Schiphol's status as a military airfield. KLM's first passenger flights in 1920 began the process of transforming Schiphol from a military airfield into a civil airport.
More than 100 years later, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol remains one of Royal Schiphol Group's most important activities. In addition, we are the sole owner of Rotterdam The Hague Airport and Lelystad Airport, and we have a majority stake in Eindhoven Airport and a minority stake in Maastricht Aachen Airport. Beyond the borders, we also have a share in – or work closely with – various international airports.
In 2024, our Dutch airports welcomed 78.8 million travellers and handled 1.49 million tonnes of cargo. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol connects the Netherlands with more than 300 direct destinations and has been one of the four largest European airports in terms of passenger traffic for many years, alongside Istanbul, Paris Charles de Gaulle and London Heathrow. We are number three in Europe in terms of freight volume. Royal Schiphol Group's ambition is to have happy travellers, airlines and employees, in balance with the environment.
Our core activities are executed in three business areas.
Creating a home for world travellers is not a task we can perform on our own. We work in association with sector partners such as airlines, ground handlers, air traffic controllers, Customs and the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee. In collaboration with public transport companies, government bodies and our business partners, we have developed our airports into efficient hubs and attractive places to visit and work.
Sustainability is crucial to being future-proof and to our day-to-day operations. Schiphol aims to be a zero waste and zero emissions airport by 2030. Quality of Life – the quality of the living environment – is one of the four strategic pillars of our Vision 2050.
We are aware of the impact of our aviation activities. Together with our stakeholders, we are constantly working to minimise nuisance and we invest in improving the quality of life in the region. We are looking for innovative solutions that will enable us to become more sustainable and secure our position in the long term.