Severe winter weather disrupts Amsterdam Schiphol for second day, hundreds of flights cancelled or delayed

Severe winter weather has caused major disruption at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, with snow, freezing conditions and strong winds forcing airlines to cancel and delay hundreds of flights over consecutive days, affecting tens of thousands of passengers across Europe and beyond.

On Friday, snowfall and gusty winds led to widespread operational problems at the Dutch hub, with more than 300 flights cancelled and over 600 delayed. Over 60 flights between the UK and Amsterdam were grounded alone, impacting an estimated 7,000 passengers. KLM, British Airways and easyJet were among the airlines most affected, with KLM cancelling dozens of UK services and easyJet scrapping at least 20 UK–Amsterdam flights. The disruption began early, with inbound long-haul flights diverted to Brussels and significant delays jeopardising onward connections worldwide.

Conditions failed to improve overnight, prompting airlines to pre-emptively cancel more than 100 additional flights on Saturday, with hundreds more cancellations expected as wintry weather persisted. KLM and its subsidiary Transavia were again the most affected carriers, while delays were particularly severe for long-haul arrivals due to de-icing requirements. Schiphol warned passengers to expect further delays throughout the weekend.

Dutch meteorological authorities issued extended weather warnings for snow, freezing rain and icy conditions nationwide, with up to 10 centimetres of snow forecast in parts of the country. Strong winds associated with Storm Anna further constrained air traffic capacity, though slight improvements were reported later on Friday.

KLM said it was working to accommodate stranded passengers in hotels and advised travellers to monitor flight updates closely. Under EU passenger rights rules, affected travellers are entitled to rebooking, care and assistance. Regional airports across the Netherlands, including Eindhoven and Rotterdam The Hague, also experienced delays, highlighting the broader impact of the severe winter weather on the country’s transport network.