JetBlue has asked the U.S. Department of Transportation to ban Dutch flag carrier KLM from John F. Kennedy International Airport over a controversial flight cap in the Netherlands. The Dutch government is moving to cap the number of flights next year at Amsterdam-Schiphol, Europe’s busiest airport by aircraft movements. JetBlue claims the flight cap would violate the US-EU Air Transport Agreement and the ban would be a “proportional countermeasure.”
Several airlines, including KLM and Delta, have opposed the plan to limit Schiphol to only 452,500 flights per year. The Dutch government has also moved to ban private jets and late-night flights in an effort to reduce carbon emissions and noise pollution, according to Simple Flying.
JetBlue is still relatively new to Amsterdam-Schiphol, launching its first route there just August of this year. The New York-based carrier believes that finding additional slots at Schiphol will become practically impossible. JetBlue released a statement to Reuters, which reads:
“Carriers with historics at Schiphol are facing a 4% reduction in capacity. New entrants such as JetBlue are facing a completely closed market and 100% expulsion from the market. This is not a fair or proportional outcome despite Dutch government assurances otherwise.”
JetBlue is currently in the midst of a massive expansion in an attempt to challenge America’s three established major carriers. The airline is still attempting to complete a purchase of Spirit Airlines, which is also under scrutiny from the U.S. government. Being pushed out at Schiphol would be a massive setback. It is highly unlikely that the U.S. DOT would consider outright banning KLM from JFK as a response.