Amsterdam Schiphol Airport faced widespread operational disruption on Monday, May 18, 2026, as a transition to a new security contractor structure led to severe passenger queues, understaffing, and multiple flight cancellations.
The airport reduced its security contractors from five to three companies under a contested 10-year contract worth 6 billion euros.
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Nearly 5,000 security workers transitioned to new employers.
According to broadcaster NOS, the restructuring aims to give Schiphol greater operational control by holding a stake in each of the three new firms.
The transition encountered immediate difficulties, including IT glitches with new security access passes and higher-than-expected staff sickness absence.
Out of 679 scheduled departures on Monday, 279 flights were delayed.
Checkpoints closed temporarily to prevent overcrowding as wait times exceeded one hour.
Labor unions FNV, CNV, and De Unie issued a one-week ultimatum to security firm I-SEC to resolve roster and scheduling problems before organizing potential labor actions.
Union representatives noted that hundreds of complaints streamed into their call centers after the contract rollout.
"That would be premature," said Serda Karabulut, FNV board member, regarding the specific form any future union action might take.
Karabulut stated that worker complaints spiked sharply among both union and non-union staff during the first day of the reduced corporate structure.
Security employees expressed concerns that the new scheduling setup would restrict leave approvals and see sick reports rejected.
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"Employees call, email, contact us directly, or report via our call center," Karabulut said.
The union established a dedicated reporting point to manage the high volume of communications from affected airport staff.
Karabulut confirmed that the vast majority of grievances specifically targeted the performance of contractor I-SEC.
"It is completely overflowing.
That is why we have opened a reporting point to bundle everything and handle it better," he said.
In addition to security line delays, a wave of sudden weekend and weekday flight cancellations further disrupted operations.
Six scheduled departures from easyJet, United Airlines, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines were grounded due to systemic scheduling strains.
Cancelled Flights Data
Losing bidders G4S and CTSN previously challenged the 6 billion euro contract in court, arguing the work could not be successfully delivered for 13 percent less than rival bids.
De Telegraaf reported that a judge ruled Schiphol's projected savings were realistic provided duties were adequately reorganized.
Schiphol deployed extra office staff to assist travelers and distributed water to those waiting in the lines.
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The airport currently advises passengers to arrive two hours before European flights and three hours before intercontinental departures.
