KLM Flying Dutchman - Snow 03.02.2012 in The Netherlands

All of 3 cm, if that, is what we got here on the coast between 9 a.m. and 12 noon.

Schiphol seems to be a disaster zone.

A colleague landed at BRU three hours or so ago, says the place is full of blue planes. With a bit of luck, he should be on a train to AMS now, he was "allowed" to leave as he had only hand luggage.

A few others are stuck at Schipol, having optimistcally rebooked for flights with STDs after 9 p.m.

Not sure where the remaining (incoming) ones are.

Johan

As reported by Luchtvaartnieuws (http://www.luchtvaartnieuws.nl/nl-NL/Article.cms/Airports/Luchthaven_Schiphol_heeft_last_van_sneeuw), there have been various diversions:

Luchthaven Schiphol ondervindt vrijdag hinder van de sneeuwval. Enkele tientallen inkomende en vertrekkende vluchten zijn vertraagd, gemiddeld met een half uur. Diverse vliegtuigen moesten uitwijken naar andere luchthavens, waaronder Rotterdam, Eindhoven, Maastricht, Brussel en Düsseldorf.

Other problems were that due to circling, pilots (nearly) ran over their max. allowed flying time. Also, the closure of runways to clear them from snow held taxiing planes:


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Train to AMS is not luck at all currently, trains are a complete chaos in the Netherlands at the moment. No trains in Amsterdam and Utrecht at the moment (almost all trains pass Utrecht somewhere in their journey).

Currently quite a few delays and cancelations at AMS, but trains and road traffic is even worse in NL. It is incredible how (after 3-4 years of this winter weather) we seem completely stunned when it happens and the whole country turns into chaos. Yes it's cold and about 5-10cm snow has fallen, but this happens almost each year and the country seems unable to cope with it.

I hope next week will be better, I have to get to Schiphol using the train and the flight I need is delayed so much today that it would leave at the time that I would already need to connect my connecting flight...

I'm due to fly tomorrow with the first flight from MAN to AMS, connecting to WAW at 10.05 - hopefully it'll get better by then.

@ Our AMS based FTers: is it still snowing over there?

At the moment -18.35- not snowing but weatherreport states that it will freeze up to -10 celcius. Trains are expected to resume service around 20.00hrs. Rijkswaterstaat urges people not to travel.

Traffic around the major cities still in a jam but slowely moving.
Most KL flights to london are cancelled as well as LH/LX to Fra&Zrh

Some flights diverted to RTM, EIN and MST

I just had a very cursory look at the Schiphol arrivals page. From 6.30 p.m. onwards I could find two on time arrivals, both KL longhauls. All other flights are delayed, canceled (lots!) or "expected".

The chaos in Holland is beyond belief. The country is flat! No trucks struggling on steep inclines, it is just a matter of keeping the roads clea, surely?

I must admit that Sweden has become a lot more vulnerable as well, every new generation of high-tech trains stuffed full of electronics has a harder time operatiing in what should be routine winter weather.

Johan

double

An infinite number of a/c are circling because only one runway is in use. Planes waiting for take-off have been ordered to return to gate until the RWYs are cleared and arriving aircraft have landed.

My colleague who ended up at BRU should arrrive at his hotel any minute now. He left CPH on the KL1128 at 12h14.

Those still at AMS are presumably waiting for a flight that still shows "scheduled" for 21h00.

Johan

Ams airport will provide beds for stranded passengers that couldn't be hosted at hotels.

Source:
http://www.nu.nl/binnenland/2732320/files-snelwegen-zo-goed-als-opgelost.html

Op Schiphol had het winterweer tot gevolg dat veel vluchten werden geannuleerd. De luchthaven heeft vrijdagavond aangegeven dat men luchtbedden gaat leveren aan gestrande passagiers die niet in hotels terecht kunnen omdat die vol zitten.
Het merendeel kon wel worden ondergebracht in een hotelkamer, maar een deel moet noodgedwongen op het vliegveld overnachten.
Volgens een woordvoerster van het vliegveld zijn tientallen vluchten door de sneeuwval geannuleerd. Bovendien liepen talloze vluchten vertraging op. Vliegtuigen komen gemiddeld drie kwartier later aan op hun bestemming.
Een aantal inkomende vliegtuigen week uit naar de luchthavens in Rotterdam, Eindhoven en Düsseldorf. Vanaf 18.00 uur hoefden vliegtuigen niet meer elders te landen.

.

Those still at AMS are presumably waiting for a flight that still shows "scheduled" for 21h00.

Johan[/QUOTE]

We were waiting...then were told that the flight was cancelled and to leave..... Guess hat: the plane actually left in the end. Thx to 3 klm people we are missing a wedding today! Grrr

It was total chaos! Especially NO information....
8 hours @ schiphol for an EU flight...grrr

then were told that the flight was cancelled and to leaveNot sure you were on the same 21h00 flight as my colleagues, but theirs departed at 20h58, I discovered much laters. The online flight information systems must have been frozen, as they were not updating timeously.

Out of 554 scheduled flights yesterday, Flightstats managed to track 489. Of these, 107 were canceled and 258 delayed, of which 195 left over 45 minutes late. Until 12 noon about two-thirds of flights left on time. That dropped to 8% between 12 and 3 p.m. and then to an impressive 0% unitl 9 p.m., after which it increased to 4%. 77 of the cancelations were KL flights, of which 42 were operated by KLC. BA and AF came next with 4 and 3 cancelations respectively.

The arrivals statistics are better, but not by much. 60 incoming KL/KLC flights were canceled, while the total for all other airlines came to 7.

Moderate to severe frost is forecast for all of next week, it will be interesting to see how the volunteer deicing organization at AMS copes. If previous experience is anything to go by, the result will be 15-30 minute delays for most if not all departing flights, at best.

Johan

Fly to Amsterdam tomorrow (Sunday) late afternoon intraeuropean. Do you think there is any chance of snowfall and delays or worst cancellation?

SB

At the moment not snowing but still temperatures below 0
Expected cold wave from Sunday on with temperatures daily at -10celcius

AMS still expecting some cancellations and some delays with the clean up.
Source http://www.nu.nl/binnenland/2732442/weer-tientallen-vluchten-schiphol-geannuleerd.html

Trains are still a misery. (But then again they are almost every day.)

My colleague whom I last heard from when he called from a taxi yesterday evening (the driver got lost in the snow!) is now on a flight that pushed back 35 minutes late, and then needed another 34 minutes to get to the runway. Deicing is obviously an issue.

Johan

http://upload.xandrios.net/418489_3126127440582_1486547800_32994067_508405408 _n.jpg

I think last year we had -5 the lowest? Some things are changing it seems..

Luckily I went to Bali on Thu Feb 2, no problems with trains and my SQ 323 flight was on time. I checked Flightstats, and the same SQ flight on Friday (one day after I flew) was only 30 mins late. But the trains.....

I think last year we had -5 the lowest? Some things are changing it seems..

It hasn't been this cold since 1985. That also means that it has been this cold before. The only thing that's changing in my view is people and technology who both turned into wimps who can only deal with sunshine and 20 degrees.

The problem in the rail transport is mainly due to the fact that railway switch tongues are heated (to prevent freezing) by gas burners rather than electrically. Electrical heating is however more reliable (cannot blow out), better to control and at every switch there is electricity. Gas has to be installed separately. That is why most countries use electrical heating.
I never knew the reason they do this in Holland with gas.

It hasn't been this cold since 1985. That also means that it has been this cold before. The only thing that's changing in my view is people and technology who both turned into wimps who can only deal with sunshine and 20 degrees.

+1

Add to that the habit of overreacting and dramatizing, and you got the full picture of the current state of mind in NL... :(

NS reports that train traffic to/from AMS is VERY limited.

Per De Telegraaf, NS have announced reduced services for Sunday and Monday. This can mean anything from no trains at all to a train here and there. If you need to go to the airport, leave earlier and arrange for alternative transport. If you're arriving and need to go some place, good luck. And welcome to the Netherlands.

Apparently it took my girlfriend 7 hours to get from Utrecht to Alkmaar yesterday

The situation at AMS is a big mess, both flights and public transport. Took me nearly 5 hours to get to AMS from Eindhoven on Friday. Was suppose to fly BA, but flights were cancelled. Luckily got a room last night. This morning, I thought that I could get back home with the train, but as most Dutch have heard the train service is totally out of control.
Walking around Schiphol, the line for KLM ticket counter snaked all the way to T3.
Took the public bus down to the center of Amsterdam and the line was full, every bus this morning was packed liked sardines. Managed to find my way back by renting a car.
One good thing of the snow is the beautiful view from the Panorama Terrace this morning in the sun.

Good luck to all still trying to get out of the airport via air or ground.

Cheers!

I never knew the reason they do this in Holland with gas.Maybe 'cause it was cheap and plentiful once upon a time.

The only thing that's changing in my view is people and technology who both turned into wimps who can only deal with sunshine and 20 degrees.True in Sweden as well. They order trains stuffed full of fancy electronics without checking if they can handel sub-zero temperatures, and last winter a group of people even started a Facebook page called Vinterhatarna (guess what that means!). If you hate winter, don't complain, just move to the Congo.

My colleague's flight this morning, by the way, was deiced at the gate, but then got stuck behind an Easyjet plane that somehow got stuck. He said he could see its wheels spinning as the pilots moved the throttles so far forward that the whole aircraft was shaking. It must have causeed the tires to overheat or so, as it resulted in a major fire department response. For the experts:

"08:55 PRIO 1 VOS 1 SCHIPHOL - OVD597 BRW14 BRW12 BRW11 BRW22 BRW23 BRW21 BRW17 TS341 TS340 AFO"

Johan

He said he could see its wheels spinning as the pilots moved the throttles so far forward that the whole aircraft was shaking.

Dont they use engine thrust to move? The wheels can only apply breaking force right?

Dont they use engine thrust to move? The wheels can only apply breaking force right?

I was just wondering the same.

Its true, they can do wheelies too when they use the after burners, heres proof http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRa6Z75ceGY

I was just wondering the same.

Dont they use engine thrust to move? The wheels can only apply breaking force right?You are no doubt right, I'm only reporting hearsay. I'm not sure what it takes to get the fire department to respoind with 11 vehicles.

Johan

AMS has now begun to be a diversionpoint for a couple of BA aircraft as LON also has problems with the snow. Interesting holdings...

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Last Friday early evening I was supposed to fly via AMS.
To my surprise however KLM rebooked me (without any extra cost) on two StarAlliance flights via Frankfurt instead arriving at my final destination only with under 2 hours delay.^

Last Friday early evening I was supposed to fly via AMS.
To my surprise however KLM rebooked me (without any extra cost) on two StarAlliance flights via Frankfurt instead arriving at my final destination only with under 2 hours delay.^

I had a similar experience - wonder if we'll get FB miles or not?

I had a similar experience - wonder if we'll get FB miles or not?They won't post spontaneously but you should be able to retro-claim for an invol reroute.

Yes and you can even 'double-dip' in most cases. Earning points in FB for your route booked. And in for example a *A FFP when you were rerouted on LH.

Any updates on AMS? I am flying via AMS tomorrow morning. Are things back to normal (or close to it)?

Any updates on AMS? I am flying via AMS tomorrow morning. Are things back to normal (or close to it)?In the Privium ClubLounge now. Looking normal, as far as I can tell. Sunny and cold. Departures currently from the Polderbaan (yikes!)

For those driving to Schiphol from the north: the right-hand lane in the Schipholtunnel is closed. The tunnel leaks like a sieve, when it it cold the puddles freeze. I can recall this happening at least as far back as the 80s, but today it looked worse than usual. Traffic was very light, but nevertheless traffic was backed up almost as far as the A9. Delay of about 10 minutes. Could be a lot worse during the rush hour.

Johan

Thanks for the update :)

I'm flying tomorrow morning as well. Currently booked AMS-ATH direct, but I can still change to AMS-CDG-ATH. Not quite sure yet what to do. The AF flights have a better chance of arriving the time I need to be there...but KL won't have issues with strikes.

I am travelling tomorrow evening. According to the Dutch websites, the weather is looking very promising. However, I am returning on Sunday, and then it looks horrible? What are your guys opinions?
Sincerely,
SB

Where do you see it's going to be horrible?

Easily, by checking the Royal Dutch Weather institute, on what their predictions are for the coming days... any thoughts or ideas of how tomorrow will look like?
SB

Fine. http://www.weeronline.nl/Europa/Nederland/Schiphol-Amsterdam-Airport/4952006

They won't post spontaneously but you should be able to retro-claim for an invol reroute.

Can this be done online?

Can this be done online?

Doubt it as you'll not be 'on that flight' in the system.