SCHIPOL AIRPORT CONCERNED BY PIECEMEAL INTRODUCTION OF FREE MOVEMENT
Present policies of the EU-Member States indicate that the free movement of persons is not likely to be introduced by all member states simultanuously. The International Affairs-manager of Amsterdam-Schipol airport is concerned about the organisational and economic effects on airports required to adapt their passenger management to free movement regulations.
On the occasion of a meeting on 18 january with the European Parliament's Frontiers Intergroup, the Schipol-manager said, that Schipol airport in its extension plans of 1987/1990 had assumed from the introduction of free movement of persons by all 12 EU-Member States. Investments and building activities are based on this number of participants. When it became apparent that the Schengen Agreement would also apply to airports and that a physical segregation of passenger flows would become necessary, the Netherlands indicated that such a partial segregation applying only to 'Schengen'- nationals could not be realised. However, in order to be able to accomodate free travel within Schengen anyway, the Netherlands, instead of physical segregation, opted for a "procedural solution" based on the issuing of a card with a magnetic strip to intra-Schengen passengers, with which they can operate a turn-style.
[Schipol airport has also issued volunteers with smartcards the size of credit cards which contain personal data with a digitised reading of the passenger's "hand geometry". The system allows automatised identity checks sparing regular travellers long waiting-lines.]
Shipol airport points out that traffic division belonging to a smaller number of participating member states differs essentially from that belonging to the 12 EU-Member States. Nearly 25% of Schipol's passengers and flights originate from or go to the United Kingdom.
The persistent uncertainty about the EU's policy regarding free movement of persons and particularly the continually changing number of participating Member States presents planning problems to Schipol and other European airports and "leads to both extra investments and capital annihilation", the manager stresses.
If not all EU-airports will accomodate free movement for persons, an unequal situation within the Internal Market will be created. Unfair competition will occur, because airports in states introducing free movement will have to make unprofitable investments and suffer delays in passenger-transfer. This will harm the attractiveness of airports concerned. "Consequently, non-introduction by EU-Member States of free travel is rewarded" it says in the Schipol paper, and for passengers "the situation to come is hardly understandable with free movement for baggage in all EU-Member States [introduced since 1 January 1993] and free movement in a restricted number of EU-Member States, which is even likely to change underway".
All this constitutes an "unacceptable encroachment on the quality of the Schipol-product", the Schipol-manager concluded.
Source: Outline of the presentation by Maryse Schermerhorn, manager International Affairs, Amsterdam Airport Schipol, on the occasion of the meeting on 18.1.94 of the Frontiers Intergroup, European Parliament.