Schiphol airport’s parent company made losses of €158 million in the first half of 2021 as the pandemic continued to hit international travel.

The losses were smaller than the €246 million Schiphol Group recorded in the first half of 2020, but contrast with a €133 million profit in the previous year. The difference is mainly accounted for by the €112 million the company received from the Dutch government’s coronavirus relief programme.

‘Once unrealised fluctuations in value and subsidies received under the NOW regulation are set aside, the net result in the first half of 2021 has declined slightly to a loss of €258 million,’ Schiphol Group said in a statement.

A total of 5.6 million passengers passed through Amsterdam’s hub airport Schiphol in the six-month period, a decline of 57% from the previous year, but the smaller airports in the group were hit even harder.

Eindhoven, in which it has a 51% holding, recorded a 74.4% decline in passenger numbers, while traffic at Rotterdam The Hague was down by 79.8%.

The slump in travel was partly offset by a 28% increase in freight traffic, but Schiphol Group does not expect passenger numbers to recover to 2019 levels until 2024.

‘In 2021 we have seen a recovery so far, but less than we had expected,’ CEO Dick Benschop said. ‘The higher vaccination rate and gradual easing of the travel restrictions mean we are mildly positive about the rest of the year.’