Airlines scrap Eindhoven flights over Thursday evening air traffic controller shortage
Airlines at Eindhoven Airport were thrown into turmoil on Thursday after a shortage of staff at an air traffic control disrupted operations. A staff shortage at the military radar center at Schiphol-Oost was to blame, with immediate concerns the airlines would have to cancel or divert all aircraft scheduled to arrive after 7:45 p.m., though it later appeared that the situation was resolved.
Amid the confusion, Transavia cancelled three evening arrivals, and a few others were expected to divert to another airport, a spokesperson for Transavia told NL Times. She was not certain whether the issue would affect Transavia’s operations on Friday morning, and stressed that passengers should keep a close watch on the websites for the airline and the airport.
The staffing issue was first predicted to have an impact on Eindhoven Airport operations for a one-hour period ending at 5:40 p.m. A short time later, the airport was again expected to be considered unavailable for arriving flights from 7:25 p.m. through 11:55 p.m., causing “high delays,” according to a bulletin from European air traffic center Eurocontrol. “The [Air Traffic Control] Staffing issue was solved. Aerodrome is available again,” Eurocontrol wrote in an update at 6:05 p.m.
A total of ten flights were scheduled to arrive at Eindhoven after 7:45 p.m., including seven operated by Transavia, two from Ryanair, and one from TUI Netherlands. Only two Ryanair flights were planned for a Thursday night departure, but Transavia has seven flights scheduled to take off from Eindhoven between 6:55 a.m. and 7:45 a.m. on Friday, with TUI planning an 8:20 a.m. departure.
The airport did issue a warning about the possibility of disruption on Friday morning. Eindhoven Airport operates on the same airfield as Eindhoven Air Base. The runway and local air traffic control tower are shared with the Dutch military. However, aircraft approaching Eindhoven are not immediately handled by the local tower.
A flight will initially be seen by the military radar control at Schiphol-Oost, which guides aircraft through the relevant airspace before they approach Eindhoven. The shortage at the first stage can therefore prevent civilian aircraft from reaching Eindhoven, even when the airport’s local tower is available.
Staffing shortages at the facility are not new. Eindhoven Airport experienced similar problems in August 2025, when air traffic was suspended twice in one day because of insufficient military air traffic controllers. Dozens of flights operated by airlines including Ryanair, Transavia and Wizz Air were delayed.
The Royal Netherlands Air Force has acknowledged that recruiting and retaining military air traffic controllers is difficult. The training is lengthy, while military personnel earn considerably less than civilian controllers working alongside them at Luchtverkeersleiding Nederland.
The Netherlands is working to integrate military and civilian air traffic control under one organisation. The first military personnel and responsibilities are expected to transfer to Luchtverkeersleiding Nederland by the end of 2026.