Schiphol Will Bring Reduced Mobility Assistance In House by 2028

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol said on July 13, 2026 that it will bring assistance for passengers with reduced mobility under direct airport management in early 2028. The decision changes who will organize one of the airport’s most important accessibility services, but it does not change what a passenger should do for a flight this summer or in the near term.

Axxicom Airport Caddy will continue providing the service during the transition. Schiphol says travelers can keep using the current process while the airport, Axxicom parent Facilicom Group, workers and unions settle the handover details.

What Schiphol decided

The official Schiphol announcement says the airport wants direct control over continuity, quality and future development of reduced mobility assistance. The airport expects to assume responsibility in early 2028, after a transition that still requires detailed agreements on timing and implementation.

Axxicom has handled the work at Schiphol since 2003. About 1,000 Axxicom Airport Caddy employees currently help roughly 750,000 passengers travel to and from their flights each year, according to the airport.

Those figures show why this is more than a routine vendor change. Assistance can involve meeting a traveler at a call point, moving through a large terminal, reaching a gate, boarding with an appropriate chair or lift, and supporting an arrival or connection.

Schiphol says it expects the number of travelers needing assistance to keep growing. Direct management is intended to make the service part of the airport’s daily operation, giving Schiphol greater authority over staffing, performance and future improvements.

Nothing changes for current trips

The most important immediate point is what the announcement does not do. It does not replace Axxicom now, create a new booking channel, change eligibility or require a passenger to repeat an existing request.

Schiphol states that Axxicom service will continue in the short term. Travelers with flights in 2026 or 2027 should follow the current airport and airline instructions unless Schiphol publishes a later operational update.

The airport’s current assistance guidance asks travelers to request help through their airline when booking, or at least 48 hours before departure. Passengers should describe what they can do independently and what help they need, including walking distance, stairs, transfers, their own wheelchair and any medical equipment.

That airline request remains the key planning step even though the airport manages the service on the ground. Travelers using the hub carrier can also review Deep Arrival’s KLM guide, then confirm the accessibility request directly in the booking and with the operating airline.

How assistance works at Schiphol today

A passenger who has requested assistance can report at the airline check in desk or at one of Schiphol’s call points. The airport says there are 27 call points serving locations that include the train station, bus stop, taxi area and car parks.

The airport also offers a pickup service from those ground access points for travelers who need help reaching check in. Schiphol recommends notifying Axxicom in advance for that pickup so the team can prepare, although the core flight assistance request still needs to be made through the airline.

Travelers who use their own wheelchair can generally keep it until the aircraft door. The airport says the assistant then helps the passenger transfer to an aisle chair when necessary, while the personal wheelchair travels in the aircraft hold.

Free loan wheelchairs are available throughout the airport for people who can travel independently but cannot comfortably cover long distances. Those chairs are different from guided assistance and do not replace a formal request for anyone who needs help through security, to the gate or into the aircraft seat.

Passengers connecting through Schiphol should ensure that the assistance request appears across the entire itinerary. A request recorded only for the first flight may not provide the receiving airport and onward carrier with enough information to plan a transfer.

The 48 hour notice is especially important at a large connecting airport. Schiphol may need to coordinate an assistant, a wheelchair or courtesy vehicle, security movement, an ambulift for a remote stand and help reaching the aircraft seat, depending on the passenger’s mobility and gate assignment.

Late requests do not automatically remove a traveler’s right to ask for help, but Schiphol warns that waiting times may be longer without advance notice. A passenger should therefore check that the airline recorded the request, keep the confirmation and still identify themselves at the airport on arrival.

Travelers should also separate airport assistance from airline handling of a mobility aid. Schiphol can help move a passenger through the terminal and onto the aircraft, while the operating carrier remains responsible for accepting, protecting and returning the personal wheelchair or other checked equipment.

Why Schiphol is moving the service in house

Schiphol presents direct management as a way to protect service continuity and improve quality as demand rises. The airport can set priorities more directly when the staff and operating responsibility sit inside the same organization that manages terminals, gates and passenger flow.

The decision also follows a labor campaign. In March, the Dutch trade union FNV called for Schiphol to stop tendering the assistance work, arguing that competition could place pressure on service quality and working conditions.

That campaign provides independent context for the July decision, but it does not prove how the 2028 operation will perform. Schiphol still needs to turn the management choice into staffing plans, training standards, service measurements and a clear passenger communication process.

The airport says job protection is part of the transition and that all current Axxicom Airport Caddy employees are assured of a job. It also says workers will receive updates while Schiphol and Facilicom consult with unions on the handover.

What remains unresolved before 2028

The announcement gives an intended period rather than an exact transfer date. Agreements still need to define the timing, the practical handover and how the service will move into Schiphol’s organization without a gap.

Travelers will need clearer information closer to the change. Useful future details include whether contact channels will change, when new branding appears, how existing assistance records carry over and whether performance standards or complaint routes will be revised.

The airport will also need to explain what direct management means for technology already used alongside personal help. Schiphol has tested self driving mobility vehicles, but those tools serve a different need from a trained assistant who can support boarding, transfers and individual mobility equipment.

A management change alone does not guarantee shorter waits or better coordination. The result will depend on staffing, training, accurate airline notifications, equipment availability and the way airport teams respond when flights, gates or connection times change.

What travelers should do now

For a trip before the handover, make the assistance request through the operating airline at least 48 hours before departure and keep written confirmation with the booking. If several airlines appear on one ticket, verify that each segment carries the correct assistance code.

Arrive with enough time to report at check in or a call point, especially when the journey involves a personal wheelchair, medical equipment or a tight connection. Describe the help required precisely rather than assuming one generic wheelchair request covers every stage of the trip.

Travelers should continue using current Schiphol and Axxicom instructions until the airport publishes a dated change. The July 13 announcement is a significant accessibility governance decision, but it is not a notice that present service has stopped or moved.

Closer to early 2028, passengers should recheck the airport’s assistance page before travel. Schiphol’s next operational notice, not the broad management announcement, should settle any new contact, arrival or service procedure.

The practical meaning of the decision

For Schiphol, bringing a service used by about 750,000 passengers each year in house makes accessibility a more direct operating responsibility. It places the airport closer to the staff, equipment and quality decisions that shape whether a traveler reaches a flight with dignity and confidence.

For passengers, the immediate decision is simpler. Keep requesting assistance through the airline, follow the existing Schiphol process and treat early 2028 as a future transition point that will need fresh instructions before it affects a booking.