A total of around 85,000 employees, around 1.2% of the Dutch working population, owe their jobs directly to the aviation industry (if only the first two links in the chain are considered). Of these, some 59,000 people are employed by organisations established at Schiphol. Working from the rule of thumb that every 5.1 air transport movements correspond to one full-time job at the airport, the total number of employees at Dutch airports of national importance in 2013 was over 65,000. According to a 2012 study by The Aviation Training Stakeholders Committee (College van Belanghebbenden Luchtvaartonderwijs), a total of 5,250 people work in aircraft maintenance. Furthermore, the construction of new aircraft components and aircraft systems offers employment to some 5,000 people in the Netherlands.
Aviation encompasses all air and ground-based processes that make it possible to transport passengers, baggage and cargo. The aviation industry also falls into this category. Air transport is possible only if all the sub-processes in the chain have been completed and if all legal requirements have been met. In this respect, there is a broad spectrum of organisations (private, semi-private and public) that perform one or more specific tasks, both on the ground and in the air.