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KLM summer schedule 2009
Maintaining global network while adjusting summer capacity to
economic climate
Amstelveen, 11 March 2009 – The AIR FRANCE KLM Group’s summer
2009 schedule (29 March – 25 October) has been adjusted in
line with the sharp decline in demand caused by the economic
crisis which is affecting all corners of the world. Thanks to
the complementarities of the Paris and Amsterdam hubs,
customers will continue to benefit from a global network
spread over five continents. In terms of available seat
kilometres (ASK), Air France-KLM Group capacity for the summer
2009 season will be down by -3.4% compared with summer 2008; –
3.4 % on the long-haul network and -3.4% on the medium-haul
network.
Focus on the KLM Network
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is safeguarding its global network by
redesigning schedules to make them more attractive for the
customer and by reallocating aircraft. Service to Tallinn,
Hyderabad and Aruba will temporarily be suspended while direct
flights to Liverpool and Calgary are scheduled for
introduction. Even more than previous seasons, during the
summer schedule, capacity will be adjusted towards the peak
months. KLM’s overall capacity will be reduced by about 5%
compared to last summer.
North Atlantic
KLM plans to pursue its strong focus on strategic markets, an
example of which is the introduction of a new service to
Calgary, Canada, five times a week using an Airbus A330-200.
Air France, KLM and Canadian low-cost airline WestJet recently
announced their plans to build a new commercial relationship
between the three airlines. This offers Air France and KLM the
opportunity to strengthen their position in services to Canada
and increase the number of destinations.
Following the recent merger between Delta Air Lines and KLM’s
US partner Northwest Airlines, KLM intends to maintain its
successful transatlantic joint venture while developing this
further within the new context. As one of the first steps in
the intensifying cooperation, Delta and Northwest are planning
to mutually implement cross-fleeting (combining each others
fleet). Newark and Portland (Oregon) will be the first
destinations to apply this, using a Delta Air Lines Boeing
767-300.
Northwest Airlines will add the third frequency to New York
JFK using a Boeing 757-200. New early morning departures from
JFK and Chicago should improve connections to the Middle East
and Africa, making these schedules commercially more
attractive. Northwest plans to operate all four daily services
between Detroit and Amsterdam and will also raise capacity to
Seattle by deploying an Airbus A330-300.
Central and South America
In Central America, KLM responds to the good performance on
the Amsterdam-Panama City route by adding two weekly flights,
raising the total to five weekly roundtrips. This major
capacity increase reflects the strength of this growing market
and the fruitful cooperation with Copa Airlines on this route,
which was launched less than a year ago with code-share
flights beyond Panama City.
To adjust to the market situation, KLM has temporarily
suspended flights to Aruba at the start of the summer
schedule. Passengers can still fly to Aruba seven days a week
with Martinair, part of the KLM Group. Flights and capacity to
Paramaribo will increase from three flights a week using a
Boeing 747 full passenger aircraft, to four flights per week
using an MD–11. Starting 1 June, KLM will add a fifth weekly
flight to this schedule to better gear to the seasonality of
this market. Reallocating aircraft should result in a major
increase in capacity on the route to Curaçao. Daily flights
will use a Boeing 747 full passenger aircraft instead of an
MD–11. Twice a week these flights will also serve the island
of St Maarten.
Asia
KLM will continue to serve the Greater China region with a
comprehensive passenger product. Together with strategic
partner China Southern, KLM plans to operate 14 weekly
services between Beijing and Amsterdam. Shanghai is scheduled
for twelve frequencies, while service to Chengdu will increase
to four weekly roundtrips. Responding to the wishes of
business travellers, KLM is adjusting its schedules to Hong
Kong and Shanghai, ensuring that flights from these cities —
and from Amsterdam — depart in the evening.
Service to the Indian market will be adjusted in response to
local market developments and financial results from these
routes. KLM has suspended operations to Hyderabad, while
trimming capacity to Mumbai as a Delta Air Lines Boeing
767-300 replaces the Northwest Airlines Airbus A330-200 now in
use. Overall capacity to Asia is reduced by approximately 5%.
Africa and the Middle East
Less affected by the economic crisis, Africa and the Middle
East still offer opportunities for growth. Overall, KLM plans
to raise capacity to these regions. In Africa, KLM will
increase frequency to Entebbe (Uganda) from four to five
flights a week, while deploying larger aircraft on the
Amsterdam-Nairobi route. In the Gulf region, KLM plans to grow
and improve its network and services by increasing frequencies
to Teheran (from four to five flights a week) and Muscat (from
five to six flights a week). Daily services between Amsterdam
and Kuwait and six direct flights a week to Abu Dhabi offer
attractive schedules to business travellers.
Europe
In Europe, KLM will be trimming capacity in the range of 4%
according to varying performance and demand in specific
markets. KLM will free up fleet in Europe by suspending the
Tallinn route and reducing capacity to Nice, Bristol, Kiev and
several other destinations. The reallocated fleet should
strengthen KLM’s presence in Northern Europe by increasing
flight frequency to Stavanger (five daily roundtrips) and
Helsinki (four daily roundtrips). In this way, KLM can also
expand its UK network by launching thrice daily service
between Amsterdam and Liverpool.
Fleet
This summer KLM expects to welcome its third and fourth Boeing
777-300. These aircraft are intended for deployment on routes
to South-East Asia, Latin America and Africa. KLM is also
renewing its regional fleet by gradually replacing its Fokker
100s with Embraer 190s. These will be deployed mainly on
routes operated by KLM Cityhopper to Denmark, Norway, Sweden,
the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Germany.
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