KLM celebrates 90 years of innovation KLM has been celebrating its 90th anniversary. We take a look back over a year of special events and innovations for the world’s oldest airline.
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LM, or Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschapij, was founded on 7 October 1919 to serve the Netherlands and its colonies. High points over the years have included the launch of the world’s longest distance scheduled service in 1929 – from Amsterdam to Jakarta, KLM’s first transatlantic flight in 1934 and, of course, the merger with Air France five years ago. Air France KLM now operates a combined fleet of 620 aircraft and carries 75.5 million passengers a year. As a tribute to its proud Dutch heritage, KLM commenced the year of anniversary activities with a special Celebration Flight on 1st January 2009 over the various Dutch regions. “Two aircraft were used to represent the old and the new faces of KLM – a Boeing 777-200 and a Boeing 737-800 painted in retro KLM livery from the 1960s” explained Air France KLM’s Bernard Castel. “The VIP passengers on board included clients, senior executives and 70 chronically ill children in partnership with the Stichting Hoogvliegers Foundation. In a similar vein we also organized a flight for 90 senior citizens who had never flown before. We flew from Amsterdam on a circular voyage over Holland in a Fokker 50 aircraft. The feedback was great – and I think we gained some new clients!” Corporate social responsibility has been at the heart of KLM’s festivities and each year it supports a charitable cause under its Foundation KLM Air Cares. The cause chosen for the airline’s 90th year was Cycling Blue for Kenya. KLM carried out a series of international actions throughout 2009 for the campaign in order to raise finance for purchase of bicycles to enable children to go to school, and to set up repair workshops for bicycles.
Tour of Inspiration
One of the largest communications actions during KLM’s celebrations was the organization of its ‘Tour of Inspiration’ last autumn. The Tour traveled through 30 European cities using a specially equipped lorry to showcase KLM’s products and services. On ground and in-the-air services presented ranged from self-checking kiosks, to onboard catering and the latest inflight entertainment services. Also on show were KLM’s next generation business class seats and its new Economy Comfort Class. The Economy Comfort class, to be launched this December, will offer greater passenger comfort than regular economy (including seats that recline back twice as far), but at only a slightly higher cost. “These are exactly the type of products that
we wanted to put ‘in the hands’ of our clients by organizing the Tour” said Castel. “The Tour commenced in Amsterdam on 18 September and we made our first stop in Billunde in Demark. The roadshow then continued through several European countries including Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, the UK, France, Italy and Spain before terminating in Munich on 8 November. At each stage of the tour, events were organized to specifically target our local clients in each destination. The feedback on the Tour from our clients has been very positive. Although we are already in regular contact with them, this marketing initiative gave them the chance to experience first hand our latest products and innovations for medium and long haul flights. It was also a great opportunity for networking and exchange. The ideas and suggestions gathered from our clients have been passed on to our dedicated innovation department so that we can continue to anticipate future market needs.”
Sustainability and innovation core to future development
The anniversary celebrations officially ended on 7 October with a symposium, presided over by KLM president and CEO Peter Hartman, at the airline’s head offices in Amstelveen. KLM sees sustainability as a core ingredient of its growth strategy, and this was reflected in Peter Hartman’s speech at the symposium. He predicted that the main changes the airline faces in the shorter term involve the development and application of sustainable fuels. “We are working hard in this area and hope to be able to redouble our efforts as soon as the economic crisis allows”. In 2009 Air France KLM was confirmed as “Sector Leader” in air transport sustainability for the fifth consecutive year. Notwithstanding its 90th anniversary celebrations, 2009 was a dynamic year for KLM. The month of May saw the debut of a transatlantic partnership between Air France KLM and Delta Air Lines. Under the agreement, the partners will operate their transatlantic businesses jointly. The airlines will also cooperate on routes between North America, Africa, the Middle East and India, as well as on flights between Europe and several countries in Latin America. As Bernard Castel underlined “We may have a long history but our aim is to continually innovate and improve. As part of this we are undergoing a major renewal of our passenger fleet. As regards our medium haul and regional aircraft, we have begun replacement of our Boeing 737-300s and 400s by the latest generation Boeing 737 aircraft – the 737-700 and the 737-800. Our long haul Boeing 747-400s are being replaced by Boeing 777-300ERS. This will extend our maximum range and give more comfort and choice to passengers with the latest on-board in flight entertainment systems.”
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