KLM CITYHOPPER, B. V.: KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, External Communications (AMS/DR), P. O. Box 7700, Schiphol Airport East, Amsterdam, ZL-1117, The Netherlands; Phone 31 (20) 649-2227; Fax 31 (20) 648-8154; Http://www. klm. nt; Code KL; Year Founded
1988. The KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines, N. V.) subsidiary NLM City Hopper, B. V. is assigned the responsibility in April 1988 of managing the weakened commuter carrier Netherlines, B. V. That company is merged and initially operates as NLM CityHopper/Netherlines, B. V. A. J. Leyer is named managing director and the combined fleet comprises 3 Fokker 50s, 4 Fokker F.27-200s, 3 F.27-500s, 4 F.28-4000s, and 8 SAAB 340s.
Domestic destinations visited from Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport (East) include Eindhoven, Rotterdam, and Maastricht. A significant number of foreign destinations are also served, including Antwerp, Belfast, Birmingham, Bremen, Bristol, Brussels, Cardiff, Dusseldorf, East Midlands, Gurnsey, Hanover, Jersey, London (CTN), Luxembourg, Malmo, Southampton, Strasbourg, Stuttgart, London (LHR and LGW), Paris, and Hamburg.
Operations continue apace in 1989 and in late 1990 the F.27-200s are withdrawn. When KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines, N. V.) withdraws jet service on its new Maastricht to Dresden route, it is picked up by NetherLines, B. V. employing a SAAB 340B. Passenger boardings total 500,982.
The fleet in 1991 includes 4 Fokker 50s, the last F.27-200, 3 F.27-500s, 1 F.27-600, 4 F.28-4000s, 1 SAAB 340A and 9 340Bs. Orders are outstanding for 6 Fokker 50s and 3 SAAB 340Bs.
Between February 11 and March 24, frequencies from Amsterdam to Maastricht are reduced from five daily roundtrips to three.
In April, the company is renamed KLM Cityhopper, B. V. (KLMC) and begins to serve Dresden, Mulhouse/Basel, Berlin (Tegel), Cork, Nuremberg, and Stavanger. The 10th SAAB 340B is delivered in November. The 270th of its type built, the new turboprop is the 100th SAAB 340 to be placed with a European customer.
Customer bookings jump 32.4% to 491,497 and cargo accelerates by 24.9% to 296,000 FTKs.
Thrice-daily Rotterdam to Frankfurt flights begin on January 3, 1992. Seven Fokker 50s and three SAAB 340Bs are acquired during the year. A new route opened in the spring from Rotterdam to Frankfurt is discontinued on July 13 for lack of patronage.
On October 25, the carrier launches daily SAAB 340B roundtrips between Amsterdam and Billund. Traffic figures are now reported with the parent’s.
Airline employment in 1993 is 396 as the number of Fokker 50s grows to 10. A route rationalization now occurs; roundtrip services dropped include Eindhoven to Hamburg on January 10 and Amsterdam to Bordeaux on February 1. On May 15, the company ceases service between Rotterdam and London (LGW). The capacity released allows an expansion of frequencies on the routes to Billund and Bremen.
During the summer, KLMC increases its weekly roundtrip flights to 458, with the number of trips to and from Stavanger, Strasbourg, Turin, and Cardiff expanded. The Cardiff flights on six days of the week include a night stop in the Welsh capital.
The workforce is cut to 250 in 1994. Managing Director K. C. E. Roo-jman’s fleet comprises 10 Fokker 50s, 4 F.28-4000s, and 11 SAAB-340Bs. Orders are placed for Fokker 70 jetliners.
Just after departure from Amsterdam on an April 4 service to Cardiff, Flight 433, a SAAB 340B with 3 crew and 21 passengers, encounters problems with its No. 2 engine. While attempting a return to its point of origin, the turboprop stalls and crashes (three dead).
A total of 44,000 scheduled departures are made and enplanements skyrocket to 1.35 million.
Passenger boardings decline in 1995 to 1,216,500. In August, a lease order for four (later seven) Fokker 70s is placed with their manufacturer for Cityhopper by its KLM parent.
Airline employment is increased 18.9% in 1996 to 630 and the fleet increases by the addition of seven Fokker 70s, the last of which is delivered in August. Meanwhile, on April 9, twice-daily service is inaugurated between Amsterdam and Aarhus, Denmark.
During late summer and fall, the six Fokker F.28-4000s are sold to Air U. K., Ltd. Customer bookings jump 7.1% to 1.5 million on 46,000 scheduled departures.
Destinations visited in 1997 from Amsterdam, Eindhoven, and Rotterdam include Aarhus, Antwerp, Belfast, Berlin, Birmingham, Bremen, Bristol, Brussels, Cardiff, Cork, Dusseldorf, Eindhoven, Frankfurt, Guernsey, Hamburg, Hanover, Jersey, Luxembourg, London (CTN), Luxembourg, Maastricht, Malmo, Mulhouse/Basel, Paris, Rotterdam, Southampton, Stavanger, Strasbourg, Stuttgart, and Toulouse.
In early October, the company begins to code-share with Regional Airlines, S. A. over routes from Amsterdam to Marseilles and to Clermont. Financial and marketing links between the two carriers will be intensified. When Cityhopper relinquishes its Amsterdam-Strasbourg route, it is picked up by Regional Airlines, S. A. on November 17 and serviced with one of its SAAB 340Bs.
Passenger boardings accelerate 42.9% to 2 million on 52,000 scheduled departures.
To better integrate its feeder operations, the parent, in January 1998, rebrands Air U. K., Ltd. as KLM U. K., Ltd. and Air Exel Commuter,
C. V. as KLM Exel, C. V. The combined 72-aircraft fleet, including that from KLMC, is repainted in a new blue and white livery with silver accents.
Customer bookings jump 17.7% to 2.15 million.
Customer bookings in 1999 slip 0.9% to 2,134,000.
Airline employment at the beginning of 2000 stands at 700, a 7.7% increase over the previous 12 months. At the beginning of the summer season on March 26, two Fokker 50s are replaced with Fokker 70s.
On August 22, one of the displaced Fokker 50s is subleased to Norwegian Air Shuttle, A. S.
On December 12, the KLM parent and Eurowings Luftverkehrs, GmbH. agree that, as of March 26, the Dutch national airline will assume full commercial control of the Amsterdam-Germany services currently flown by Eurowings. KLM Cityhopper will immediately takeover the Amsterdam-Bremen route, with the other frequencies gradually turned over by October.
KLM EXEL, C. V.: P. O. Box 300, Vliegveldweg 12, Maastricht-Aachen Airport, 6236 ZN, The Netherlands; Phone 31 (43) 3650700; Fax 31 (43) 365-0708; Http://www. klm-exel. nl; Code XT; Year Founded 1998. To better integrate its feeder operations, KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines, N. V.) in January 1998 rebrands Air U. K., Ltd. as KLM
U. K., Ltd. and Air Exel Commuter, C. V. as KLM Exel, C. V. (KLME). The combined 72-aircraft fleet, including that from KLM Cityhopper, N. V. , is repainted in a new blue and white livery with silver accents.
The Enschede-based small regional Fairlines, N. V. is taken over in April and merged.
Flights continue largely as before and passenger boardings jump 31.4% to 222,000.
Airline employment at the beginning of 1999 stands at 125. During the first quarter, a new Dutch-language homepage is opened on the World Wide Web. Director General Roberto Stinga’s fleet now includes 3 Avions de Transport Regional ATR42-320s and 4 Embraer EMB-120 Brasilias. Scheduled destinations include Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Hamburg, London (STN), and Paris (CDG).
Passenger boardings increase 58.3% to 351,000.
Airline employment at the beginning of 2000 stands at 178, a 42.4% boost over the previous 12 months.
The first of three ERJ-145s is received on March 9. On April 10, the new ERJ begins thrice-daily return service linking the company’s Maas-tricht/Aachen base with Munich.
Flight 3925, an ATR72 en route from Eindhoven to London (LHR) on May 2 is forced to return to its point of origin when a bomb threat is received. At Eindhoven, the aircraft is searched; no bomb is found and the turboprop is allowed to takeoff for England again.
On September 17, a Jet 2000 Embraer ERJ-135 is dry-leased in its own colors to fly daily roundtrips from Maastricht to Munich.
An ERJ-145 previously employed by European Regions Airlines, S. A. (ERA) is acquired on October 16 and is employed to complete some of the defunct Spanish line’s charters. It is also used to inaugurate weekday-only roundtrips on November 6 between Maastricht and Milan.
Four-times-a-week ERJ-145 return service is begun on December 16 from Maastricht to Berlin (Tempelhof).
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