“Blue birds” will soon be back
WILLEMSTAD--KLM plans to resume regular flight operations from the Netherlands to Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao and St. Maarten in early June. “We want to start up the network further and see demand for tickets to that market. The Dutch would like to go on a summer vacation,” said CEO Pieter Elbers in conversation with Aviation News Magazine.
"With all measures taken on board and on the ground, we do this as safely as possible." Until July 5 there will be two direct flights per week to Curaçao on Wednesdays and Saturdays, with return flights the following day. There will also be a Friday flight to St. Maarten, one to Aruba on Saturday one to Bonaire on Thursday, all returning to the Netherlands via Curaçao.
During the coronavirus pandemic KLM continued to call on Curaçao to provide the island and other parts of the Dutch Caribbean with relief supplies and medical care resources. In total, more than 500 tons of freight were transported. In addition, more than 20 repatriation flights took place to pick up stranded citizens.
The preliminary schedule looks like this
The airline is now taking the next step, according to Elbers. From June 3, in addition to Curaçao, Aruba, Bonaire and St. Maarten will also be connected to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport It is possible to travel from all the islands on these flights, for people who would like to return to the Netherlands.
Elbers emphasised that booking tickets on these flights for Dutch holidaymakers depends on the relaxation of travel restrictions that are still in force on the islands. As it looks now, Aruba and Curaçao will be the first to open their borders to tourists. Once that happens, tickets become available for sale.
Flights to the other islands will, as the planning now looks, all return flights to the Netherlands via Curaçao. That is also the case for Friday’s flight to St. Maarten.
KLM uses Airbus A330-200 planes with 262 seats for this.
The other Dutch carrier TUI also plans to resume its vacation flights to Curaçao and Aruba per July 1.
