Today marks the 80th anniversary of KLM’s inaugural operation from Manchester Airport to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, connecting the North West of England to the Dutch capital, and onwards to KLM’s extensive network of 165 destinations worldwide.
KLM’s Manchester to Amsterdam route was first launched on 27th June 1938, two days after the opening of Ringway Airport (as Manchester Airport used to be known) making KLM the first international carrier to operate from the hub.
The Dutch national carrier is oldest airline in the world to still be operating under its original name and will itself be celebrating a century in business in October 2019.
Back in 1938, the Manchester to Amsterdam route was operated by a Douglas DC2 aircraft and carried up to 14 passengers… a far cry from today’s daily capacity of 1,600 passengers on the route!
Today, the route is operated by a mix of Boeing 737, Embraer 175 and Embraer 190 aircraft.
Bénédicte Duval, general manager of Air France KLM UK & Ireland, commented on the anniversary by saying: “Having been the first International carrier to operate from Manchester Airport, we are delighted to today be celebrating 80 years of linking Manchester to the World.”
He added: “Demand for efficient, seamless travel has grown rapidly throughout the years and KLM now operates six daily flights between Manchester and Amsterdam.”
“In 2017 alone, we carried over half a million passengers between the two cities.”
With a catchment area encompassing 22 million people, Manchester Airport is currently the UK’s third largest airport and the largest outside London.
With KLM now operating up to six daily flights between Manchester and the Dutch capital, Amsterdam currently sits in third position on Manchester Airport’s top 10 destination list – just behind Dubai and Dublin.
Stephen Turner, commercial director at Manchester Airport, added: “Celebrating our 80th birthday has been incredibly poignant here at Manchester Airport as we look back over the last eight decades, but also look to what the future will bring as part of our £1bn transformation.
“The milestone has also given us the opportunity to thank partners who contribute to our success, so it’s incredibly pleasing to see KLM mark the anniversary of the first commercial flight from Manchester all those years ago.
“Back then the first flight went from Blackpool, to Liverpool, to here, on to Doncaster, then finally Amsterdam. I’m sure passengers these days are much happier it goes direct in just over an hour to the Dutch capital.”
To mark the occasion and to thank customers, KLM celebrated with its passengers in Terminal 3 and on board all flights between Manchester and Amsterdam today with special ‘KLM loves MCR’ branded cupcakes and chocolates.
Customers were also invited to spin the ‘Wheel of Fortune’ for a chance to win pairs of tickets to Amsterdam.
As part of the celebration, KLM will also launch some special fares from Manchester Airport.
The return fares are in economy class and inclusive of taxes and charges. For more information, please visit www.klm.co.uk
