KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will launch scheduled service between Amsterdam and Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport in China on 8 May 2010. KLM is the first airline to offer direct service between Hangzhou and Europe. This sixth destination in China consolidates KLM’s position in this fast-growing market.

“KLM is proud to add this 63rd intercontinental destination to its network. With this sixth scheduled service to China, we now offer no fewer than 36 weekly services to this growing market. KLM has thus improved China’s connection with Europe and the rest of the world,” says KLM President & CEO Peter Hartman. “Furthermore, KLM has hereby given an enormous impulse to Schiphol’s mainport status. The KLM network is crucial to the Dutch economy, contributing to a favourable business establishment climate, generating employment and creating opportunities for Dutch businesses.”

The new service will be operated three times a week. Flight KL881 will depart from Schiphol on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, arriving in Hangzhou the following day. Return flight KL 882 will depart from Hangzhou on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, arriving in Amsterdam on the same day. Flights will be operated with a Boeing 777-200ER, which can carry 318 passengers – 35 in World Business Class and 283 in Economy Class.

Hangzhou is the capital of the province Zhejiang, which, together with the neighbouring province Fujian, is home to more than 80 million people. Via Hangzhou, passengers can catch connecting flights to other destinations within China. Together with its partner China Southern Airlines, KLM offers passengers services to Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and now Hangzhou.

Photo: Rob Vogelaar ZAP16 Group