New York Trip Report – KLM

Flight Report – New York – November 2004

Flight 1
KLM1530 – Durham Tees Valley – Amsterdam
Fokker 70 – PH-WXA

The Fokker 70 is a fantastic aircraft; I’ve had the pleasure of flying on it several times; once on an ad-hoc BMI flight from Newcastle to Malaga; an almost surreal experience as its not often you get on an aircraft that small for a charter flight of that length. Anyway, with this kind of experience I was quietly looking forward to my latest flight.

It was around 4.15am when we arrived at Teesside (or should I say Durham Tees Valley). As always, MME was extremely quiet at that hour. On the tarmac were the usual array of overnighters; a BMI A320 waiting for the LHR run (surprised at this, as I was expecting an A319), an Eastern J32 waiting for the Aberdeen flight and a Baby 737 readying for its early morning departure to Palma. The final aircraft was of course our Cityhopper F70, which turned out to be WXA.

There was a fairly stiff northerly on that morning bringing in sleety showers from the North Sea. The captain warned us of turbulence, particularly in Amsterdam where the winds were so strong, they only had one operational runway, which was causing some lengthy delays.

We left approximately half an hour late (we held on the tarmac rather than circle over Amsterdam for a suitable landing slot) and made a smooth westerly climb out of the airport. Lift off was pleasantly smooth.

Service on board is minimal as the flight is only around one hour long. Cold sandwiches and drinks are served, though I found them barely appetizing; as much I think due to the time of day as much as the taste factor.

The approach into Schipol was a little bumpy, but nothing like I was expecting thankfully. We arrived about 10 minutes behind schedule, which still left us with more than enough time for our connection to Newark later on in the morning.

Flight 2
KLM657 – Amsterdam – New York Newark
Boeing 767 – PH-BZH

I’ve never liked the 767; I find it the most bland aircraft out there from an enthusiasts point of view. Sure, it has a purpose and sure it serves that purpose perfectly, but I find it such a non-entity both from a passenger and aesthetic perspective.

KLM’s 767s are due for retirement shortly with the first likely to leave the fleet in Autumn 2005. With this in mind, the aircraft were hardly going to be spotless inside and this was evident in BZH. The interior looked warn; the exterior dirty and in the old livery. Aisle TVs were the order of the day but the entertainment was poor. I didn’t fancy either of the films that were being shown, some of the better radio channels didn’t work and so the 8 hour flight was a bit of a drag.
Aside from very minor turbulence, the flight was thankfully uneventful. The KLM cabin crew were, as always, the most attentive and pleasant crew I have ever come across. They are professional, diligent and will do anything for the passengers. Many crews are of course like this, but you often find forced smiles and an element of ‘falseness’ with other crews; however with KLM, I always get the impression that the staff want to be there, want to help you and actually enjoy every minute of it. That makes such a difference to a flight.

New York was hazy with low cloud, so there was no skyline view on approach; instead we were treated to fog right up until seconds before touch down.

Flight 3
KLM642 – New York JFK – Amsterdam
Boeing 777 – PH-BQB

How different though was the T7 coming home. I’ve flown the T7 before but had forgotten what a beautiful, elegant aircraft she was to fly on. What’s more; KLM’s economy package is the best in the business for comfort and entertainment on these new birds.

Let me enlighten you. The seat recline was exceptional; probably around 30 centimetres. The seat pitch was the best I have ever had on an economy ticket. The head rests were adjustable such that you turn the edges in to accommodate your sleeping head. With all these comforts at their maximum, I was completely stretched out and almost felt as if I was lying down.

Now the best bit; the interactive seat back TVs. Each TV had its own remote control located in the armrest which also acted as a telephone and games console. There were nearly 100 movies to choose from, all of which could be paused at any time to allow a food or toilet break. There was also a range of news, sports, comedy and drama programmes, which also could be selected. I cannot begin to fault what was on offer here; this truly was a pleasant experience.

JFK was congested. We were number 15 in line for departure which meant we crawled along the taxi way for almost half an hour. The weather saw mist and low cloud again prevent a view of the NY skyline which was disappointing, but at least it wasn’t windy or stormy.

The flight itself was perfect. The seat belt signs never came on for the 6 hour journey home and we landed 15 minutes early on a cold, wet Monday morning in Schipol. The winds were strong so the approach was a little rocky, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The best flight I have had in a long time!

Flight 4
KLM1533 – Amsterdam – Durham Tees Valley
Fokker 70 – PH-KZL

Nothing to report here other than one odd point; isn’t it strange how your homebound connecting flight always seems smaller and more uncomfortable than the outbound equivalent? That 777 clearly left an impression!