VLM Airlines wins prestigious award

VLM Airlines has won the prestigious ‘Passenger Airline Award 2007’ from Amsterdam Airport Schipol in recognition of the developments and initiatives it has taken with its Amsterdam – London City service.

During an official ceremony which took place in Amsterdam last night, Jacques Hoendervangers, Senior Director Aviation Marketing of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, presented the ‘Passenger Airline Award 2007’ to Johan Vanneste, Managing Director of VLM Airlines.

VLM Airlines launched its Amsterdam – London City route on April 4th, 2005 with three flights every weekday. Today, almost 3 years later, the airline has more than tripled the choice of services on offer and now operates 11 flights every weekdaybetween these two cities.

Passenger numbers have also grown steadily over these past three years, with 151,165 passengers travelling on the route in 2007, an increase of 44% compared to the previous year. In 2007 this route accounted for 22% of all passengers of the VLM Airlines network. In October 2006 VLM Airlines successfully introduced the daily Amsterdam – Groningen service.

Johan Vanneste, Managing Director of VLM Airlines, commented: “I’m particularly proud of this achievement and would like to thank everyone who has been involved in making this possible. Our dedication for a fast and hassle-free travel experience and our Belgian hospitality is something that is greatly appreciated by the business travellers who fly with us regularly and we are delighted to have seen our market share increase year on year since we started this route.”

Vanneste adds: “We greatly appreciate the efforts of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in making the airport experience for our passengers swift from check-in to departure, offering them a great time advantage when travelling through this airport and giving them the same travel experience as a regional airport. We remain committed to offering a fast and reliable service to the business community in the years to come, and look forward to working closely together with the professional team at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to achieve our goals on this route.”

With 80% of its passengers travelling for business purposes, VLM Airlines understands the demands of travelling professionals. VLM Airlines is focussed on offering a fast and efficient mode of transport to the heart of London. With the expansion of East London and continuing developments at Canary Wharf, the airline will further increase the number of flights on this route, adding one extra frequency as from the end of March, bringing the total number of flights from Amsterdam to London city to 12 every weekday.