KLM launches nonstop service to Lima, Peru

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will launch non-stop service to the Peruvian capital Lima on Sunday, March 25, 2007. The six flights per week to Jorge Chávez International Airport will be operated with Boeing 777-200ER equipment. Frequency will be raised to daily service as of December 1, 2007. In so doing, KLM will better meet the wishes of its passengers, who demand the broadest possible range of nonstop, daily frequencies.

Until March 25, 2007, KLM operated daily MD-11 service to Lima via the Caribbean island of Bonaire. By deploying a Boeing 777-200ER, capacity on this route will increase substantially. The number of seats will remain the same, but availability will increase by around 12%, because the flight will no longer stop in Bonaire.

The first nonstop flight to Lima will be operated by a Boeing 777-200ER named after the UNESCO World Heritage Site Machu Picchu. This ancient Inca city, high up in the mountains, overlooks the surrounding hills and the banks of the Urubamba river.

“Latin America is a growing market for the Air France KLM Group,” says Peter Hartman, KLM Deputy President & CEO. “Over the past two years, we have seen an impressive increase in passenger and cargo traffic to and from Peru. In addition, the country is attracting more and more leisure travelers.”

The new nonstop service to Peru reflects Air France-KLM’s strategy to seek and serve destinations in potential growth markets worldwide.