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| Mr. Zhang Guosheng, Economic Counselor Chinese Embassy and Mr. Pieter Elbers, president & CEO KLM, see the first passenger flight from KLM to Shanghai off on Tuesday 21 July. Photo KLM |
As of Tuesday 21 July, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines resumed passenger flights from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Shanghai due to the relaxation of travel restrictions by the Chinese government. These flights are in addition to the cargo airlift that started on 20 April for the transport of medical supplies.
Flights to mainland China were suspended at the beginning of February in connection with COVID-19. KLM now operates one flight a week to Shanghai, which is operated with a Boeing 777-300 and makes a stop in Seoul (South Korea) on both outbound and inbound flights.
With the reopening of the Amsterdam-Shanghai route, KLM emphasizes the importance of the Chinese market in its network. The warm ties were the reason for Economic Counselor Chinese Embassy Mr. Zhang Guosheng and KLM's CEO Mr. Pieter Elbers to see this first flight off.
Additional hygiene measures
Naturally, KLM has taken measures to ensure that the flight is safe for both passengers and crew. For example, face masks are mandatory when boarding and during the flight, there are extra hygiene equipment on board, such as hand sanitizer, and KLM's aircraft are thoroughly cleaned. The air on board is quickly refreshed using HEPA filters. For more information about the hygiene measures on board, see this video: https://youtu.be/frPO6b58kcU
KLM naturally complies with the strict requirements set by the Chinese government for the resumption of international flights. This means that passengers must complete a health declaration form online and that the temperature of passengers is checked. The toilets, for example, are also inspected extra frequently during the flight. Furthermore, there are as few contact moments as possible between crew and passengers, which means there is limited catering available on these flights.
KLM President & CEO Pieter Elbers said: "The resumption of flights to Shanghai is a cautious but positive sign of recovery and illustrates our good relationship with China and our partners there. KLM is carefully expanding its network to make sure our customers have as much choice of destinations as possible. The fact that we can now offer Shanghai again is an important milestone in the laborious reconstruction of the KLM route network at a difficult time."
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