BUZZ to fly STN-AMS

[Small Pilot]

AMSTERDAM, July 9 (Reuters) - KLM Royal Dutch Airlines <KLM.N> said on Tuesday its British unit KLM UK would increase capacity of its feeder operations from central London and regional British airports to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport.
KLM UK's low-cost unit buzz will take over the operation from London Stansted to Amsterdam. The changes will come into effect with the start of the winter schedule on October 27.
KLM UK currently flies six times per day from Stansted to Amsterdam. From October 27, this capacity will be used to step up services to Amsterdam from London City Airport, Newcastle and Manchester and to double capacity from Teesside.
Budget airline buzz will operate a five times per day service from Stansted to Amsterdam.

Tuesday, 9 July 2002 10:16:52

[niknak]

I heard a whisper that the long term KLM plan was for Buzz to take over all of KLM UK's routes into Amsterdam.
This would satify the desire of KLM's Top Neddies for the airline to become an all jet airline, from Intercontinental right down to European regional work.
Does anyone know any more?

[Herod]

Good rumour, but totally wrong. KLMuk is a "full service" airline, and as such provides a seamless service linking in to KLM longhaul. Buzz is a "no frills" and does not fit with KLM longhaul at all. The reason buzz is moving onto the Stansted-Amsterdam route is because the majority of passengers on that route are point-to-point, the main interline traffic routeing via Heathrow. This releases a Fokker 100 to add to KLMuk capacity elsewhere.

[682ft AMSL]

Given the focus of extra capacity seems to be in N.England, I'm v.surprised they've overlooked LBA. Since the F100 was reintroduced and the competition for inter-lining traffic from SN disappeared they seem to have been chock-a-block out of here. KLC are even meant to be supplementing the F100 with a daily F70 service starting fairly soon.

682