KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has begun commercial flights with its first Airbus A321neo
aircraft, with the aircraft flying for the first time between Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Copenhagen, Denmark.
Flying to CPH on its inaugural journey
According to Flightradar24 data, the KLM
A321neo flew between Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) and Copenhagen Airport (CPH) in the early morning hours of September 16.
The aircraft, registered as PH-AXA, operated flight KL1267 between AMS and CPH, departing the former airport at 7:45 local time (UTC +2) and arriving at the latter at 8:40 local time (UTC +2).
Following the inaugural commercial flight, the A321neo returned to AMS on flight KL1268.
Photo: KLM
Subsequently, the single-aisle jet left AMS toward Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER)
on another journey between two European capitals.
The A321neo has departed AMS at 13:04, still being airborne at the time of writing. Previous flights operated under the code KL1777 between AMS and BER with a Boeing 737-800 typically spent around 50 minutes in the air before reaching its destination in Germany.
A KLM spokesperson told Simple Flying that today was a special day for the airline, as its brand-new A321neo has made its first flight.
“The introduction of the A321neo is an important step that KLM is taking to be cleaner, quieter, and more efficient. It is a great product for our customers and a fantastic aircraft for all our colleagues to work with. At the end of September, we will add the second Airbus A321neo to our fleet.”
Further destinations
According to the flight tracking website, KLM has scheduled another three flights for the aircraft. In addition to the return journey from BER to AMS, it will fly from the Dutch capital to Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN).
Flightradar24 schedules showed that the A321neo would continue flying from Amsterdam to the aforementioned European capital cities in the following days, corroborating the airline’s previous statements about the type’s initial network.
Photo: KLM
However, in addition, the airline has planned that the type would also fly to Paris Charles de Gaulle International Airport (CDG), Prague Václav Havel Airport (PRG), and Vienna Airport (VIE) shortly after.
Furthermore, data from the aviation analytics company Cirium showed that in November, the Dutch carrier has scheduled flights with the type from AMS to additional European destinations as well, including Manchester Airport (MAN), Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD), and London Heathrow Airport (LHR)
.
As a result, KLM’s A321neo network in November should look like this:
Photo: Great Circle Mapper
Renewing its short-haul fleet
KLM, which had been one of the stakeholders opposing the Dutch government’s plans to limit operations at AMS due to noise and emissions concerns, has undertaken a fleet renewal process to refresh its single-aisle jet fleet.
According to the carrier’s statement in August, its incoming Embraer E195-E2s
will operate alongside the E175 and E190 aircraft at KLM Cityhopper, its regional subsidiary.
Meanwhile, KLM has begun replacing its Boeing 737-800s
with A320neo and A321neos, citing the latter two aircraft’s fuel efficiency and reduced noise footprint due to the newer engines and other technologies onboard the next-generation Airbus aircraft.