Air France KLM is expanding its cargo, charter services

Air France KLM announced that it will operate services to around 30 long-haul destinations after it saw network crunch around the winter season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This week, Air France KLM increased its flight frequency to Johannesburg, Bangkok, Beijing and Shanghai. The group will continue to improve services in the coming week, restoring operations to Houston and increasing flight frequency to Bamako, Ouagadougou, Chicago, Toronto, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore.

The group’s network is supported by its regular full-freighter services. From Paris Charles de Gaulle, it operates to Dublin, Djibouti, Nairobi, Antananarivo, Reunion, Chicago and Shanghai. From Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, it offers service to Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Lima, Bogotá, Guatemala, Quito, Miami, Harare, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Cairo.

Air France KLM is prioritising repatriation of passengers to their home countries. The group also ensures that medical equipment, facemasks, medicines, foodstuffs and other essential commodities can be efficiently transported. To do so, Air France and the French government have set up an air bridge between Shanghai and Paris. In the Netherlands, a similar initiative was undertaken by the Dutch government, Philips and KLM. Meanwhile, the group ensures that the customers have access to its regular and specialised cargo services. Gertjan Roelands, SVP of sales & distribution for Air France KLM Martinair Cargo: “It is essential to be very agile at this time. We are in very close contact with our customers to ensure that we adjust our network and services to their needs. Close cooperation and partnerships are even more essential during this period.”

In addition, Air France KLM is offering charter services with ample belly capacity on its long-haul passenger aircraft. In response to significant demand for this solution, it has extended the online services. Charter requests can be submitted via a special form on the airline’s website. The group now also has a dedicated charter sales & service team. With these new initiatives, Air France KLM aims to offer the best possible standard of service for this specific product.

Gertjan Roelands: “The importance of online services has been confirmed in this period. Visits to our website increased significantly and we have seen more online bookings. All our staff – frontline, operational and central support – want to help fulfil logistical needs in this unprecedented crisis, while continuing to provide the regular services required by our customers. It is fantastic to see our staff making the difference, even in these challenging times.”