Airline boss sees Aberdeen as key hub for growing network

Aberdeen is a key and highly valued entry point to a fast growing global network operated by Air France-KLM, one of the airline group's bosses said yesterday.

Speaking during a visit to the Granite City, UK and Ireland general manager Henri Hourcade added there was growing demand for Air France and KLM flights from the north-east to Paris and Amsterdam.

The group has ramped up KLM service rotations from Aberdeen recently, adding an extra daily flight in each direction, and put on bigger aircraft for the Air France-run Paris route.

Mr Hourcade said that with passenger numbers for both routes continuing to increase, there could be further expansion to come, with the group already talking about adding more daily flights between Aberdeen and Amsterdam.

Mr Hourcade reported a 10% rise in the number of Air France-KLM passengers flying in and out of Aberdeen over the past year.

KLM carried 269,000 passengers on its Aberdeen route, while Air France had 113,000 on its flights between the Granite City and Paris.

The overall increase was despite continuing difficult times for the aviation sector, which was hit hard by the credit crunch and subsequent global economic downturn.

More recently, volcanic ash caused widespread disruption to services.

Mr Hourcade said: "We are now carrying around 1,000 people on eight daily flights both to and from Aberdeen, which is a priority airport for us.

"We have increased the service to Amsterdam and expanded capacity on the Paris route, which is exceptional in these difficult economic times."

The group now operates five flights a day from Aberdeen to Amsterdam and three to Paris.

About 60% of passengers on the two routes have connections to other flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol, and Mr Hourcade said that the list of destinations Air France-KLM served from these major hubs was growing fast.

The group operates flights from 22 UK and Irish airports to the French and Dutch capital cities, feeding a global network of more than 250 destinations.

Oil and gas is driving much of the growth at Aberdeen and Mr Hourcade said the industry was a key market, with Air France-KLM now flying to more of the sector's top global hubs.

He said the company was also looking to tap into expected interest in Donald Trump's new golf course near Aberdeen, adding that Air France-KLM would inevitably be flying in many of the golfers from overseas who wanted to play there.

By the end of 2011, the group will have introduced 16 new international routes since March to destinations including Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Havana.