CONTENTS Page 2: President s Message Page 3: Report News & Comments Page 4: Travel Desk Page 5: Organisation Page 6: Christmas Photos ATTACHMENT S 2005 AGM lunch form. Simon s Questionnaire Dates of special Interest 2007: AGM 04 April Day Trip 18 April RAUK Newsletter J anuary 2007 WHAT A TURNOUT? We had a record 93 members and guests at the Christmas Luncheon. It was a great day and I m just sorry I hardly had time to talk with you all. My thanks go to the committee and their partners who make these things happen and especially Vera Engels who not only provides a great array of raffle prizes, at Christmas and our meetings throughout the year but also manned the welcome desk for the Christmas lunch. The weather was kinder to us this year although a few members were frustrated by transport problems. In true (RAUK) Christmas tradition, Jules Schrivjer called Bird H ills from Canada to give his wishes to one and all and also had a nice chat with Olwen. Our thanks must go to the wonderful service Bird Hills Golf Centre gave us, yet again. We do our best to cause them problems. We provide them with a list of how many want soup, Melon Turkey or Beef etc. then we allow free seating, so they don t know who wants what, or where.. Once again they got the better of us BUT we are devising more cunning strategies for next Christmas. Thank You Bird Hills. It was a great pleasure to meet Caroline Vanheck, Head of Customer Relations AF/KLM UK, who presented Marion Webster with two confirmed, anywhere in Europe, tickets. (NB: This prize is drawn from the paid up members list only and is separate from the complimentary luncheon raffle prizes). Caroline passed on news from within the AF/KL organisation and met some ex colleagues too. May I wish everyone a very Happy and prosperous New Year. John Long Tunisia Trip 02-09 May Summer Meeting 04 July Greek Island Trip TBA in Sep Autumn Meeting 03 October Christmas Lunch 05 December Commit tee meetings on: March 21 June 20 September 19 November 21 All this news plus more on our website www.klm-rau k.co.uk Marion Webster (right) receives her prize from Caroline Vanheck + a jealous chairman (left).
News & Comments Pa ge 2 President s Message It has been an interesting KLM year, a year full of change. As you may know, good old Plesman House, since 1990 the head office for KLM UK, located just opposite Heathrow Terminal 4, became also home for our colleagues of Air France UK. We now share these premises, which has lead to a tremendous improvement in the communication between the two teams. AF used to work from an office in Hammersmith and all communication between us went via email. We all find it so much more convenient to see each other when we want to discuss things. Email is a good thing, but personal interaction is always better. Since the merger of our 2 airlines the results have surpassed our most optimistic expectations. Financial analysts take this merger as an example how merger should be done and other airlines watch our progress with envy. As a matter of fact AF-KL is now the largest airline in the world, when measured in terms of revenue. While many inside and outside of KLM had to get used to the idea that we were no longer on our own, now most off us are seeing the benefits of working in such a strong group. I hope that you as retired KLM colleagues share that positive feeling with us. 2007 will again be a year of change. This summer we will merge the commercial organisations of AF and KL in UK & Ireland into one, under one joint General Manager. It has been decided that the first joint GM in the UK will come from Air France and it is my current AF counterpart in London, Mrs Christine Ourmieres, who will be appointed in that role. I will leave this beautiful country with pain in my heart, but I know that the new organisation will be in very good hands with Christine. I hope to be able to introduce her to you a one of your lunch meetings this year. When I know about my next position in KLM, most probably in The Netherlands, I will let you know. May I wish you and your beloved ones a most happy New Year in good health. Vincent Knoops General Manager KLM United Kingdom & Ireland KLM Website Commemorates DC-3 KLM has launched a website commemorating our first flight with the famous Dakota DC-3 on November 13, 1936. A visit to www.pioneersinaviation.nl takes you back to 1936, the year KLM operated its first DC-3 flight to Le Bourget airfield in Paris. On November 13 2006, KLM and Air France jointly celebrated the 70 th anniversary of this flight by reenacting it with a classic DC-3. This commemorative flight was recorded by no fewer than six digital cameras aboard the aircraft. Footage will be posted on internet. A BIG STEP FORWARD - In 1936, KLM became the first airline outside the United States to deploy the Dakota. KLM specifically purchased the aircraft to operate flights to the Dutch colonies in the East Indies and on busier European routes. The DC3 was a vast improvement on its predecessor, the DC2. It could carry 21 passengers, instead of 14 and its range increased from 2,000 to 3,300 km. KLM s first DC3 bore the registration PH-ALI. No fewer than 13,000 Douglas DC3s were sold worldwide, making it the most successful aircraft in the history of commercial aviation. 2006 a Great Success for Sch iphol Schiphol had a highly successful year in 2006. The airport s director, Gerlach Cerfontaine, announced in Jan 2007 that the number of passengers rose by 4.3% to more than 46 million and that cargo traffic increased by 5.5% to 1,530,000 tons. The number of commercial traffic aircraft movements in 2006 rose by 4.5% to 423,000. Mr. Cerfontaine was extremely pleased with these figures: Compared with our main competitors - London Heathrow, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt - we performed extremely well. In terms of passenger transport, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol grew faster than London and Frankfurt, while cargo transport grew faster than London and Paris. This enabled us to maintain our market share among the major European airports. On the subject of Schiphol s growth in 2007 he said, We expect the number of passengers to grow to almost 48 million, cargo transport to almost 1.6 million tons and the number of air transport movements to well over 430,000.
Secr etar ies Repor t Pa ge 3 May I wish all members a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. We are still awaiting some 2007 subscriptions for membership from around 38 members. Can I ask all who have not yet sent their subscriptions to do so ASAP. Our next meeting is the AGM on Wednesday 04 April at 1130 hrs. You will all have received the minutes of the 2006 AGM meeting, it took the form of my report in the April 2006 newsletter. An agenda for the AGM 2007 will be available on the day. If you have any items you would like discussed at the meeting, can you please let me know in good time for inclusion in the agenda. I have received a letter of thanks from The Old Windsor Day Centre to acknowledge their receipt of our donation to their funds. I would also like to tell you that we remain in contact with the KLM retiree associations of Holland, America and Canada. We regularly exchange newsletters and answer queries they may have on principles affecting their members in retirement. You can see their magazine covers below. We are at this time the only KLM retiree association that I know of with its own dedicated website. Do have a look at our website. John has now put all the past issues of the newsletter online in a format that can be read in colour, printed or saved to your computer for reference. I Iook forward to seeing you all at the AGM. Terry Brennan Front Pages of the DUTCH, USA and CANADA KLM retirees newsletters New Hangar for KLM uk Engineering at Norwich (Nov 06) KLM uk Engineering opened its new aircraft maintenance hangar at its Norwich home base in England last week. The enlargement of the existing location will contribute to E&M s subsidiary s ability to expand over the next year from a staff of 50 to one of 350. The opening of the new hangar marks the start of KLM uk Engineering being able to service and overhaul larger aircraft and a wider range of aircraft types, like the Boeing 737NGs, said Onno Pietersma, managing director KLM uk Engineering. We have now increased the capacity to three hangars, with up to eight bays and an extensive workshop. The new hangar also strengthens the relationship with Norwich International Airport, which also stands to benefit from KLM uk Engineering s expanded activities.
Simon s Travel Desk Pa ge 4 Dear Colleagues, Firstly, a very happy new year to you all and I hope our trips at home and abroad are as successful as last year. Simon Aartsen Editor : Travel Desk More Information on http://www.tourismtunisia.com/togo/ hammamet/hammamet.html also http://www.fleetairarm.com Our first trip this year is on the 18 th April to the Fleet Air Arm Museum and the Concord in Yeovilton. We have only 31 bookings so far, so need at least 15 more to break even on the trip. If you are not booked yet, please let me know as soon as possible. The cost of the trip with coach and entry is 18 which I will require 1 month before departu re. Our second trip is to Hammermet, Tunisia from 02 09 May. The Royal Azur is a 5 star hotel and one of the best in the area. We have 24 booked at present which is very good and it may be possible to get extra twin rooms at the same cost of 279 but single rooms are difficult to get and cost an extra 20 pp per night. If you are interested we can try in case there is a cancellation. For those that have paid their deposit and insurance, the balance is due on the 1 st March. The costs are as originally quoted except the Sea View rooms which are 2 pp per night NOT 2 pp for the whole 7 days. Please make cheques payable to Portland Direct and sent to me. For those still wishing to book *** a deposit of 140 plus insurance of 40 needs to reach me before I can make any booking with the balance due on the 1 st March. *** PLEASE NOTE, FOR ALL HOLIDAYS, I CANNOT MAKE A BOOKING FOR YOU UNTIL I RECEIVE YOUR DEPOSIT *** The day trip to the Vineyard on the 5 th September will definitely go ahead. So far we only have 14 bookings and we need 45 to cover costs. If you indicated your interest in any previous questionnaire, there is no need to list it again but I need to hear from all wishing to go. The tour price has increased slightly to 16pp for the coach, morning and afternoon tours. Lunch is not included and can be taken in the well equipped restaurant at the Winery. Please make your bookings using the attached form. The 7 day trip to a Greek island for September is still in the planning stages due to fluctuation of hotel prices in September which are dependant on overall demand. I should have details for the AGM meeting and the next newsletter. If you have any queries or wish to book any trips, please fill in the questionnaire accompanying the AGM lunch request form or call me direct. Simon Tunisia Climate Travel Options Adjusted for KLM Staff The travel options available to KLM employees will be adjusted effective January 1, 2007. The new setup will be finalized following evaluation after a six-month trial phase. Earlier this year in May, EVP P&O Wim Kooijman received a list of 3,700 signatures of KLM employees who share the belief that the ISA travel regulations are no longer balanced. The initiative was taken seriously. In recent months, the management board examined possible adjustments to the existing ISA travel regulations, taking account of tax law and the wishes of our colleagues. This resulted in a package of adjustments which have been put before a sounding board for comment. You will receive more information about the adjustments in due course.
Association and Infor mation Pa ge 5 e-mail your messages/ photos for the next issue or website to webmaster@klm-rauk.co.uk Your Committee: Chairman: John Long 07813887070 webmaster@klm-rauk.co.uk Vice Chairman: John Connolly jc@klm-rauk.co.uk Secretary: Terry Brennan terry@klm-rauk.co.uk Treasurer: Brian Frackelton brian@klm-rauk.co.uk Travel Desk: Simon Aartsen simon@klm-rauk.co.uk Pension Trustee: Irene McKeeman irene@klm-rauk.co.uk ISA Queries: Les Drake dsirfrancis@aol.com KLM/CSC HR Liaison: John Gidlow JG@klm-rauk.co.uk Advisors: Allan Roberts AR@klm-rauk.co.uk Mike Goodyear MG@klm-rauk.co.uk Vera Engels veramfrans@amserve.net Jean Bauling Derek Powell Age creeps up on all of us. Jemima our cat is now 9 and lost without her glasses. John & Olwen Our newsletters are produced in colour but printed in B&W. Recently, all the past issues of the newer style newsletter have been converted to PDF format and are available to read, save and print from the members section of our website. Follow the link to Newsletters and click on the one you want. WANTED Articles for the newsletter and photos for the Newsletter or our web Photo Gallery. Please post them to John Long or e-mail them to: webmaster@klm-rauk.co.uk TEACHER: Now, Simon, tell me truthfully, do you say prayers before eating? SIMON: No sir, I don't have to, my Mum is a good cook. Chr istmas Lun ch 2006 We re on the Web! See us at: www.klm-rau k.co.u k TEACHER: Clyde, your composition on "My Dog" is exactly the same as your brother's. Did you copy his? CLYDE : No Sir, it's the same dog. See lots mor e photos at www.klm-r auk.co.uk/rauk _photogaller ies
Mor e Christmas Lunch Photos Pa ge 6 Anna Mogford & Allan Roberts (in pink) The Ramp Elite Team Brian Frackelton and Marijke Long Irene Mckeeman, John & Sandra Gidlow, Susan George Rod & Brenda Beek, Tricia Fisk Alan Walton and Ron French