KLM to launch nonstop service to Cape Town and Johannesburg

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is to launch a nonstop round-trip service to the South African cities of Cape Town and Johannesburg at the start of the 2003/2004 winter schedule. At present, passengers flying to and from Cape Town are faced with a routine stopover in Johannesburg.

By "splitting" these two destinations and serving them both with nonstop flights only, KLM will meet growing market demand for direct flights between Amsterdam and these cities. The new services will connect seamlessly with KLM and partners' global route network via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Effective October 26, 2002, KLM will begin operating daily nonstop round-trips between Amsterdam and Johannesburg with Boeing 747-400 equipment. Flight KL 591 departs from Amsterdam at 10:00, arriving in Johannesburg at 19:45. The return flight, KL 592, departs from Johannesburg at 21:40 and arrives in Amsterdam the following morning at 09:35.

Effective the same date, KLM will begin operating four weekly nonstop round-trips between Amsterdam and Cape Town with Boeing 747-400 equipment. On Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, flight KL 597 will depart from Amsterdam at 21:00, arriving in Cape Town the following morning at 09:20. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Mondays, the return flight, KL 598, will depart from Cape Town at 18:55, arriving in Amsterdam the following morning at 05:30. The new service without the stopover cuts flying time between Amsterdam and Cape Town by 2.5 hours.