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KLM is the abbreviated form of Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, which literally means Royal Aviation Company. KLM is a subsidiary of Air France-KLM. Prior to its merger with Air France, KLM was the national airline of the Netherlands. KLM has Amsterdam Airport Schiphol as her home base.
KLM is the oldest airlines in the world. It was founded on October 7, 1919. The airlines made its maiden flight on May 17, 1920 when a Airco de Havilland DH16 took off from London to Amsterdam carrying two English journalists and a number of newspapers. In 1921 KLM started regularly scheduled services. By 1926, KLM was offering flights to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Brussels, Paris, London, Bremen, and Copenhagen.
In May2004, Air France took over KLM, resulting in the creation of Air France-KLM. Air France-KLM is incorporated under French law and its headquarters are located at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris.
KLM operates modern fleet of 190 aircrafts with an average age of 9.9 years in April 2006. The fleet consists of Airbus A330-200, Boeing 737-300, Boeing 737-400, Boeing 737-800, Boeing 737-900, Boeing 747-400, Boeing 747-400ERF, Boeing 767-300ER, Boeing 777-200ER, and Boeing 777-300ER.
Presently, KLM in close cooperation with Air France offers passengers and airfreight shippers more than 250 destinations worldwide. In India, KLM flies to Delhi and Mumbai.