Netherlands

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    Hot Wizzair Leaves Smoke Trail


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Andrei Mihaila

    What: Wizzair Airbus A320-200 en route from Riga to Eindhoven
    Where: Eindhoven Netherlands
    When: Mar 16th 2012
    Who: 174 aboard
    Why: After making a safe landing, while on the runway, smoke was observed trailing from an engine. Emergency services responded to the scene.

    It is not known if passengers disembarked on the runway, by mobile stairs or slides or if they were taken to the gate.

    THe cause of the smoke was attributed to an oil leak.

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    Netherlands Emergency Landing

    What: Vueling A320 en route from Amsterdam to Bilbao
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Mar 8 2012
    Who: not available
    Why: The flight was en route when it developed problems with the hydraulics. A “3-VOC” message was sent out from Schiphol Airport.

    Pilots returned to Amsterdam and made a safe landing with emergency services on standby. Local television was already interviewing passengers before the plane stopped on the runway.

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    British Airways Emergency Landing in Amsterdam


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Rafael Alvarez Cacho

    What: British Airways Airbus A321-200 en route from London to Amsterdam
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Mar 2nd 2012
    Why: While landing in Amsterdam, communications became disrupted between two landing pilots.

    The crew of the British Airways flight made a cautious safe landing ten minutes after radio problems began.

    The plane was able to perform the return flight as scheduled.

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    Inebriated Passenger Attempts Exit During Afrika-Netherlands Flight

    What: KLM Boeing 777-200, registration PH-BQB en route from Johannesburg to Amsterdam
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Nov 25th 2011
    Who: one passenger
    Why: While en route, a thirty-one year old male passenger believed to be under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol became unruly. After harassing other passengers, the passenger ignored warnings of the crew, attempted to open the plane’s emergency exit and cockpit. He was subdued, and on landing in Amsterdam, was handed over to military police.


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    KLM: Flat Tire


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Andreas Mueller – Spotterteam Graz

    What: KLM Boeing 777-200 en route from Atlanta,GA to Amsterdam
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Feb 3
    Why: After a successful flight from Atlanta to Amsterdam, the flight crew reported a flat tire prior to landing.

    * (The plane’s indicators include a tire pressure indicator. As a rule, when 5 of the 6 main landing gear tires are correct, the pressure is adequate for landing.)

    However, they made a successful landing and taxied to the gate.

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    Lufthansa restructures passenger business organisation

    Stronger customer focus through more efficient structures / Divisionalisation strategy to be continued / Launch of “Future Berlin” project / Changes to take effect on 1 April 2011

    Lufthansa is restructuring its passenger business organisation to take account of the changing competitive landscape. The new, more customer-driven organisation will also allow the company to respond more effectively to market challenges. The aim is to sharpen the focus on customers and the competition while at the same simplifying and speeding up internal decision-making and management processes.
    Ongoing development of the organisation will strengthen and sustain Lufthansa’s passenger business divisions, which will in future benefit from more efficient structures that are tailored to changed customer requirements, tougher competition and also to the new Group structure. The changes will take effect on 1 April.

    The re-allocation of responsibilities and new appointments to the Lufthansa German Airlines Board announced on 7 December 2010 will also become effective on 1 April. Captain Kay Kratky will then be responsible for the Frankfurt and Flight Operations division, Thomas Klühr for Munich and Direct Services and Jens Bischof for Sales and Revenue Management. Dr. Roland Busch will remain in charge of the Finance and Human Resources division. Carsten Spohr took up his position as a member of the Lufthansa Executive Board and, simultaneously, CEO Lufthansa German Airlines on 1 January.

    In the Finance and Human Resources division, the Controlling, Human Resources, Procurement, Airport Relations, Information management functions and a Finance project will have a direct reporting line to Dr. Roland Busch. Antonio Schulthess, who is joining Lufthansa from Swiss International Air Lines, will be responsible for Human Resources. Management of the other functions remains unchanged.

    In the Sales and Revenue Management division, headed by Jens Bischof, greater emphasis will be placed on Lufthansa’s business and leisure travel sales activities. To that end, a new department responsible for the business travel segment will be set up and headed by Marcus Frank. Christian Tillmans, meanwhile, will be in charge of private customer sales and tourism in the leisure travel business segment. In future, Sales and Revenue Management will be merged under the management of Lars Redeligx. From April, a number of appointments will be taken up in area sales management. Uwe Müller will be responsible for Germany and the Lufthansa Airline Group markets (Switzerland and Austria), while European markets will remain the remit of Dr. Karsten Benz. Jürgen Siebenrock, who is joining Lufthansa from Lufthansa Cargo, will be responsible for managing markets in the Americas and Steffen Harbarth will be in charge of Asia/Pacific. Joachim Steinbach will remain responsible for Africa and the Middle East.

    The reorganisation of the Frankfurt and Flight Operations division will create four functions with a direct reporting line to Captain Kay Kratky. Dr. Alexis von Hoensbroech will be responsible for Commercial Management. Andreas Döpper will remain in charge of Station and Infrastructure Development at Frankfurt. Wolfgang Kolhagen, who is moving from Condor Flugdienst GmbH to Lufthansa, will assume responsibility for cabin crew at Frankfurt. The Operations department at Frankfurt, which will in future incorporate flight operations as well as specific ground processes, will be headed by Captain Werner Knorr.

    Following the creation of the new Munich and Direct Services division headed by Thomas Klühr, the strategy of divisionalisation will be carried forward and developed. The organisational structure of the operational units at Frankfurt will also be established in full at Munich under Helmut Wölfel as Commercial Manager. Captain Kai-Uwe Spannbauer will be in charge of Operations at MUC. In future, Munich cabin crews will be managed by Heike Birlenbach, while Burkhard Feuge will be responsible for Station and Infrastructure Development at Munich. Oliver Wagner will remain in charge of Direct Services, which will be responsible for all Lufthansa flights that are not routed through the Frankfurt or Munich hubs. Responsibility for Lufthansa’s activities in Italy will be bundled in a separate department and assigned to Michael Kraus, who will thus be responsible for Lufthansa Italia operations and Lufthansa’s sales organisation in Milan. In addition, he will remain Managing Director of Air Dolomiti.

    As part of the restructuring process, new cross-functions will also be created. In future, aside from strategy development, the Business Development unit will oversee network and corporate development as well as fleet dimensioning and allocation. This function will be headed by Armin Herzwurm. Product and Marketing Management will be bundled in another cross-divisional function, which will be managed from April by Dr. Reinhold Huber. The new “Future Berlin” project will be launched to look into ways of expanding Lufthansa’s market position in Berlin. The manager responsible for this new function will be Josef Bogdanski. Managers in charge of the cross-functions will report direct to the CEO of Lufthansa German Airlines, Carsten Spohr.

    Christian Tillmans’ move from the management of Lufthansa CityLine to Lufthansa will create a vacancy on the Board at Lufthansa’s regional subsidiary. Stephan Klar will therefore be proposed to the Lufthansa CityLine Supervisory Board as a new member of the airline’s Board of Directors.

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    Boeing, Netherlands MOD Mark 1st Flight of Royal Netherlands Air Force CH-47F (NL) Chinook

    Ridley Township, Pa., Jan. 26, 2011 — Representatives of Boeing [NYSE: BA], its suppliers and the Netherlands Ministry of Defence marked the first flight of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) CH-47F (NL) Chinook heavy-lift helicopter in a ceremony Jan. 25 at Summit Aviation in Middletown, Del.

    The aircraft made its first flight on Dec. 8 and is scheduled to complete its flight test program in August after approximately 100 flight hours. There are two aircraft in flight test.

    The RNLAF has ordered six CH-47F (NL) Chinooks to enhance its current fleet of 11 CH-47D (NL) aircraft. The new Chinooks are equipped with survivability equipment, a forward-looking infrared system, and fast rope positions, which will be used to support Special Forces operations. The engines will include air particle separators for operation in harsh environments. These additions will make the RNLAF CH-47F a versatile, multi-role aircraft for worldwide operations.

    Boeing expects to begin delivering the aircraft later this year, making the RNLAF the first international customer to field the new CH-47F.

    The flight tests have included assessments of the advanced operational capabilities enabled by the aircraft’s Avionics Control and Management System cockpit and newly integrated Digital Automatic Flight Control System. By the conclusion of the tests, the aircraft will be certified airworthy by the Netherlands Military Aviation Authority.

    “The Chinook has over the years proven itself to be a true workhorse for the Netherlands Air Force,” said Air Commodore Theo ten Haaf, Commanding Officer Defence Helicopter Command of the RNLAF. “The aircraft proved to be ‘the right tool’ for a difficult and challenging job, especially in austere environments and during the combined air and ground operations in Afghanistan. Both ground troops and aircrew speak highly of it.”

    He added, “The CH-47F is a major improvement over the 47D model. The arrival of these new aircraft in the RNLAF will ensure that the RNLAF continues to operate with the best in the field of tactical transport helicopter operations both now and in the future.”

    “Our goal is to use available technology to provide customers with the best solutions while enabling long-term sustainability,” said Leanne Caret, H-47 Programs vice president for Boeing. “We have a long-standing relationship with the Netherlands and this new aircraft is another example of our focus on providing advanced solutions to meet our customers’ growing demands.”

    The Netherlands MOD and Boeing also are evaluating a potential upgrade of the current CH-47D (NL) Chinook fleet to the new CH-47F (NL) configuration.

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    Cathay Pacific Lands in Amsterdam with one engine down


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    Contact photographer Peter Kesternich

    What: Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 en route from Hong Kong to Amsterdam
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Jun 27th 2010, 6:35 am
    Who: 377 passengers and 20 crew
    Why: On landing in Amsterdam, one of the plane’s four engines developed a problem and was shut down. The flight made a safe landing in Amsterdam on three engines. A replacement engine was flown in to Amsterdam to repair the plane.

    George’s Point of View

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    Royal Air Maroc Loses Bird Encounter


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    Contact photographer Roberto Bianchi

    What: Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-400 en route from Amsterdam to Nador
    Where: Amsterdam
    When: Jun 6th 2010
    Who: 156 passengers and 6 crew
    Why: On takeoff, the plane encountered a flock of geese, which resulted in an engine fire, damage to the left engine fan blade and denting the inlet. The engine was shut down, fire suppression engaged, and the crew returned to the airport where they made a safe landing. Passengers disembarked on the runway after less than a twenty minute flight.