Netherlands

Europe

8Airlines

1Profiled Airports

7With ICAO

7With Callsign

Aviation History

Dutch aviation history centers on Amsterdam Schiphol, opened as a military airfield in 1916, and on KLM (Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij), founded on 7 October 1919 by Albert Plesman — verified as the world's oldest airline still operating under its original name. KLM's first flight, a chartered service between Amsterdam and London, took off in May 1920, and by the late 1920s and 1930s the airline operated what was then the world's longest scheduled route, connecting Amsterdam to Batavia (present-day Jakarta) in the Dutch East Indies. Dutch manufacturer Fokker was one of the world's leading aircraft builders through the interwar and postwar decades before going bankrupt in 1996. The Netherlands was also the site of the deadliest accident in aviation history, the 1977 Tenerife runway collision involving a KLM Boeing 747. In 2004 KLM merged with Air France to form the Air France-KLM Group while retaining its own brand, fleet, and Schiphol hub, which remains one of Europe's largest aviation gateways.

✦KLM is verified as the world's oldest airline still flying under its original name, having operated continuously since 1919 (aside from a wartime suspension).

✦Fokker aircraft were so dominant in the 1920s that the term became nearly synonymous with commercial airliners in parts of Europe.

1916

Schiphol opens as a military airfield

Amsterdam Schiphol began as a military airfield before evolving into the Netherlands' primary civil airport and KLM's hub.

1919

KLM founded

Albert Plesman founded Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KLM) on 7 October 1919; it is recognized as the world's oldest airline still operating under its original name.

1920

KLM's first commercial flight

KLM operated its first flight, a chartered London-Amsterdam service, in May 1920, beginning scheduled international operations.

1929

Amsterdam-Batavia route established

KLM launched service to Batavia (Jakarta) in the Dutch East Indies, then the world's longest scheduled airline route.

1919

Fokker becomes a leading aircraft manufacturer

Dutch manufacturer Fokker, founded by Anthony Fokker, became one of the world's most prominent aircraft builders through the interwar era before its 1996 bankruptcy.

1977

Tenerife airport disaster

A KLM Boeing 747 collided with a Pan Am 747 on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport, Tenerife, killing 583 people in the deadliest accident in aviation history.

2004

KLM merges with Air France

KLM merged with Air France to form the Air France-KLM Group, while retaining its own brand, operating certificate, and Amsterdam hub.

1966

Transavia founded

Transavia was established and later became KLM's low-cost leisure carrier subsidiary, expanding affordable European travel from the Netherlands.

Notable Carriers

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines · Transavia · Martinair

Compiled from general public/encyclopedic aviation history sources (KLM corporate history, Wikipedia); the KLM 'oldest airline' claim is well-documented and widely verified across sources.

Aviation Firsts

Oldest Airport — contested

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol — Amsterdam (1916): Founded as a military airfield in 1916; KLM's first scheduled flight (Amsterdam–London) followed in 1920. Oldest Dutch airport still operating. · AMS ↗ · Wikipedia ↗

Soesterberg Air Base — Soesterberg (1911): Established 1911 (bought by the Dutch Army in 1913) — about 5 years older than Schiphol, but flying operations ended in 2008; no longer an operating airport. · Wikipedia ↗

Soesterberg (1911) predates Schiphol by 5 years but closed to flying in 2008; Schiphol holds the 'oldest still-operating' title.

Oldest Airline

KLM (Koninklijke Luchtvaartmaatschappij) (1919): Founded 7 October 1919; first flight 1920. Widely cited as the world's oldest airline still operating under its original name. · KL ↗ · Wikipedia ↗

First Foreign Ground Handler

Swissport (Switzerland), 1997: Swissport's own abridged corporate history records that operations "expanded to the Netherlands" in the late 1990s, with an original Dutch joint venture closing in 1999 and Swissport re-entering freight handling at Schiphol in March 2005. No exact founding year is given and no source frames this explicitly as the first foreign ground handler, so this is a best-documented but imprecise candidate. (best-documented candidate found — not source-confirmed as literally first.) · Company Histories / Reference for Business ↗