Three KLM flights with problems in one weekend is ‘pure coincidence’

This article was last updated on December 30, 2024

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Three KLM flights with problems in one weekend is ‘pure coincidence’

On Saturday a flight from Oslo to Amsterdam that had to make a precautionary landing in the south of Norway a ‘loud noise’ at the start. Sunday a flight to Shanghai over Azerbaijan turned right due to water shortage due to a leak. And that same day a flight to Singapore, which returned to Schiphol over Germany due to an unspecified technical defect.

So it was a weekend with a surprising number of incidents at KLM, without anyone being injured. A spokesperson for the airline calls the technical problems ‘extremely unfortunate’. “One defect is one too many, it causes a lot of inconvenience for passengers.”

‘A few times a month’

The KLM spokesperson has no figures on how often this happens, but three times in two days is more often than normal. According to KLM, this is a coincidence: “This does not happen every day, normally there is reason for the captain to intervene in the flight schedule several times a month.”

The incidents come against the backdrop of two recent major air accidents Azerbaijan Airlines in Kazakhstan and Jeju Air in South Korea. Aviation expert Joris Melkert thinks that these crashes have now drawn extra attention to the technical problems at KLM. “I think that definitely plays a role. Now there has been three occurrences at KLM, which is purely coincidental. Worldwide, there are a handful of flights with a technical problem every day.”

No risk whatsoever

“Airplanes are technically complex,” Melkert continues. “Sometimes things don’t go perfectly and then a pilot makes the decision: can I continue flying or not?” The flight to Shanghai had already been underway for a few hours when the return flight was departed.

“When considering whether to fly back, you also know that your own maintenance service is available at Schiphol. But then you have passengers and an aircraft in a place where you do not want them. It is always a technical and economic decision. For example, what does it cost if you continue flying and a maintenance service and perhaps an extra aircraft have to be flown in?”

Such technical problems occur regularly and they almost never lead to injuries or deaths. Pilot union VNV emphasizes the safety of flying. “Both aviation technicians and pilots are trained to guarantee safety at all times. No risks are taken,” says vice-chairman Ruud Stegers. “If something unexpected happens along the way, it is up to the captain how to deal with it. This may mean that it is safer to turn back or divert.”

Melkert also emphasizes that flying is still a very safe way to travel. On Aviation Safety Network aviation accidents are recorded. Including the Azerbaijan Airlines and Jeju Air crashes, there have been 305 deaths in commercial aviation worldwide this year. “That is slightly more than the average of 212 over the past 5 years, but still much less than other forms of transport.” Only came to the Netherlands last year 684 people died in a traffic accident.