& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Karel Bram F. Steller / Vice President, MESA Region. KLM

Airline with Global Perspective
KLM is a European airline I with a global perspective This I has been emphasised in the I airline's operations all over the I world including the Middle I East according to Karel Bram I F Steller. Vice President and I Area Manager. Middle East and I South Alia. Steller took over I his position at a delicate period I of the region's history, I specifically in 1991, during the r liberation of Kuwait.
According to him. this | itself was a strong indication of I KLM's commitment to the I region and Dubai in particular Steller was the first Vice President of KLM to take over an overseas position He is in charge of the Middle East and South Asia. As he rightly puts it, the jurisdiction starts in the island of Cyprus and ends in Bangladesh Steller is a prime example of KLM's policy of hands-on management. He has spent only 10 per cent of his time al the head office and the rest working around the world. Steller is very familiar with the workings of this region having been posted in Africa, Nigeria (in the Nigerian Air ways Management team). Egypt. Sudan. Stockholm, etc. He was also involved in implementing the initial groundwork for the KLM-Northwest alliance, which has turned into a very profitable and excellent business venture for both airlines.
Strong commitment
KLM, which began its services to Asia and the Middle East region 70 years ago, still keeps a strong commitment towards these areas. Dubai, of course, plays a very important role in this scheme of things. KLM looks at Dubai not only as one of its prime destinations in the Middle East but also as an important transit point of the regioh. The airline is seriously considering providing a hub status to Dubai and discussions on this matter are already underway.
Also, KLM has an excellent arrangement with Dubai’s top class airline Emirates, According to Steller, Emirates has shown that strong commitment and high quality can create wonders. The airline has changed the world's concept of the Arab region and Dubai, in particular.
Main role
In fact, Steller took charge of the region al a very difficult stage of the KLM's operations. The airline had purchased 747-400s and had-to close down six of its 12 stations in the region because of lack of the need to maintain transit halts. Steller's main role was to check the viability of the region and to see whether it merited a direct flight. His four-year tenure in the region has proved without doubt the potential of the region. Earlier, most stations in the region had just one single flight a week. Specifically Bahrain and Amman. Both were loss-njaking stations; Today, things have turned around and every station is given the option of operating ultiihately daily flights or at least three flights a ' week. Hence, today, KLM is the only European -carrier that operates daily flights out of Amman.
Steller feels he gained this expertise from Northwest Airlines style of functioning by sticking to the economics of scale and increasing productivity. KLM is the only European carrier which has continuously shown more than 10 per cent expansion for four consecutive years. Thus, while most airlines have had decreases, KLM and Northwest have both moved towards expansion.
region and passengers worldwide.
Within Europe there are these yet sameday connections to1 reach the same evening -London, Paris, Manchester. Birmingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Brussels, Aberdeen. Leeds / Bradford. Humberside and Norwich. besides Copenhagen, Stockholm. Zurich. Geneva. Rome. Wanflag, Bremen Milano. Berlin etc
Service will be truly comfortable and hospitable to the Bangladeshis KLM's own Bengali-speaking staff will be available both in the flights and on the ground to give at anytime KLM's friendly service. Special Bangladeshi meals are catered to give a choice next to international cuisine. *
Sophisticated Computerisation
KLM is the first European airline to make a firm, own choice to start strongly with own operations into Dhaka. KLM has opened in cooperation with its Bangladeshi General Sales Agent "Travel Time" through Mr. Aminur Rahman apd Mrs. Shaheen Khan with very sophisticated and fully computerised offices in Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet In Dhaka, a hypermodern PC-base computer and communications network connects all KLM and GSA staff as in the most modern European environment.
Connections
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has drafted a unique schedule for its Dhaka operations : After a comfortable departure at 9.30 a.m. from Dhaka the flight reaches Amsterdam late-after-noon. There are. then, immediate connections to both New York and Washington both for
The KLM-Northwest alliance is truly a global alliance which touches each other on both ends of the world. Northwest is the strongest airline across the Pacific while KLM is the oldest on the Pacific Rim.The airline still retains its office in Calcutta which was then the seal of power KLM has always been an airline that works for the benefit of its passengers by giving the best, says Steller. This means leaving the sale of tickets to the agents, and concentrating on the other aspects ot running a hassle free flight. KLM is primaril” airline most suited ar businessmen says Steller sVith daily non-stop nigh’s on the 747 wide-bodied a*, craft and a strong network in Europe with tight connections from Schiphol (it is the best choice.) KLM flies to more destinations in the UK than even British Airways by gbing into every provincial airport and providing passengers with faster connections on a wide network. Besides according to Steller, Schiphol is the best hub in Europe since it is run as a commercial entity.
Strong connections
Also, businessmen from this region find it essential to travel to the US very often. The KLM-Northwest alliance provides passengers with the option of 250 destinations in North America transiting through Boston, Detroit and Minneapolis. From Amsterdam. KLM connects to 20 cities in the Middle East and 12 in the Far East with very strong connections. Thus, KLM provides passengers with almost the same product as a direct flight with its strong global alliance wf . . .orthwest.
KLM also u interested in promoting tourism in the region either just to Bangladesh or in combination with Nepal.
As a European airline, KLM is able to market this product all over Europe. The tourism package can also extend to India. Speaking about KLM's future plans in this region, Steller says that there are many cities which merit further expansion. But amongst all of them, Dhaka qualifies right on the top with its enormous expected growth and expectations of the export-oriented economy.
, Though KLM is the airline of a tiny country called Netherlands, today it is a European airline which has retained its global perspective even amongst its staff spread all around the.world.
KLM believes in a multiethnic environment where each individual is judgedAccording to his ability, performance and enthusiasm rather than his nationality and the colour of skin seventy-five years after the first flight and being the only airline in the world to •still operate under its own name, KLM has not let complacency take hold. Today, the C stands for Competition, Chances and Cooperation which would niean many more years of quality service to the
businessmen and to reach these important Bangladeshi ethnic communities. Steller became really committed to ensure KLM would fly to Dhaka as soon as possible. Firstly, the Chairman of KLM, Dhaka GSA •' Travel Time" Mr. Aminur Rahman travelled to Dubai and succeeded to convince him only to take decisions after a personal visit to Bangladesh.
Secondly, the former Netherlands, Ambassador to Bangladesh H.E.H. Gajentaan pleaded warmly and convincingly for KLM's entrepreneurship not to wait for others to discover the new developments in the country and an expanding export-oriented economy.
Thirdly, a market-research was commissioned and confirmed the above even stronger. KLM's startup was
overdue.
Meanwhile, a very cordial relationship was built with the Bangladeshi Governmental authorities and in particular with the Biman" colleagues. A very close harmony and friendship with Biman Commercial Director Mr Salahuddin and his commercial team was developed over the last two years. Steller expresses great admiration for the business acumen of an airline-veteran like Mr. Salahuddin a pure marketeer with a strong sense for service and market demands May be no fear, but sincere respect for competitor, and colleague Biman can be heard in the voice of Bram Steller. He looks forward to strengthen the ties with Biman much further in the near future.
—Leena Mathew