KLM TO CONSTRUCT NEW ANIMAL QUARANTINE FACILITY AT SCHIPHOL AIRPORT

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is to invest approximately NLG 3 million in construction of a new animal quarantine station at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport for completion in mid-2001. Once the new station is operational, KLM will be the only cargo handling company at Schiphol to meet EU import regulations on livestock. Dutch government authorities have ordered other handling companies at Schiphol to close down their facilities effective January 1, 2001, as these do not meet new EU standards. Domestic pets such as cats and dogs being transported for non-commercial purposes and horses are excepted.

KLM Cargo has implemented a range of drastic measures in the past 12 months to guarantee the quality of the everyday handling of its animal shipments. The division has initiated trials jointly with the Dutch national veterinary service (Rijksdienst voor keuring van Vee en Vlees, RVV), whereby documentation for animal shipments to the Netherlands is presented to the RVV prior to the actual flight, to prevent animals arriving at Schiphol from outside the country without proper documentation.

KLM Cargo has also restricted its use of cargo agents to a selected number who can guarantee that their shipments conform to national and international regulations. The new quarantine station will be the final link in the transport chain ensuring that any animals whose state of health is in any doubt can be cared for under the proper conditions.

The new animal quarantine facilities will not lead to KLM Cargo taking over transportation from other handling companies. Physical and staffing capacity at KLM Cargo’s existing Schiphol Animal Hotel is insufficient to allow for such expansion. Additionally, KLM Cargo would run the risk that this facility would be threatened with closure on the grounds that other companies do not meet the same quality standards, jeopardizing KLM’s own animal transportation business.

In cases where a shipment of animals does threaten to become stranded at Schiphol despite the government’s decision, KLM and RVV have agreed on a series of additional measures. If a situation does threaten which would cause distress to animals, then KLM Cargo will make specialized animal attendants available to care for them. Simultaneously, KLM and RVV will consult on whether and when the animals are fit to be shipped back to their country of origin.