TallDutch
2007-10-10, 03:23 AM
Business and government leaders embraced Tuesday's announcement that Northwest Airlines will begin connecting the Rose City with the land of tulips.
Word of a new Portland-Amsterdam nonstop flight began circulating Monday, but Doug Steenland, Northwest's chief executive, made it official during a morning gathering at Portland International Airport. Daily nonstops will begin March 29.
He and others said the new flights would create competition for Portland-area leisure travelers who until now have enjoyed only one trans-Atlantic nonstop, to Frankfurt on Lufthansa. The flights also are expected to strengthen business ties between Oregon and Europe.
"This is a very big deal," said Dan Zenka, brand management director of FEI Co., a high-tech company with 400 employees at its Hillsboro headquarters and 575 more at a site in the Netherlands. "We've lived a long time without convenient connections."
Similarly, Ted Cullen, travel director at Nike, said he was "thrilled." The Beaverton-area shoe and sports apparel maker's European headquarters are about a half-hour from Amsterdam.
"This is great for Nike and encouraging news for consumers," Cullen said.
Airline pricing can change hourly, and Northwest did not say what it plans to charge for a round-trip flight. On Tuesday, pricing on Northwest's Web site for a PDX-Amsterdam nonstop leaving March 29 and returning a week later was $1,051 for economy class, including fees and taxes.
Flights on the same dates from PDX to Frankfurt on Lufthansa were listed at $1,041 on Lufthansa's Web site.
Bill Wyatt, executive director of the Port of Portland, which operates the airport, said Northwest approached the Port about starting the Amsterdam service. Northwest has been a business savior at PDX since it began Portland-Japan nonstops in June 2004, filling a hole left by Delta Air Lines after it abandoned its PDX-Asia routes in 2001.
Wyatt said he thinks there is enough business and leisure demand from PDX to Europe to support Northwest's and Lufthansa's services.
Travelers will be able to connect throughout the West via partnerships Northwest has with Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. In Amsterdam, travelers can connect to more than 80 destinations in Europe, Africa, India and the Middle East on Northwest alliance partner KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
The flights will be on Airbus A330-200s, seating 32 in business class and 211 in economy. The planes feature on-demand movies, music and games in seatback-mounted monitors.
Laura Liu, Northwest's senior vice president, international, said the airline intends to keep the flights daily. Lufthansa found that it had to cut back service to several times a week in winter months because travel slows to and from Portland.
"We think it's important for the business community that when they want to fly, we're ready," Liu said.
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oreg ... xml&coll=7 (http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1191986706187180.xml&coll=7)
Word of a new Portland-Amsterdam nonstop flight began circulating Monday, but Doug Steenland, Northwest's chief executive, made it official during a morning gathering at Portland International Airport. Daily nonstops will begin March 29.
He and others said the new flights would create competition for Portland-area leisure travelers who until now have enjoyed only one trans-Atlantic nonstop, to Frankfurt on Lufthansa. The flights also are expected to strengthen business ties between Oregon and Europe.
"This is a very big deal," said Dan Zenka, brand management director of FEI Co., a high-tech company with 400 employees at its Hillsboro headquarters and 575 more at a site in the Netherlands. "We've lived a long time without convenient connections."
Similarly, Ted Cullen, travel director at Nike, said he was "thrilled." The Beaverton-area shoe and sports apparel maker's European headquarters are about a half-hour from Amsterdam.
"This is great for Nike and encouraging news for consumers," Cullen said.
Airline pricing can change hourly, and Northwest did not say what it plans to charge for a round-trip flight. On Tuesday, pricing on Northwest's Web site for a PDX-Amsterdam nonstop leaving March 29 and returning a week later was $1,051 for economy class, including fees and taxes.
Flights on the same dates from PDX to Frankfurt on Lufthansa were listed at $1,041 on Lufthansa's Web site.
Bill Wyatt, executive director of the Port of Portland, which operates the airport, said Northwest approached the Port about starting the Amsterdam service. Northwest has been a business savior at PDX since it began Portland-Japan nonstops in June 2004, filling a hole left by Delta Air Lines after it abandoned its PDX-Asia routes in 2001.
Wyatt said he thinks there is enough business and leisure demand from PDX to Europe to support Northwest's and Lufthansa's services.
Travelers will be able to connect throughout the West via partnerships Northwest has with Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. In Amsterdam, travelers can connect to more than 80 destinations in Europe, Africa, India and the Middle East on Northwest alliance partner KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
The flights will be on Airbus A330-200s, seating 32 in business class and 211 in economy. The planes feature on-demand movies, music and games in seatback-mounted monitors.
Laura Liu, Northwest's senior vice president, international, said the airline intends to keep the flights daily. Lufthansa found that it had to cut back service to several times a week in winter months because travel slows to and from Portland.
"We think it's important for the business community that when they want to fly, we're ready," Liu said.
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oreg ... xml&coll=7 (http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1191986706187180.xml&coll=7)