KLM Cityhopper May Add More Seats On Its E2s And Take Options Earlier

KLM Cityhopper is considering adding more seats to its Embraer E195-E2 fleet and may use its E2 aircraft options earlier to overcome Amsterdam Schiphol Airport’s capacity-reduction goals.

“Amsterdam [Schiphol Airport] is making our lives difficult,” KLM Cityhopper MD Maarten Koopmans said during a recent Embraer media briefing.

The Dutch government has decided to restrict flights at Schiphol from 500,000 flights per year to a total of 460,000 flights per year to reduce noise pollution.

Koopmans maintained that the efficiency and environmental friendliness of the E2 is particularly important in Amsterdam. “The aviation industry needs to change; we want to be ahead of the change,” Koopmans said, stressing that the controversies in Amsterdam mainly concern noise. “The E2s already have 60% less noise compared to our former Fokker fleet and around 30% less emissions.”

With less flights possible in the future, several airlines are now planning to increase their Amsterdam seat capacity with larger aircraft. KLM Cityhopper is one of them and is taking a closer look at its current E195-E2 seat capacity.

“We have 132 seats in the E2, and we are considering increasing that to 136 seats. However, we remain confident that we can keep the product for our business class passengers at the same level,” Koopmans told Aviation Week. “We have 25 E2 E195 options, and we are discussing how to speed up their entry-into-service.”

Koopmans noted KLM Cityhopper experienced quite a few problems introducing the E2 fleet, which led to groundings in 2022 and 2023. “But now all our jets are in operation,” he said.

However, issues remain with the Pratt & Whitney PW1900G Geared Turbofan (GTF) engines, which power E190/195-E2 aircraft. “It’s simply a new type of engine that consumes 30% less fuel per seat than the Fokker jets,” Koopmans said. Given the current problems related to engine maintenance, the airline will be forced to park some aircraft in the coming period. Nevertheless, Koopmans is confident the airline will find other capacities to cover the gap, especially since the latest E2 aircraft to be delivered will most likely no longer be experiencing this problem.

Koopmans said the GTF issues are impacting the E2s less than the Airbus A220s, which are also powered by Pratt & Whitney engines. Firstly, because the E2 is nine tons lighter than the A220, which requires less engine thrust and this is also of shorter duration during takeoff. This means the engine is not as stressed and is less affected, he said. “In any case, this problem will continue to concern us for the next year-and-a-half or so,” Koopmans said. “We hope that Pratt & Whitney will sort out the engine maintenance issues and spare parts availability.”

In 2008, KLM Cityhopper took delivery of its first E190-E1, which started the replacement of its traditional Fokker Jet fleet. The first E175 joined the carrier in 2014, followed by the E195-E2 from 2021 onward. KLM Cityhopper now operates 65 Embraer jets, including 17 E175s, 30 E190s and 18 E195-E2s. “Four E2s will be delivered this year, and three more will join the fleet in 2025,” Koopmans added.

“We are the backbone of KLM with 400 daily flights and also have the most flight movements at Schiphol, more than our big parent KLM,” Koopmans said. He describes the cost per seat on the E2 as very competitive. “The E2 can compete very well and opens up new markets for us. Based on this cost structure, KLM Cityhopper can one day play an even bigger role than it does today,” Koopmans said.