KLM review by Mark 2013-06-13

Regularly fly to the Far East and have used KLM many times over the last 27 years. I have noticed a general downward trend in their standards and the last time I flew to Singapore on one of their aging creaky 747's it was so grim I decided to not use them again. I may be wrong but in the economy class where I was sitting it appeared that more seats had been crammed in with consequent loss of leg room. This perception was re-enforced by the total inability to see the small TV screen in the headrest of the seat in front. When the passenger reclined the miserable few degrees allowed the angle of viewing was so extreme regardless of my attempts to move the screen proved fruitless. All I could see was a faint dark shadow viewed from above. I'm not tall at 5'9" (176cm) but I felt like I was being compressed into a small box on that flight. The much taller gentleman sitting in the middle seat next to me was almost in tears with the pain in his legs. The main meal was reasonable by airline standards and most of it was edible. The breakfast which purported to be some sort of omelette (I think) dish was inedible unless you really were starving and at death's door. It would not stretch the truth too much to suggest that the egg based ruberoid thing on my plate could have past as a dog toy with longevity of use easily attainable. It's not all bad though. The cabin crew on KLM flights are generally pleasant and unlike many will happily keep a nervous flyer like myself topped up on suitable alcoholic soporifics. I can contrast that to most of the American airlines where the drinking of more than one beer will label you as a suitable candidate for an AA meeting. Schipol Airport is probably one of the better airports that I've been to and of course Changi is also well known for being clean and efficient. I'd probably say that Schipol is better overall as there are more options for food, drink and shops.