An open letter to Air France and KLM

What everyone should know about air travel.

OPEN LETTER TO AIR FRANCE AND KLM

By Diana Fairechild

Faxed on 10-08-03 to Air France & KLM and published in the Jet Smart Newsletter

"They jump from a New York to Rome flight for another leaving for Bangkok where they stay only a few hours to sign a business deal before jumping on an other jet.... Fairechild now offers consulting to business travelers." -Paolo Pontoniere , L'Espresso (Italy)

"Over 21 years, Diana Fairechild flew as a flight attendant all over the world. During that time she became more and more aware of the effects of nonstop flying on her health and well-being." -Magariet (Netherlands)

TO: L.M VAN WIJK
President and CEO KLM Airlines

TO: JEAN-CYREL SPINETTA
Chairman and CEO Air France

From: Diana Fairechild
Publisher Flyana.com

Date: October 8, 2003

OPEN LETTER TO YOU AND SHAREHOLDERS

I'm writing to extend congratulations on your billion-dollar alliance, and also to offer my "two cents" garnered as an air hostess flying 10 million miles over 21 years. I am now a passenger advocate and author of Jet Smart, Jet Smarter, The Jet Safe & Easy Series, and Flyana.com.

It is my hope that the so-called "broad industry woes" of these times do not translate into more passenger woes. Your plan to serve the flying public with 540 airplanes and 106,000 airline employees is a grand aspiration. I sincerely request you to please remember the aspirations of your passengers -- literally: "breathing."

Today, recirculating cabin air is a pervasive airline budget-cutting practice. Though recirculated air may be cost effective for the airlines, it is not cost effective for society. As you know, when airplane air is recirculated, disease organism stowaways infect passengers more quickly.

I encourage you to provide passengers with the best quality air available and become known as the first passenger-healthy carrier. Your passengers deserve the same quantity of oxygen that your pilots breathe. Treating passengers right will ultimately insure your market share.

I have written a Passengers' Bill of Rights and urge you to bring this document into your boardroom while you hammer out the details of the Air France-KLM alliance.

Wishing you blue skies ahead,

Diana Fairechild

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