The Snip to the West Indies

1934 de 'Snip' naar West-Indië

The Fokker F-XVIII PH-AIS
The Fokker PH-AIS (the Snip) was a Fokker F-XVIII that operated the first transatlantic flight of KLM's West Indies Company from Schiphol to Curaçao.

Because of the great distance, the device was modified. Additional fuel and oil tanks were installed and the aircraft was also equipped with more powerful engines of the type Pratt & Whitney Wasp TD-1 with 550 hp each.
Furthermore, the trip was extensively prepared and supported. The Royal Navy stationed the submarine Hr. Ms. K XVIII, and the KNSM deployed several ships to assist with navigation.

The plane took off on December 15, 1934 around midnight, with the crew captain Jan Hondong, co-pilot Jan van Balkom, telegraph operator Simon van der Molen and mechanic Leo Stolk.
A few days flew from Amsterdam via Marseille, Alicante and Casablanca to Praia in the Cape Verde Islands (the route had been modified shortly before due to weather conditions). There was a break of three days and the Snip was prepared for the crossing of the Atlantic.

On December 19, 1934, the Snip left and reached the Zanderij airport in Paramaribo 17 hours later.
From there they flew to the final destination Curaçao, where they landed at Hato airport on December 22.
The distance of a total of 12,200 kilometers was covered in 54 hours and 27 minutes. For this achievement, all crew members received a Royal honor.

On Curaçao, the Snip became the first aircraft of KLM's West Indies Company. The registration was changed to PJ-AIS.

Since 1992, the Snip's cockpit and mid-engine have been exhibited in the Curacao Museum in Willemstad.

Source: https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fokker_PH-AIS

Docudrama about KLM's first flight to Curaçao with the "Snip"

Dutch spoken with English subtitles

Share by: