TUI fly doubles flights Paramaribo

The national carrier, Surinam Airways (SLM), reportedly does not want to respond yet to the fact that TUI fly announced that it would double its flights to Paramaribo and end the codeshare agreement that it had reached with the SLM. TUI fly will reportedly increase the number of flights from Amsterdam to Paramaribo next winter season. “The joint venture with Surinam Airways has been ended. We are still holding talks aimed at buying seats on each other’s flights a socalled agreement,” said Arjan Kers, General Manager at TUI fly Netherlands.

Kers is content with the flights to Suriname that started two years ago in close collaboration with the SLM. “Many Dutchmen have become familiar with Suriname as vacation destination and are enthusiastic. There is a growing demand for vacations in Suriname and that is why we will continue the flights independently,” said Kers who added that the deployment of the Boeing 7878 Dreamliner on the route has made a huge contribution to the satisfaction of the travelers. TUI fly claimed that about 30% of the seats are for travelers who opted for a travel package deal. TUI fly started flying on the Amsterdam-Paramaribo route two years ago. Thanks to the codeshare agreement, TUI fly also placed its flight number on the two weekly flights of SLM on the same route.

The SLM’s Airbus A340300 often had technical problems which is why the national carrier had to opt for a backup plan. This year the SLM’s plane stayed on the airport for several months. TUI fly often deployed the SLM plane on vacation flights to Turkey and the Canary Islands when it needed additional capacity and when the A340 was available at Schiphol between flights to Paramaribo. “That will also come to an end,” said Kers.