On Hato International Airport of Curaçao there's a monument to the historic
Snip Christmas flight (on the parking lot opposite the tower.)
Hato Airport owes much to KLM, for starters one of the longest runways in the Caribbean (which is what the first DC-8s needed).
KLM always wanted to turn Curaçao into a connecting hub between Europe and North and South America,
and only gave up around 2000.
check here for Bonaire
Flamingo Airport
For about twenty years Hato Airport was named Dr. Albert Plesman Luchthaven after the company's famous first director.
The name never stuck, it just isn't snappy like Hato.
I know I'm a fool
but will never understand why they changed that logo.
By the way, whatever became of "The Flying Dutchman"?
Far East correctly points West, between Mexico and Aruba.
A splendidly romantic period piece; so who designed it?
Looks like the iron has given some trouble
(lots of fiberglass there and the bottom pointer to Oslo? Stockholm? is missing).
the monument has been restored for the occasion of the Snip flight's 70th anniversary
From Hato Airport KLM built up their West Indian network, to become ALM Antillean Airlines, and got rid of it later.
It's now called DCA Dutch Caribbean Airlines, except on Aruba where it's DCE, Dutch Caribbean Express.
(Some Arubiano who had registered the name DCA started throwing his weight around).
unveiling in 1935
opening of first Caribbean route (Curaçao-Aruba)
it has changed since 1958
certainly more elegant now
Because of the 70 year Snip celebrations
the monument was restored in 2005
KLM wanted to use Curaçao as a hub
between the Far East, the Americas and Europe.
(here's the story)
Finally, in July 2007, (took them a year)
CAP saw fit to include flight information on their web site.
Arrivals Departures
The story of Hato Airport after take-over by Alterra
who now seem to have completely disappeared.
Hato airport web site
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