KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf

Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij Interinsulair Bedrijf Batavia (KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf or simply KLM-IIB; English: Royal Dutch Interinsular Airline Services Batavia) was an airline based in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) and the predecessor to Garuda Indonesia.

KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf

IATA ICAO Call sign — KLM —
Founded	1 August 1947
Ceased operations	28 December 1949 (2 years, 4 months and 27 days)
Fleet size	10+
Destinations	Domestic, Singapore, British Malaya and Philippines
Parent company	KLM
Headquarters	Java, Dutch East Indies

KLM Interinsulair Office in Waingapu, (1949)

History

KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf (KLM-IIB) was founded on 1 August 1947 at Kemayoran Airport as a KLM subsidiary (due to the dissolution of Koninklijke Nederlandsch-Indische Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KNILM)),^[1] and all of the aircraft in KNILM fleet were later transferred to KLM-IIB. They also received twenty Dakota aircraft, previously operated by Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger (KNIL).^[2]

Based in Java,^[2] their destinations consisted of domestic routes (within Indonesia) and also international routes (such as Singapore; Penang, British Malaya; and Manila, Philippines),^[3] operated by several Dakotas and nine Consolidated PBY Catalina amphibious aircraft.^[2]

Boarding pass of KLM-IIB

Nationalization by Indonesian government

On 28 December 1949, KLM-IIB was nationalized by the Indonesian government, as agreed by both the Indonesian and Dutch governments during the 1949 Dutch-Indonesian Round Table Conference. Upon the nationalization, the airline was renamed as Garuda Indonesia, now the flag carrier of Indonesia, and it remains to this day.^[2]

Fleet

• DC-3 Dakota, 20
• Consolidated PBY Catalina, 9

Accidents and incidents

News of PK-CTC, written in Dutch

Photograph of PK-REA, as provided by the Nationaal Archief

• On 10 February 1948, Flight 947, a Douglas C-47B (PK-REA), lost control and crashed near Padalarang while attempting to return to Bandung following an engine failure, killing all 19 on board.^[4][5]

• On 8 March 1948, a Consolidated PBY Catalina (PK-CTC) was damaged during takeoff at Poso, Sulawesi and sank, due to "a misunderstanding about the starting procedure to be followed between captain [C.L. van Kooij] and 2nd pilot [M.G. Nicolai] crashed during takeoff." None of the nine crew and passengers were injured. It was damaged beyond repair. It "took all the luggage to the seabed."^[6]

References

1. kikirakaki (2018-01-11). "Sejarah Bandar Udara PERTAMA di Indonesia, Bandara Internasional Kemayoran" [History of the FIRST Indonesian Airport, Kemayoran International Airport]. Kaskus (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2020-10-27.
2. Casius, Gerard; Postma, Thijs (1986). 40 jaar luchtvaart in Indië (in Dutch). Alkmaar. ISBN 978-9060139448.
3. Raditya, Iswara N. (2019-01-15). "Sejarah Garuda Indonesia yang Disebut Bangkrut oleh Prabowo" [The History of Garuda Indonesia, Whom Prabowo Called it Bankrupted]. tirto.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2020-11-02.
4. Accident description for PK-REA at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 20 February 2019.
5. "Crash of a Douglas C-47B-30-DK in Padalarang: 19 killed". Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
6. Dekker, Herman. "Ongevallen/incidenten 1948" [1948 accidents/incidents]. HDekker (in Dutch). Retrieved 2020-10-27.