KLM CEO says German train links are too slow for short‑haul connections

KLM wants to increase train‑flight connections for short distances and works with Eurostar to provide fixed capacities on trains to Brussels, Paris and London, according to CEO Marjan Rintel, who has led the airline since 2022 after heading the Dutch railway.

Rintel says a train journey from Amsterdam Schiphol to Berlin currently takes over six hours, with Deutsche Bahn construction extending the trip to 7 hours 12 minutes and requiring at least one transfer; without construction the same 635‑kilometre route would take 6 hours 25 minutes, while the 509‑kilometre Schiphol‑to‑Paris leg takes 3 hours 11 minutes.