4 Photos of Naked KLM Aircraft Leaked!

Oops.. A couple of photos of naked KLM aircraft were spread across the internet last weekend. So I made it my mission to figure out what had gone wrong.

_DSC0011
One of the naked 747’s

I asked the KLM media department about what our statement was. Their message was clear: “We don’t want our aircraft flying around naked”. I agreed. They should at least wear a coat(ing), so that everyone knows who they belong to.

Deciding it would be best to find out what had happened straight from the horse’s mouth, I went to a KLM Hangar to ask a plane. I stood in front of this massive, magnificent 747 and put my question. “Brrrrrrrrrmmmmmmm, wiiiieeeeeeeeh, brrrrrrrrm”, it responded. Fairly cryptic, I thought.

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This close up reveals … the first layer

A KLM engineer, who came by, told me that one of the Boeing 777s in the photos doesn’t want to fly in the open anymore, she’s too embarrassed.  The other aircraft keep looking at her, the airport radio tower contacts her more often than before and the wind whistles continuously when she’s up in the air. I felt sorry for this Boeing 777.

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A Boeing 777 ‘full frontal’

The engineer continued with some more ‘insight information’: these planes get stripped naked every five to eight years. This isn’t usually a problem, because  the hangar is a safe environment and the aircraft are comfortable enough about revealing themselves. But nowadays, with the rise of social media, it’s a cinch to share pictures with friends, family or the world. Photos can be so easily leaked. You also get loads of hits if you Google ”painting KLM aircraft”.

_DSC0057The 747 hiding behind a pole

So perhaps it’s not that much of a problem, after all. Perhaps it’s just, well, operation as usual.

I was about to leave the hangar when I bumped into the KLM Decoration Operating Officer. He told me that this procedure is, in fact, absolutely normal. ‘Going naked’ is part of the painting process. They know that this is one of the procedures from day one at KLM. He even referred to another blog, written by a former colleague of mine, which describes how to paint a plane.

So does this mean that our aircraft can fly around naked all over the internet? Well, yes they can. But please don’t bully our Boeing 777  ;-).

Posted by:   Thije Nobbe  | 
Join the conversation Show comments

Brittlestar

50 shades of plane

Rob

It woud be interesting tot know HOW this Is don.e I don’t believe sandblasting Is an option on these surfaces

Marcel

By the use of chemical paint remover

Gareth Barker

Love the ads. Quite fresh. Love KLM

Harry Hersbach

Indeed it would be fun to see a youtube, on how it’s been done.
Bring the show KLM

Jurgen

@Harry

There already is one :-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3x53tIBBoJA

Prateek Agarwal

Fantastic…… It’s soo informative…..!!!!

Jan

Funny blog, nice to know.
Have 1 question: by reading the text on the tail of the 747 I notice this ACFT is one of KLM’s Cargo Jumbo’s. Is it painted again in KLM livery or will it be painted in the livery of a new owner since KLM decided to bring almost all cargo handling to an end?

Jet

Please, where is the finished plane?

Mark-Anthony

Bare Blue….love you!!

Daniel Trento

You guys are the best!!!

Andy stokes

Hi is the paint. 2 Pack .what is the. The life of a aircraft s. Paint job. As it is subjected .too lots of temperature changes. Love the K.L M. Livery.very. impressive.

Richard Butz

I painted quite a few planes in my day we used Endura A and B two component but nothing that big! It would be cool to see the paint go on!

eddy

WTF…wasting my time reading SHIT! !

Kevin A

Thije Nobbe – Well said..i kind of enjoyed reading it… Well Done. Keep it up. :)

XZ

Haha, hiding behind a pole.

David g krause

Now this is a well hung centerfold if ive ever seen one

willem heitlager

mis the smell in baai 1;)

Np422

Even though this was interesting to read, I must say that this is probably the one occasion where Ryanair actually delivers more value than klm does.

Carl B Smith

I love 747’s , their so big and lovely ……thanks K.L.M. ps I’m a new subscriber

Justin Tan Wen Cong

Is there one of your censored Boeing 777s for Amsterdam – Singapore – Bali-Denpasar route???

David D.

That paint costs tons of fuel as it is very heavy on a huge aircraft.
Most airlines would fly their AC naked if they could

Oesha Karansingh

Brilliant !! Haha! ✈️

Martin Maister

Maybe this is none of my business, but am concerned about aviation harmony. Were you given permission by the aircraft to post these scantily clad pictures on internet? If not, it is very serious.

Stephen Wilson

At least the aircraft are all metal, imagine what happened with their much older distant cousins built by de Havilland such as Chippy the Chipmunk and Tigger the Tiger Moth when we tried to get them naked !! Chippy was naked for about 60 % of her body and Tigger almost vanished completely !! That is the problem with being an old timer and wanting linen !!

Sheldon Trent

I think this idea is very attractive . It’s the strongest aircraft and I would feel great looking at this progress while renting a seat . Butter sales rather then better !

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