Goodbye Pieter Elbers

Under the title “Goodbye Pieter Elbers,” the programme was dedicated entirely to the man who started 30 years earlier as a supervisor of aircraft loading within the blue family and, after eight years as President and CEO, took his final flight from the role. The celebration took place at Hangaar 10 at Schiphol East, a location at the heart of daily operations.

In the weeks leading up to the official farewell, so-called “wishing trees” were placed at various KLM workplaces, where colleagues could leave personal messages for their CEO.

These contributions were turned into an emotional film, weaving together all the messages, which was shown during the farewell—ensuring that daily operations could continue uninterrupted.During the programme, Pieter Elbers was addressed and honoured through music and speeches. The Bluebirds Choir, KLM Bluebirds Choir, performed alongside the ZO! Gospel Choir. Nienke Fitters, singer and KLM cabin crew member, performed a personal tribute, and Karsu closed the programme with “One Day I’ll Fly Away.”

Finally, Elbers was appointed Commander in the Order of Orange-Nassau by Mark Harbers, after which he symbolically passed the baton to his successor Marjan Rintel.

XSAGA, in collaboration with KLM, was responsible for the entire production.