Albert Plesman

Albert Plesman (7 September 1889 – 31 December 1953) was a Dutch pioneer in aviation and the first administrator and later director of the KLM, the oldest airline in the world still operating under its original name. Until his death, he was its CEO for over 35 years and was also on the board of the Dutch airline, which was to become one of the most important airlines in the world under his leadership.

He was born as the son of an egg trader from The Hague. In 1915 he joined the mobilized Dutch airforce as an officer, at the time still called the "militaire luchtvaartafdeling" (military aviation department), in Soesterberg. After World War I, in which the Netherlands remained neutral, he started the organization of ELTA, the "Eerste Luchtverkeer Tentoonstelling Amsterdam" (First Aviation Exhibition Amsterdam), held from 1 August until 14 September 1919. For that occasion enormous halls (hangars) were built. Right after the exhibition, these were used by Anthony Fokker, for his new company, Nederlandse Vliegtuigenfabriek (Dutch Aircraft Factory), subsequently the Fokker airplane factory.

All these activities led to the establishment of Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM), of which Plesman became director and made a flourishing company. After World War II, Plesman was appointed president-director of KLM. After recovering from the war, KLM became a renowned airline company under his leadership. On 25 February 1946, KLM had the first airline flights from continental Europe to the USA. For his efforts, he received in 1947 an honorary doctorate of the Technical University of Delft. Plesman pleaded in vain for a displacement of Schiphol Airport to a location near Burgerveen. The father of KLM died in The Hague on December 31, 1953, at age 64.