Just got in. Posting this to let all know that the lines for entrance into the gate areas are nearly an hour long at AMS. This is a second screening after you have passed through the first and formerly just walked over to the gate. Don't hang around the KLM Lounge like we did figuring that we had plenty of time. And then, there was another intensive check of passports and a Q&A session at the boarding gate.
NW 61 AMS-JFK left a few minutes late because of all the to-do, but easily made up the time enroute. It was booked full, but the WBC cabin was no more than 50% when the doors closed. Many attributed it to cancellations from fear of flying to the US, but others thought that a lot of passengers were left standing in the crazy line outside of the second screening station. I do not know how full the back of the plane was.
The food was standard issue NW-KL (always take the Indonesian chicken coming out of AMS), but the movies started unnanounced and
kept to no schedule, so they were basically unwatchable.
Coming into the US, we passed over Logan, which appeared to be dead. There were planes at every gate and we saw nothing moving on the runways and taxiways.
At JFK, we were the only plane moving (except for EL Al being towed to its wayout parking place).
We were of course the only arrival and cruised thru Immigration although any foreign passport holder was getting a pretty good third degree. There was also a rundown on those whe did not have a NY address. They wanted to know why they were coming to NY, what was their occupation, where were they going to stay, etc.
The priority tags did nothing for us this time and we were among the last out of the baggage claim. We coasted through customs with a few extra questions, but every opening station was being used with some people waiting in line to have their bags searched. We really must have looked like the New Yorkers we are, happy as could be to get home after being stuck in Amsterdam for nearly five extra days.