An operating margin that continues to falter and is getting below pre-pandemic levels forces Air France-KLM to revise its airport strategy at Paris Orly. With Air France moving almost all operations to Charles de Gaulle, Orly is set to become the main hub of Transavia France and regional carrier Air France HOP!
In last Friday’s Q3 earnings call, Group CEO Ben Smith dug a little deeper into the issues with which Air France has been confronted at Orly. Between 2019 and this year, traffic on domestic point-to-point routes has dropped by more than 40 percent and same-day return trips by 60 percent. Demand between Paris and Marseille has dropped by 50 percent as travelers opt for the train.
Active as a journalist since 1987, with a background in newspapers, magazines, and a regional news station, Richard has been covering commercial aviation on a freelance basis since late 2016.
Richard is contributing to AirInsight since December 2018. He also writes for Airliner World, Aviation News, Piloot & Vliegtuig, and Luchtvaartnieuws Magazine. Twitter: @rschuur_aero.