Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Unlock the editor’s digest in free
FT editor Raula Khalaf selected his favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
The Chief Executive of the Airline Group said that rich American tourists who spend on fashion brands and hotels can extend Air France-LM’s recovery from a “challenging” year, CEO of the airline group.
Ben Smith d Air France His business and first class seats have seen “amazing” demand from retirement travelers and the French airlines react to the model of his business to focus on the market premium.
“What a Americans are paying for here is incredible if you see what you spend on the street if you see [five-star] Bristol Hotel, “Smith Financial Times told him in an interview in the Airline Group’s Paris offices. The biggest suit of Bristol Hotel could cost about $ 50,000 per night, more economic options started at $ 2,000 a night.
Air France is charging about $ 24,000 for first class tickets between New York and Paris in April and launching an updated first class cabin this month.
On Thursday, the pivot arrived at the upper end of the market as the airline group owner of a minority part of Air France, Dutch carrier KLM and Scandinavian Airline SAS.
Knit profit was half -year -old € 489 million dollars, which Smith left in reasons including Olympic Stop From visiting the French capital, as well as the higher expenses due to operational problems at KLM. The revenue rises 5 percent to $ 31.5 billion.
Nevertheless, on Thursday morning business shares have increased by more than 15 percent after the results defeated analysts’ expectations.
Smith said that 2024 was “one year shaped by both operational and external challenges”.
The United States and European Airlines have reported that high -cost holiday makers are replacing corporate travelers to replace their most expensive seats. However, Smith said that the links to Air France with a luxury brand synonym by Paris means that the premium retirement is in a tight position to capture this demand for premium leisure.
The airline says that a proxy average yield for air rentals on tickets sold by US customers has increased by 25 percent between 2018 and 2024.
Smith also added that Air France is also looking for passengers to replace the “higher price” in its short-distance flights to passengers, which feed the longer route through airport centers.
“We think [premium leisure] Is going to run high yields. And with the cost structure we have, we need a little percentage of us, “he said.
He also warned that European Airlines could not compete directly with Turkish Airlines or Middle East career, which passengers fed their hub airports with single stops at destinations across Asia.
These carriers, including the Emirates, Atihad and Qatar Airways, are not subject to environmental taxes in EU, in which expensive biofuels have the need to reduce emissions.
“We are not at any level playground. The The It’s very frustrating, “Smith said. “It is not realistic to imagine opening a new route in the region where the Gulf Careers are dominant, unless enough people who do not want to fly the nonstop.”
Smith, who was part of a French government delegation near Portugal last week, said Air France-LM would only be interested in gaining the majority of the national carrier tap. Lisbon is expected to privatize the airline later this year.
“Our majority part will need a path or guarantee to control the part,” he said.
British Airways owner IAG and German Airline Group Lufthansa also say they want to buy taps, which have a strong network of flights in South America.
Ian Johnston’s Additional Report in Paris
