INNOVATING FOR A SUPERIOR EXPERIENCE
AIR FRANCE
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INNOVATING FOR A SUPERIOR EXPERIENCE
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AIR FRANCE
CURRENTLY HEADQUARTERED IN TREMBLAY-EN-FRANCE, AIR FRANCE WAS FOUNDED IN 1933 AS A MERGER BETWEEN FIVE SEPARATE AIRLINES
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joint venture between Air Orient, Air Union, Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, Compagnie Internationale de Navigation
Aérienne (CIDNA) and Société Générale des Transports Aériens - the latter of which was the first commercial airline in France - Air France began 04
offering small passenger flights of roughly 15 people in French-made aircraft, such as the Potez 62, Bloch 220 and Dewoitine 338. Utilising the extensive flight networks established by each of its constituent founding companies, Air France had a breadth of service which stretched to London, North Africa, South America and Asia-Pacific. Halted during the years of the Second World War, Air France was nationalised in 1945 and by 1948 covered over 160,000km - making it the largest flight network on Earth. Marking itself early on as an adopter of the latest technology, the airline embraced the jet age in 1953 with the introduction of the de Havilland Comet - the world’s first commercial jet airliner, with a cruising speed of 640km/h (390km/h faster than the company’s old workhorse Potez 62 models). The
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AIR FRANCE
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“ MARKING ITSELF EARLY ON AS AN ADOPTER OF THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY, THE AIRLINE EMBRACED THE JET AGE IN 1953 WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF THE DE HAVILLAND COMET”
company also made history from 1976 to 2003 as one of the two primary users of the first supersonic passenger aircraft: Concorde (top speed 2,370km/h). Air France’s passion for providing its passengers with a truly modern flying experience has been augmented recently with the introduction of stateof-the-art technologies, such as the Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) system added to the airline’s Airbus A321s. Able to function as a high-speed, low-latency multimedia hub for passengers, Li-Fi is also much less heavy than out-going tech due to its usage of fibre optic cabling rather than copper, reducing the aircraft’s weight and therefore increasing fuel efficiency. Artificial intelligence (AI) has come to play an important role in the airline’s customer service experience: chatbots are able to solve basic problems and answer questions relating to travel times, flight plans, destination details, and so on, therefore allowing the company to more adequately address its huge intake of daily enquiries. Also active in the startup world, Air France has launched a seed fund subsidiary called BigBlank, which offers promising entrepreneurs the
In-flight images of the Air France Boeing 787 Dreamliner CLICK TO WATCH
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07 finance, expertise and technology nec-
approximately 2,300 flights per day from
essary to fully develop innovative ideas
its primary hubs at Amsterdam-Schiphol
and introduce them to the industry.
and Paris-Charles de Gaulle. Employing
In 2004, Air France merged with
88,000 people around the world and
Dutch airline KLM to create Air France-
receiving revenues of more than â‚Ź27bn
KLM (AF-KLM). Focusing on passenger
in 2019, AF-KLM is dedicated to deliver-
transport, cargo transport and aeronau-
ing the highest quality service to 101.4mn
tical maintenance (via its Air France-KLM
travellers each year.
Engineering & Maintenance subsidiary),
The company’s air cargo subsidi-
Air France-KLM is dedicated to unsur-
ary - Air France-KLM Martinair - is one
passable excellence within the aviation
of the strongest in the sector. A flexible
sector. Offering passengers the oppor-
and purposefully-designed service, the
tunity of flying to 318 destinations spread
company makes use of 172 long haul air-
over 118 countries, utilising a fleet of
craft and six full freighter models to offer
548 aircraft, the company operates
the market a wide spectrum of solutions. w w w.a i r fra n ce. com
WHAT DOES REAL AVIATION MRO OPTIMIZATION LOOK LIKE?
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Staffed by over 4,000 people, Martinair
maintenance to approximately 3,000
has so far managed to transport over
aircraft so far. The company prides
1.2mn tonnes of cargo (worth â‚Ź2.3bn) to
itself on a four-way approach to busi-
457 destinations in 152 countries.
ness: innovation, global networking,
Not just offering a superior passen-
agility and airline-MRO. AFI KLM E&M
ger and logistics experience but also
also has a defined sustainability strat-
technical knowledge, Air France-KLM
egy, which includes increasing energy
Engineering & Maintenance (AFI KLM
efficiency by 20% by the end of 2020,
E&M) is a global leader in mainte-
researching the application of renew-
nance, repair and overhaul (MRO)
able energy within its operations and
services. With 14,000 staff assisting
designing its buildings and hangers
200 customers daily, the company
with low environmental impact in mind.
has provided best-in-class technical
Some of its sustainability achieve-
support, engine repair and structural
ments include recycling 400 tonnes of
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AIR FRANCE
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2004
Year founded
$29.5bn Revenue in US dollars
88,000 Number of employees
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AIR FRANCE
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“ THE COMPANY PRIDES ITSELF ON A FOURWAY APPROACH TO BUSINESS: INNOVATION, GLOBAL NETWORKING, AGILITY AND AIRLINE-MRO”
aircraft parts and using only 150 litres of water to clean a Boeing 777 - the largest twinjet model - instead of the previously required 12,000 litres. Over the course of its history, Air France has been dedicated to innovation that increases both operational efficiencies and the quality of customer service. From its hub airport Paris-Charles de Gaulle, the airline has managed to create a broad flight network utilising an optimised and modern fleet. Rated consistently in the top 25 of Skytrax’s World Airline Awards list and with strong capabilities in three crucial aspects of aviation, Air France’s commitment to excellence is evidently being recognised by the industry. “With these ambitions for the Air France-KLM Group and the exceptional commitment of our teams,” said Benjamin Smith, CEO of AF-KLM, in a press release, “I am convinced that we can become an industry leader in Europe, to the benefit of our employees, our customers, our shareholders and indeed all stakeholders.”
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Air France 45 Rue de Paris 95 747 Roissy CDG Cedex France T +01 41 56 78 00 www.airfrance.com