The director general of Air France, Anne Rigail, specifies the timetable for the gradual resumption of flights and the commercial conditions for travelers while the Covid-19 epidemic is now under control, according to the scientific council.
How many destinations are you going to offer this summer?
ANNE RIGAIL. In June, the recovery will be very gradual. We had 3% traffic in April and 5% in late May. We target an offer of 15% on average at the end of June to more than 100 destinations. Priority will be given to the home network where it is now possible to travel. In addition to Marseille, Nice, Toulouse, we are reopening, for example, Biarritz, Brest, Montpellier or even lines departing from Lyon. There is also Corsica since there is no longer any travel restriction on the island. Frequencies to overseas will also increase. In Europe, we are preparing to reopen the borders for June 15. And especially to Southern Europe, Greece, Spain, Portugal.
And on other continents?
We are awaiting the decisions of the authorities to resume. But we are forced to anticipate. There will be 35 flights a week to Algeria at the end of July and several dozen to Morocco, Tunisia and West Africa. In cities in America and Asia, it will be even more gradual. In the end, in July, 35% of our usual flight program will be carried out and 40% in August for 137 reopened destinations. The main thing is to find our customers, we are very happy.
Do you sell these destinations without any assurance that people will be able to get there because of sanitary conditions?
It is indeed the complexity since the beginning of the crisis. We have therefore adapted our commercial policy. Since May 15, if the client cannot leave due to health conditions, he can either change the flight, be reimbursed, or obtain a 15% enhanced credit for a subsequent trip. Our travelers can book a ticket today without fear.
And for those who had booked before May 15? You offer assets and always refuse reimbursement, contrary to European regulations….
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To immediately reimburse all our customers would have been untenable. 30,000 cancellations in April alone. Customers who have booked before the crisis have obtained a 15% bonus credit or the assurance of a subsequent refund, we are thinking of making things happen. But it is premature to talk about it. In any case, these European regulations must evolve. When there is such a crisis, it undermines the viability of companies.
Will there be price offers for this recovery?
I do not think that a very low fare policy is sustainable for air transport. Since the government announcements, demand has increased, but load factors remain low. It is currently 55%, while on average it is 85%.
Faced with the health crisis, without social distancing on planes, how do we travel on Air France?
Wearing a mask is compulsory on airplanes. Not fabric, only surgical masks. Body temperature is taken before boarding. In case of temperature above 38 ° C, the passenger cannot board. His trip can be postponed at no cost. Finally, there is no more catering on flights of less than 2.5 hours. However, there is no restriction on cabin baggage.
VIDEO. Air France sprays virucide in its planes before traffic resumes
Many ecological associations complain about the weakness of the environmental measures taken by Air France in return for a loan of 7 billion euros from the State…
Reducing CO2 emissions per passenger-kilometer by 50% between 2005 and 2030 is, however, a strong measure. This is not done with a snap of the fingers. It presupposes a renewal of the fleet with more modern and therefore less polluting aircraft. In an economic context where we lost 95% of our turnover for three months, we are nevertheless maintaining our investments for new aircraft. Especially for 38 Airbus A350 and 60 Airbus A220. This represents more than a billion euros per year. We have also committed to reducing our CO2 emissions by 50% in absolute terms on the domestic network by 2024. We will also, for this, close certain domestic routes and reduce certain frequencies.
Precisely, the government has asked to stop flights of less than 2.5 hours when there is a TGV line. The associations demand five hours ...
It is up to customers and citizens to decide according to their needs. But it is not suitable for everyone. Just for flights less than 2 hours and a half deleted, I have a lot of customers who write to tell me that it is not playable on this or that destination.
Ben Smith announced a 40% reduction in domestic flights. Elected officials complain about the abandonment of air links between Paris and regional capitals ...
Air France's DNA is France, there is no question of abandoning our domestic network. We will remain anchored in France. But this network loses 200 million euros per year. There are too many loss-making lines. Our vocation is not to fly empty planes. Very clearly, the destinations which will be easily accessible by TGV, in particular less than 2.5 hours, will probably be stopped. We are thinking about determining which route should be taken by Air France or by our Hop and Transavia subsidiaries. The restructuring of the domestic network and the transformation of Air France will be presented in late June-early July. We will be visiting local elected officials in the coming weeks to discuss it.
Could low-cost Transavia resume Paris-Toulouse or Paris-Marseille flights?
The question of Transavia's role on the home network is not a taboo subject. We have an ongoing negotiation with the pilots.
There is the TGV-Air offer, which combines the train and the plane. Are you working on developing it to meet government demand?
Yes, we have started discussions with SNCF. This offer has been around for a long time and concerns around fifteen cities such as Angers, Avignon, Rennes, Strasbourg. It must be improved. You should be able to drop off your luggage as soon as you arrive at Roissy station. It is also necessary to better adapt the schedules to avoid endless waits. But above all, there must be a clear legal framework. SNCF is a competitor, we do not have the right to discuss prices or timetables.
We are talking about 6,000 to 10,000 job cuts at Air France. You confirm ?
It is too early to advance on figures. Once again, we will communicate at the end of June. This crisis is hard. It will be sustainable. State loans are accompanied by environmental conditions but also on competitiveness.
Didn't the government ask you to keep the job?
We are designing this reconstruction plan with the aim of preserving the group's 45,000 jobs as much as possible. At the same time, the government has asked us for a strong recovery in competitiveness. This is clearly part of the conditions associated with loans. We must therefore find the crest line to meet these two ambitions.
Is the collective performance agreement, in particular with lower wages, one of the tools that you could use?
A temporary drop in wages is not the answer to all of our problems. We will rather favor voluntary departures. Our age pyramid is quite high. This allows us to have access to early departure devices.
