Air France

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Air France
IATA
AF		 ICAO
AFR		 Callsign
AIRFRANS
Founded 1933
Hubs Charles de Gaulle Airport
Focus cities Orly Airport
Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport
Nice Côte d'Azur Airport
Frequent flyer program Flying Blue
Member lounge Departures Lounge
Alliance SkyTeam
Fleet size 393 (+105 orders)[1]
Destinations 187
Parent company Air France-KLM
Company slogan "Making the sky the best place on Earth" ("Faire du ciel le plus bel endroit de la terre")
Headquarters Roissy-en-France, France
Key people Jean-Cyril Spinetta (Chairman and CEO), Pierre-Henri Gourgeon (COO), Philippe Calavia (CFO)
Website: http://www.airfrance.com

Air France (formally Société Air France) is Europe's largest airline company. Air France is based in Paris, France, and is a subsidiary of Air France-KLM Group. It operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 185 destinations in 83 countries. Its global hub is located at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. Paris Orly Airport, Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport and Nice Côte d'Azur Airport are secondary hubs.[2].

Prior to its merger with KLM, Air France was France's primary national flag carrier, employing 71,654 people (as of March 2004).[3] By March 2007, the airline employed 102,422 staff.[2]

The company's corporate headquarters was located at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle to the North of Paris. This is where the headquarters of Air France-KLM is now located. Between April 2001 and March 2002 the airline carried 43.3mn passengers and had total revenues of € 12.53bn. Régional, Air France's regional airline subsidiary, operates the majority of its regional domestic and European scheduled services with a fleet of regional jet and turboprop aircraft.[4] Air France is also accredited by IATA with the IATA Operations Safety Audit (IOSA) for its safety practices.[5]

According to Air France-KLM, the company's principal activities are:

  • Passenger transportation: first European airline with 25.5% of market share (as of November 2004) and largest airline in the world in terms of operating revenue.
  • Freight transportation: largest company in the world for international freight transportation without integration. With integration, Air France-KLM is third worldwide behind FedEx and UPS.
  • Airplane maintenance and repair: largest multi-services operator.

Contents

Air France was formed on October 7, 1933. On that day the airline came into existence, as a result of a merger between Air Orient, Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, Société Générale de Transport Aérien (SGTA) - the first commercial airline company in France founded as Lignes Aériennes Farman in 1919, Air Union and Compagnie Internationale de Navigation Aérienne (CIDNA). At that time the constituent members of the newly created Air France had already built extensive route networks across Europe, as well as to the French colonies in North Africa and farther afield.

During World War II, Air France moved its operations to Casablanca, Morocco.

Passengers disembarking from a Sud-Est SE-161 Languedoc
Passengers disembarking from a Sud-Est SE-161 Languedoc

At the beginning of the post World War II era, on June 26, 1945, all French air transport companies were nationalised. On December 29, 1945 a decree of the French government granted Air France the management of the entire French air transport network.

Air France appointed its first flight attendants in 1946. The same year the airline opened its first air terminal at Les Invalides in central Paris. It was linked to Paris Le Bourget Airport, Air France's first operational and engineering base, by a regular coach service. At that time the Air France route network covered 160,000 km, which was claimed to be the "longest" in the world.[6]

Société Nationale Air France was set up on January 1, 1946.

Air France inaugurated its first direct scheduled air service between Paris and New York on July 1, 1946. This service was operated with Douglas DC-4 piston-engined airliners, which covered the route in just under 20 hours.[6]

In 1946 and 1948, respectively, the French government authorised the creation of two wholly privately owned airlines. These were Transports Ariens Internationeaux - later renamed Transports Ariens Intercontinenteaux - (TAI) and SATI (which became Union Aéromaritime de Transport [UAT] in 1949).[6]

In 1948 Air France already operated one of the largest aircraft fleets in the world, numbering 130 aircraft.[6]

Compagnie Nationale Air France was created by an act of parliament on June 16, 1948. Initially, the government held 70% of the newly created company. (In subsequent years the French state's direct and indirect shareholdings in Air France reached almost 100%. In mid-2002 the French state still held a 54% majority stake in the airline.)[6][7]

On August 4, 1948 Max Hymans was appointed president of Air France. During his 13 years at the helm he implemented a modernisation policy centred on the introduction of state-of-the-art jet aircraft. In 1949 the company became a co-founder of Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques (SITA).[6]

In 1952 Air France moved its main operational and engineering base to the then new Paris Orly Airport, where its operations were concentrated at Orly Sud, Orly Airport's South Terminal. By that time the company's network had further expanded, covering 250,000 km.[6]

On September 26, 1953 the French government instructed Air France to share its long distance routes with the newly created private airlines. This was followed by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport's imposition of an accord on Air France, Aigle Azur, TAI and UAT, under which some of the former's long-haul routes to Africa, Asia and the Pacific region were transferred to the latter three airlines.[6]

On February 23, 1960 the Ministry of Public Works and Transport transferred Air France's domestic monopoly to Air Inter. To compensate it for the loss of its domestic monopoly, Air France was given a stake in Air Inter. On February 24, 1960 Air France was furthermore instructed to share out its African routes with Air Afrique and UAT on an equal basis.[6][7]

On February 1, 1963 the French government enacted a law that formalised the division of routes between Air France and its private sector rivals. Under this act Air France was required to withdraw all services to West Africa (with the exception of Senegal, which it continued to serve), Central Africa (except Burundi and Rwanda), Southern Africa (including South Africa), Libya in North Africa, Bahrain and Oman in the Middle East, Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon) in South Asia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand as well as New Caledonia and Tahiti. These routes were exclusively allocated to the newly formed UTA (the result of a merger between TAI and UAT). UTA also obtained exclusive traffic rights between Japan, New Caledonia and New Zealand, South Africa and the French Réunion island in the Indian Ocean, as well as Los Angeles and Tahiti.[6][7]

From 1974 onwards, Air France began shifting the bulk of its operations to what was then a brand-new Charles de Gaulle Airport. (By the early 1980s, only its flights to Corsica, Martinique, Guadeloupe, most services to French Guyana, Réunion, the Maghreb region, Eastern Europe - except the USSR, Southern Europe - except Greece and Italy, and one daily service to New York JFK remained at Orly.)

On January 21, 1976 Air France operated its inaugural supersonic transport (SST) service on the Paris Charles de Gaulle to Rio (via Dakar) route. Supersonic services from Paris CDG to New York JFK as well as from Paris CDG to Washington Dulles commenced the following year. Paris to New York was covered in only three hours and 23 minutes, at about twice the speed of sound. (Approval for flights to the United States was initially withheld due to noise protests.) Eventually, services to Mexico City via Washington, D.C. were started as well.

Air France has codeshared with a number of regional French airlines in the past. TAT was the most prominent among Air France's past code-share partners. It applied the Air France livery to several of its aircraft that operated on Air France's regional international routes.[8]

By 1983, Air France's golden jubilee year, the firm's workforce numbered more than 34,000, its fleet comprised about 100 jet aircraft (including 33 Boeing 747s) and its 634,400 km network served 150 destinations in 73 countries. This made Air France the fourth-largest scheduled passenger airline in the world, as well as the world's second-largest scheduled freight carrier.[6]

In 1986 the French government unexpectedly decided to relax its policy of neatly dividing traffic rights for scheduled air services between Air France, Air Inter and UTA, without any route overlaps between them. The French government's decision to adopt a less rigid interpretation of its official aviation policy gradually opened up some of Air France's most lucrative routes on which it had enjoyed a government-sanctioned monopoly among France's scheduled airlines since 1963, and which were located within its exclusive sphere of influence, to rival airlines, notably privately owned UTA. These changes therefore enabled UTA to launch scheduled services to new destinations within Air France's sphere of influence, in direct competition with that airline. Paris-San Francisco became the first route UTA served in competition with Air France non-stop from Paris. Air France responded by extending some of its non-stop Paris-Los Angeles services to Papeete, Tahiti, which competed with UTA on the Los Angeles-Papeete sector. UTA's ability to secure traffic rights outside its traditional sphere of influence in competition with Air France was the result of a successful campaign it had mounted to lobby the French government to enable it to grow faster, thereby becoming a more dynamic and more profitable business. This had infuriated the Air France management.[9]

On January 12, 1990 the operations of majority government-owned Air France, semi-public Air Inter and wholly privately owned UTA were merged into an enlarged Air France group.[10] Air France's acquisition of both UTA and Air Inter was part of an early 1990s French government plan to create a unified, national carrier with the economies of scale and global reach to counter potential threats resulting from the liberalisation of the EU's internal air transport market.[11]

On August 31, 1994 Stephen Wolf, a former United Airlines CEO, was appointed as adviser to the Air France group's then chairman Christian Blanc. Stephen Wolf has widely been credited with the successful introduction of Air France's hub and spoke operation at the airline's Paris Charles de Gaulle hub. (Stephen Wolf resigned his position as adviser to the Air France chairman in 1996 to take over as CEO at US Airways.)[12][13]

A new holding company, Groupe Air France, was set up by decree on July 25, 1994. Groupe Air France became operational on September 1, 1994. It acquired the Air France group's majority shareholdings in Air France and Air Inter (subsequently renamed Air France Europe).

In 1997 Air France Europe was fully absorbed into Air France.

On February 10, 1999 Lionel Jospin's Plural Left government approved the airline's partial privatisation. Its shares were listed on the Paris stock exchange on February 22, 1999.

In June 1999 Air France and Delta Air Lines formed a bilateral transatlantic partnership. On June 22, 2000 this bilateral transatlantic partnership was expanded into the SkyTeam global airline alliance.[6][2].

Boeing 777-200ER tail
Boeing 777-200ER tail

On September 30, 2003, Air France and Netherlands-based KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, announced the merger of the two airlines, with the new company to be known as Air France-KLM. The merger finally became reality on May 5, 2004. At that point former Air France shareholders owned 81% of the new firm (44% owned by the French state, 37% by private shareholders), while former KLM shareholders held the rest. The decision of the Jean-Pierre Raffarin government to reduce the French state's shareholding in the former Air France group from 54.4% to 44% of the newly created Air France-KLM Group effectively privatised the new airline combine. In December 2004 the French state sold 18.4% of its equity stake in the Air France-KLM Group. The French state's shareholding in Air France-KLM subsequently fell to just under 20%.[2]

Air France-KLM is the largest airline company in the world in terms of operating revenues, and the third-largest in the world (largest in Europe) in terms of passenger kilometers.[2]

Air France-KLM is a participant of the SkyTeam alliance with Aeroflot, Delta Air Lines, Aeroméxico, Korean Air, Czech Airlines, Alitalia, Northwest Airlines, Air Europa and Continental Airlines. Both Air France and KLM continue to fly under their own brand names.

On October 17, 2007 the creation of a fully integrated profit and revenue sharing transatlantic joint venture between Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines was announced during a press conference at Air France-KLM's Roissy-Charles de Gaulle headquarters. The new joint venture will become effective on March 29, 2008. It will exploit new transatlantic opportunities to capture a major share of the lucrative long-haul business traffic from London's Heathrow Airport, which will be opened up to unrestricted competition on that day as a result of the recent "Open Skies" pact between the EU and US. It is envisaged that Air France and Delta, as well as their fellow SkyTeam members Continental and Northwest, will begin nine daily roundtrips between Heathrow and various destinations in the US, including a daily Heathrow-Los Angeles service operated by Air France. Once the new Air France-Delta joint venture has received antitrust immunity, it will be extended to the other two transatlantic SkyTeam partners as well. This will enable all four partners to codeshare on each others' flights, as well as to share revenues and profits.[14][15]

The new transatlantic joint venture marks the Air France-KLM Group's second major expansion in the London market, following the launch of several new CityJet-operated short-haul routes from London City Airport that have specifically been aimed at business travellers working in the City's burgeoning financial services industry.[14]

Main article: Air France destinations

Most of Air France's international flights operate from Paris Charles de Gaulle. Air France also has a strong presence at Paris Orly and Lyon Saint-Exupéry. Some flights operate out of Nice Côte d'Azur Airport as well.

The Air France passenger fleet consists of the following aircraft as of December 2007: [16]

Air France Fleet
Aircraft Total Passengers
(First/Business/Economy)		 Routes Notes
Airbus A318-100 18 118*
123		 Short-medium haul
Europe, Africa
Airbus A319-100 40 133* - 136*
138 - 142		 Short-medium haul
Africa, Europe, Middle East
Airbus A319-115LR 6 79 (28/51) Dedicate Services Equipped with lie-flat seats in business class
Airbus A320-100/200 68
(46 orders)		 160* - 166*
165 - 172		 Short-medium haul
Africa, Europe, Middle East
Airbus A321-100/200 15 196* - 200*
206		 Short-medium haul
Africa, Europe, Middle East
Airbus A330-200 16 211 (6/42/163)
222 (40/182)		 Medium-long haul
Africa, Americas, Asia
Airbus A340-300 19 252 (6/42/204)
272 (36/236)
289 (30/259)		 Long haul
Africa, Americas, Asia, Caribbean
Airbus A380 (12 orders)
(2 options)		 531 Long haul Entry into service: 2009
Boeing 747-400 10 395 (13/58/322)
433 (39/394)
474 (17/457)		 Long haul
Africa, Americas, Asia, Caribbean		 To be phased out
Replacement aircraft:
Airbus A380
Boeing 777-300ER
Boeing 747-400M 3 To be phased out
Replacement aircraft:
Boeing 777-200LRF
Boeing 777-300ER
Boeing 777-200ER 25 264 (4/49/211)
270 (12/56/202)		 Long haul
Africa, Americas, Asia
Boeing 777-300ER 24
(26 orders)		 310 (8/67/235) Long haul
Africa, Americas, Asia		 Launch customer

*Short Haul aircraft base L'Espace Affaires seating amounts by demand.

The average fleet age of Air France is 8.8 years as of September 2007 [17].

Airbus A318
Airbus A318
Aircraft Total Notes
Boeing 747-200F 3 Exit from service: End of 2007
Boeing 747-400BCF 4 2 More to be added after being converted
from passenger configuration to cargo
Boeing 747-400ERF 6 Includes one aircraft loaned from KLM until 2008
Boeing 777F (10 orders) To be delivered

Airbus A320-200
Airbus A320-200
  • On 24 May 2007 Air France announced it was planning to phase out the 747 by 2012, and placed an order for an additional 13 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and 5 Boeing 777-200F aircraft. The airline had also converted options for 2 more A380 aircraft into firm orders. This will bring the total number of these aircraft types for Air France to 33 Boeing 777-300ER, 10 Boeing 777-200F, and 12 A380-800. [18]
  • On 22 February 2005 Air France placed an order for a further 4 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, adding to 10 previously ordered (4 delivered). The airline had previously ordered 18 Boeing 777-200ERs.
  • Air France has ordered 12 Airbus A380 aircraft, with options on a further 2 aircraft. Delivery of the first aircraft will start in 2009. The A380 will initially be used on North Atlantic route services from Paris to Montréal and New York and as additional aircraft arrive, on services to Beijing and Tokyo [19].
  • On 20 May 2005 Air France signed an agreement with Boeing to have three of its former Boeing 747-400 "Combi" aircraft - currently operated in all passenger configuration - converted to the Boeing 747-400SF "Special Freighter" model. The first modified aircraft will be delivered in June 2007, enabling acceleration of the phasing out of the remaining, aging Boeing 747-200F freighters.[20].
  • On 23 May 2005 Air France agreed to purchase 5 777 Freighters (with 3 further options), making it the launch customer of the 777 Freighter along with Air Canada who ordered 2. First delivery will be in late 2008, commencing replacement of the airline's Boeing 747-200F fleet [20].

Air France entered the jet age in 1953 with the original, short-lived De Havilland Comet series 1, the world's first jetliner.

The airline commenced uninterrupted pure jet operations in 1960, both with the Sud Aviation Caravelle and the Boeing 707.

It was also a major operator of the Vickers Viscount turboprop.

Air France was an early Boeing 747 operator. It eventually operated one of the world's largest 747 fleets.

In 1974 Air France became a launch customer for the Airbus A300 twin-engined widebodied plane, Airbus Industrie's first commercial airliner. Air France was also a launch customer for the then revolutionary, fly-by-wire (FBW) Airbus A320 narrowbody twin, along with Air Inter and British Caledonian. It became the first airline in the world to take delivery of the A320 in March 1988.

In 1976 Air France became one of only two airlines in the world - British Airways being the other airline - to actually introduce the Anglo-French BAC-Aérospatiale Concorde, the world's first and operationally only successful supersonic airliner, into commercial airline service.

Concorde at the Udvar-Hazy Center.
Concorde at the Udvar-Hazy Center.

The five Air France Concordes were permanently grounded on May 31, 2003, allegedly as a result of insufficient demand following the 2000 accident, as well as higher fuel and maintenance costs. However, it is widely believed that Air France chairman Jean-Cyril Spinetta's fear of personal criminal liability in the event of another Concorde accident was the real reason for the aircraft's withdrawal from service. Airbus's subsequent decision to stop supporting the in-service Concorde fleet forced British Airways to retire its own fleet prematurely. The Airbus decision to end all Concorde support came at an inopportune time for British Airways as it had just completed a major refurbishment of the aircraft's interiors and invested heavily in post-2000 crash modifications. (British Airways flew its last Concorde service on October 24, 2003.) Concorde F-BVFA was transferred to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, an annexe of the National Air & Space Museum in Chantilly area of Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, near Washington Dulles Airport. F-BVFB was given to Sinsheim Auto & Technik Museum in Germany, F-BTSD to the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace in Paris, while F-BVFC was returned to its place of manufacture in Toulouse at the Airbus factory. F-BVFF is the only example to remain at Charles de Gaulle.[21]

Air France signed up as a launch customer for the Airbus A380 "superjumbo" in 2001.[22]

Air France has three primary classes of international service: L'Espace Première (First), L'Espace Affaires (Business), and Tempo (Economy). European shorthaul flights feature Tempo class service. For flights to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean, a premium economy class, Alizé, is also offered.[23] Inflight entertainment via AVOD (Audio Video on Demand) is available in select cabins.

L'Espace Première, Air France's longhaul first class product, is available on Boeing 777-300ER and Boeing 777-200ER aircraft. The L'Espace Première cabin features four to eight wood and leather seats which recline 180°, forming two meter long beds. Each seat features a 10.4" touchscreen TV monitor with interactive gaming and AVOD, a privacy divider, automassage feature, reading light, storage drawer, noise-cancelling headphones, personal telephone, and laptop power ports. À la carte on-demand meal services feature entrées created by chef Guy Martin. Turndown service includes a mattress, duvet and pillow. Private lounge access is offered worldwide.

L'Espace Affaires, Air France's longhaul business class product, is available on Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Boeing 747-400, Boeing 777-200ER, and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. L'Espace Affaires features lie-flat seats which recline to two meters in length. Each seat includes a 10.4" touchscreen TV monitor with interactive gaming and AVOD, reading light, personal telephone, and laptop power ports. Meal service features three-course meals and a cheese service, or an express menu served shortly after takeoff.

Airbus A319-100 landing
Airbus A319-100 landing

Tempo, Air France's economy class product, features seats that recline up to 118°. The latest longhaul Tempo seat, which debuted on the Boeing 777-300ER, includes winged headrests, a personal telephone, and a touchscreen TV monitor with interactive gaming and partial AVOD, with films and programs restarting every 15 minutes. Shorthaul Tempo services are operated by Airbus A320 family aircraft with different seating arrangements. On short haul flights, a cold meal is served. On long haul flights there is a choice between two main courses. Complimentary alcoholic beverages are available on all flights. On flights over 10.5 hours, a self-service snack buffet is available in the galley.

Alizé, Air France's premium economy product, is available on flights to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean (such as the Antilles, Guyana, and Mauritius). On the Boeing 777-300ER, the Alizé cabin is located in front of the Tempo cabin and features 36 seats. Alizé seats recline up to 123° and feature massaging foot rests. A predeparture drink, enhanced meal service, and feather pillows and blankets are offered.

Boeing 777-300ER
Boeing 777-300ER

In addition to its Brit Air, CityJet, Régional, and SkyTeam alliance partnerships, Air France offers frequent flyer partnerships with the following airlines:

In partnership with Dutch affiliate, Transavia, Air France is to launch a new low-cost subsidiary to be based at Paris Orly and to begin operations in May 2007 with leisure route services in the Mediterranean and North Africa. It will operate four "Next Generation" Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Transavia is understood to have a 40% stake, with Air France holding the rest [24].

There are numerous reported incidents/accidents involving Air France aircraft/flights. At least twelve of these involved heavy loss of life.[25]

Selected accidents/major incidents are listed below:

  • On the nights of June 12, 1950 and June 14, 1950, respectively, two Air France Douglas DC-4s (registration F-BBDE and F-BBDM, respectively) crashed into the sea off Bahrain while attempting to land, with a combined loss of 86 lives. (The first accident claimed the lives of 40 of the 53 occupants and the second 46 out of 52 occupants' lives. Both aircraft had operated the Karachi, Pakistan, to Bahrain portion of Air France's scheduled international Saigon, Vietnam - Paris sector.) The accident investigators concluded that the pilot in command did not maintain his correct altitude until the runway lights became visible during the approach to Bahrain in the first accident, and that the pilot in command did not keep an accurate check of his altitude and rate of descent during the approach procedure in the second accident. [5][6][7]
  • On February 3, 1951 a Douglas DC-4 (registration F-BBDO) operating Air France's scheduled Douala, Cameroon, to Niamey, Niger, sector impacted the 13,354 feet high Cameroon Mountain near Bouea, Nigeria, at a height of 8,500 feet. The aircraft was destroyed, killing all 29 occupants. The mountain was probably only partially or faintly visible from the flight deck due to the mist surrounding it. Therefore, it was probably too late to climb over the mountain by the time the crew saw it. Although the pilot in command initiated immediate evasive action by turning sharply to the left, the plane hit the steeply rising terrain with its left wing. The accident investigators concluded that the crew followed an inaccurate procedure and relied on imprecise navigation. The investigators furthermore determined that the crew did not check the draft. Moreover, they cited the crew's error of judgement and over-confidence when flying over the mountain mass as additional contributory factors.[8]
  • On March 3, 1952 a SNCASE SE-161 Languedoc (registration F-BCUM) operating a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Nice Le Var Airport to Paris Le Bourget Airport crashed shortly after takeoff with the loss of all 38 lives on board. Soon after takeoff from Le Var Airport, the aircraft began banking to the left. This increased progressively until the aircraft flipped over on its back and crashed. The accident investigators attributed the accident to the aircraft's blocked ailerons to the left, as a result of a mechanical fault related to the design.[9]
  • On April 29, 1952 a Douglas C-54A (registration F-BELI) operating an internal German scheduled service from Frankfurt Rhein-Main Airport to Berlin Tempelhof Airport came under sustained attack from two Soviet MiG 15 fighters while passing through one of the Allied air corridors over East Germany. Although the attack had severely damaged the plane, necessitating the shutdown of engines number three and four, the pilot in command of the aircraft managed to carry out a safe emergency landing at West Berlin's Tempelhof Airport. A subsequent inspection of the aircraft's damage at Tempelhof revealed that it had been hit by 89 shots fired from the Soviet MiGs during the preceding air attack. There were no fatalities among the 17 occupants (six crew, eleven passengers) despite the severity of the attack. The Soviet military authorities defended this attack on an unarmed civilian aircraft by claiming the Air France plane was outside the air corridor at the time of attack.[10]
  • On September 1, 1953 a Lockheed L-749A Constellation (registration F-BAZZ) operating the domestic Paris-Nice portion of an international scheduled passenger flight to Hong Kong crashed into Mount Cemet, France, with the loss of all 42 lives on board. The accident occurred while the flight deck crew was preparing to land at Nice's Côte d'Azur airport, the aircraft's first scheduled stop. The subsequent accident investigation established "controlled flight into terrain (CFIT)" as the cause.[11]
  • On April 8, 1957 a Douglas C-47B (registration F-BEIK) operating a scheduled internal Algerian passenger flight from Biskra lost height after takeoff and crashed a mile beyond the airport's runway with the loss of all 34 lives on board.[12]
  • On August 29, 1960 a Lockheed L-1049G Super Constellation (registration F-BHBC) operating flight AF343 from Paris to Abidjan, Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), via Dakar, Senegal, crashed into the sea with the loss of all 63 lives on board while the aircraft's flight deck crew made a second attempt to land at Dakar's Yoff Airport.[14]
  • On May 10, 1961 a Lockheed L-1649A Starliner (registration F-BHBM) operating the Fort Lamy (now N'Djamena), Chad, to Marseille Marignane portion of Air France's Brazzaville, Congo - Paris sector as flight AF406 crashed in the Sahara desert near Edjele, Algeria, with the loss of all 78 lives on board. The aircraft was cruising at an altitude of 20,000 feet when its empennage suddenly failed. This caused it to break up in flight and crash in the Sahara desert. The accident investigators believed that the empennage separated from the rest of the aircraft as a result of the detonation of a nitrocellulose explosive device.[15]
  • On September 12, 1961 a Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle III (registration F-BJTB) operating the Paris Orly-Rabat-Casablanca sector as flight AF2005 crashed near Rabat's Sale Airport with the loss of all 77 lives on board. At the time of the accident meteorological conditions in the local area were unfavourable due to thick, low fog. The poor weather conditions reduced horizontal visibility and ceiling. The pilot in command of the aircraft informed ATC that he wanted to attempt a break-through over the NDB. The aircraft was completely destroyed by the post-crash fire when it impacted the ground, killing everyone on board. The accident investigators cited the commander's error in reading his instruments as the most likely cause.[16]
  • On June 3, 1962 a chartered Boeing 707-328 (registration F-BHSM) flying from Orly Airport, Paris, France, to Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, Atlanta, USA, crashed at Orly during takeoff. 130 out of a total of 132 people on board were killed. Two flight attendants sitting in the aft (tail or rear) section of the aircraft were saved. The investigation found a faulty servo motor, which had led to an improper (and non-adjustable) elevator trim. Brake marks measuring 1,500 feet (457 m) were found on the runway, indicating that the flight deck crew tried to abort takeoff. The aircraft rolled right while only seven feet (two m) from the ground, causing its right wing to hit the ground. It crashed 50 yards (45 m) from the runway and exploded. [17]
  • On June 22, 1962 Air France flight 117, operated with a Boeing 707-328 (registration F-BHST), crashed into a forest on a hill at an altitude of about 4,000 feet during bad weather, while attempting to land at Point-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, West Indies, killing all 113 on board. The aircraft was attempting a non-precision NDB approach. A malfunctioning VOR station and poor NDB reception due to thunderstorms in the area were blamed for the accident. [18][19]
  • On March 6, 1968 a Boeing 707-328C (registration F-BLCJ) operating the Caracas-Point-à-Pitre sector of Air France flight 212 impacted the southern slope of La Soufrière Mountain at an altitude of 3,937 feet, 27.5km SSW of Le Raizet Airport with the loss of all 63 lives on board. When ATC had cleared the flight deck crew for a visual approach to Le Raizet's runway 11, the crew had reported the airfield in sight. Flight 212 started to descend from FL90 and passed Saint Claude at an altitude of about 4,400 feet. The accident investigators cited a visual approach procedure at night in which the descent was begun from an incorrectly identified point as the probable cause.[20]
  • On September 11, 1968 a Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle III (registration F-BOHB) operating the domestic Ajaccio, Corsica - Nice sector as flight AF1611 crashed into the sea near Cap d'Antibes off Nice with the loss of all 95 lives on board. The accident occurred while the flight deck crew attempted an emergency landing at Côte d'Azur Airport, following the detection of an onboard fire in the aircraft's rear cabin 21 minutes after takeoff from Ajaccio. The accident investigators believed that the fire had started in the right lavatory and galley area.[21]
  • On June 12, 1975 a Boeing 747-128 (registration N28888) operating the sector between what was then Bombay (now Mumbai), India, and Tel Aviv, Israel, of flight AF193 to Paris Charles de Gaulle was destroyed by fire on the ground at Bombay's Santa Cruz Airport, following an aborted takeoff. The aircraft's number eleven tyre on its right-hand main undercarriage had failed while the flight deck crew was executing a 180 degree turn at the beginning of Santa Cruz Airport's runway 27. When the flight deck crew began its takeoff run, the aircraft's number twelve tyre failed as well. At that point the plane's wheels and braking assembly came into direct contact with the runway, thereby starting a fire. When this came to the crew's attention, it aborted takeoff. The ensuing delay in shutting down the engines, as well as the improper deployment of the airport's fire service, caused the fire to spread, leading to the plane's total destruction. There were no fatalities among the 394 occupants (18 crew and 376 passengers).[23]
  • On January 18, 1984 an explosion in the cargo hold of a Boeing 747 en route from Karachi, Pakistan, to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, shortly after departing Karachi blew a hole in the right rear cargo hold. The resulting loss of cabin pressure necessitated an immediate descent to 5,000 feet. The aircraft returned to Karachi without any fatalities among the 261 occupants (15 crew and 246 passengers).[24]
  • On December 24, 1994, Flight 8969, was hijacked in Houari Boumedienne Airport in Algiers, Algeria by four terrorists who belonged to the Armed Islamic Group. The terrorists intended to crash the plane F-GBEC over the Eiffel Tower on Boxing Day. After a failed attempt to leave Marseille after a confrontational firefight with the terrorists and the GIGN French Special Forces, the GIGN shot dead all four terrorists and all 173 hostages survived after the storming of the plane on the terminal front, where snipers on the roof shot dead two of the terrorists. The other two terrorists died by gunshots in the cabin after around twenty minutes. F-GBEC in 1995, was claimed to be written off by Air France as the damage was beyond repair.
  • On September 5, 1996, an incident occurred on a Boeing 747 in mid-air near Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Turbulence caused injuries to three passengers. One died later, as a result of injuries received from an in-flight film projection screen. [25] [26].
  • On March 5, 1999 an ex-UTA Boeing 747-2B3F (SCD) freighter (registration F-GPAN) carrying a revenue load of 66 tons of cargo on flight AF6745 from Paris Charles de Gaulle to Chennai Meenambakkam Airport, India, via Karachi, Pakistan and Bangalore Hindustan Airport, India, crash-landed, caught fire and completely burned out. Meenambakkam ATC had cleared the aircraft for an ILS approach to the airport's runway 07. The crew abandoned the approach due to technical difficulties. The aircraft circled to attempt a second approach. At the end of the second approach, the aircraft's nose struck the runway while touching down because its nose gear was either not down or not locked. The plane skidded and came to rest 7,000 feet down the 13,050 ft. runway. After it had come to a standstill, the crew noticed smoke on the flight deck and began to extinguish the flames. Soon after, flames erupted in the aircraft's front section. One crew member managed to escape from the flight deck via a rope ladder. The remaining four crew members were rescued by the airport fire service from the rear, before the flames engulfed the entire aircraft. The fire service was unable to extinguish the fire, as a result of which the aircraft burned out completely.[29] [27]
  • On July 25, 2000, flight 4590, a Concorde (registration F-BTSC) charter departing from De Gaulle airport in Paris bound for New York's JFK Airport crashed just after takeoff in Gonesse, France. All 109 people on board died. [28]
Flight 358 at Toronto Pearson International Airport
Flight 358 at Toronto Pearson International Airport

In addition to the accidents listed above, Air France has also been the target of several hijackings. These hijackings occurred in the following sequence:

  • On June 27, 1976 flight 139 from Tel Aviv to Paris via Athens was hijacked by a Palestinian group, who diverted it to Benghazi, Libya, for refuelling. After spending seven hours on the ground at Benghazi Airport, the Airbus A300 and its 260 occupants were then taken to Entebbe, Uganda, where they were rescued by Israeli soldiers the following week.

On December 24, 2003, three Air France flights bound for Los Angeles International Airport were cancelled because of fears that terrorists were planning to target these flights.

Boeing 777 sporting Air France's eurowhite livery.
Boeing 777 sporting Air France's eurowhite livery.

Air France's current livery is a Eurowhite scheme, composing of a white fuselage with blue Air France titles and a white tail with a series of parallel red and blue lines streaking across the tail at an angle, and a small European flag at the top. This livery has been in use since the late 70s.

Prior to the current livery, Air France aircraft had a bare-metal underside, extending up to a blue cheat-line that ran across the cabin windows. Above the cheat-line the fuselage was again white, complete with Air France titles and a French flag. The tail was white with two thick blue lines, which tapered from the rear of the tail and met at point towards the front bottom. This basic livery, albeit with minor variations would appear on all post-war Air France aircraft until the late 70s.

Photos at: DC-3 (circa 1950s) - [[31]] Caravelle (circa 1960s) - [[32]] A300-B (circa 1970s) - [[33]]

  • The song featured in the Air France commercials, and the song played before and after Air France flights is "Between Us" by the band Aswefall.
  • There are ranks for the flight attendants. Two silver sleeve stripes denote a Chief Purser. One silver sleeve stripe denote a Purser. Flight Attendants do not have any sleeve stripes.
  • Air France was named by the Association of European Airlines as one of seven airlines with a worse-than-average record for lost luggage in 2006. The average over 24 airlines is 15.7 bags per 1,000 passengers.[30]

  1. ^ http://corporate.airfrance.com/en/strategy/fleet/index.html
  2. ^ a b c d e "Directory: World Airlines", Flight International, 2007-03-27, pp. 56-57. 
  3. ^ AIR FRANCE - KLM Company Profile Yahoo! Finance
  4. ^ Régional (Compagnie Aérienne Européenne), Company Profile
  5. ^ Air France IOSA Operators Profile
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Air France (Airline, France)
  7. ^ a b c M.R. Golder, The Changing Nature of French Dirigisme - A Case Study of Air France. Thesis submitted at Trinity College, Oxford, 1997, p.28
  8. ^ Airliners.net
  9. ^ Answers.com (Business and Finance) - Chargeurs International
  10. ^ Air France (Airline, France)
  11. ^ FT.com/Business Life, The Monday Interview, 30 September 2007 - Pilot who found the right trajectory
  12. ^ The New York Times, 31 August 1994, Air France's New Adviser
  13. ^ Business Wire, 16 January 1996 - Statement from Air France Group Chairman regarding Stephen M. Wolf
  14. ^ a b Financial Times, 17 October 2007 - Air France and Delta target London
  15. ^ Airwise, 17 October 2007 - Air France And Delta Set Transatlantic Venture
  16. ^ Air France website - Fleet
  17. ^ Air France Fleet & Age
  18. ^ Flight Global - Air France to replace 747 fleet
  19. ^ Airliner World (March 2005)
  20. ^ a b Air International (July 2005)
  21. ^ http://www.concorde-spirit-tours.com/concorde.htm
  22. ^ ASIATravelTips.com, 18 June 2001 - Air France confirms major A380 order
  23. ^ Air France - On Board
  24. ^ Airliner World (January 2007)
  25. ^ Record of Air France accidents/incidents at the ASN Aviation Safety Database
  26. ^ [1]
  27. ^ "Boeing's workhorse," BBC
  28. ^ [2]
  29. ^ [3]
  30. ^ AEA Consumer Report. Association of European Airlines. Retrieved on 2007-04-04.

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