Rough translation
Air France: Ben Smith releases all the Airbus A380s from the fleet and orders the Canadian A220
(Credits: Reuters)
The French company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus to order 60 A220-300 (former Bombardier C-Series) and has announced the exit from the fleet of all A380s by 2022.
It's a strong decision by Ben Smith. After having confirmed at the end of 2018 the decision of the previous management to maintain an A380 fleet by reducing the number of aircraft, but by investing in the renovation of the cabins of the remaining aircraft, the Air France-KLM CEO has reversed course. Given the cost of investing in the renovation of cabins, he prefers to release the [A380] fleet and replace them with new aircraft on which he can develop the cabin from a blank sheet. This confirms his preference for smaller aircraft generating higher yields. The multiple failures of the Air France A380s have not played in favor of this aircraft which entered the fleet just 10 years ago.
As the Tribune revealed on July 13, Air France has decided to release all A380s from its fleet. In a statement issued Tuesday, Air France-KLM, its parent company, announced the release of its 10 super-jumbo Airbus by 2022. Since last November, three leased aircraft were already to go from 2020 onwards. The contracts of the two other leased aircraft will not be renewed and Air France will have to find a solution to dispose of the five aircraft that it owns, most of which are not yet depreciated. Of course, the takeover by Airbus of these aircraft is part of the negotiations for the purchase of wide-bodies, intended to replace the A380. According to our information, Air France has put the B787 and the A330 Neo in competition. The A350 is currently considered too expensive. This competition comes as the remaining firm Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 orders placed several years ago were split at the end of June between Air France (for the A350s) and KLM (for the B787s), in order to harmonize the fleets of the two sister companies.
Air France has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus for the purchase of 60 A220s. This plane is Airbus only by name. It is none other than the former Bombardier C-Series, renamed A220 in July 2018, after the takeover of the program by Airbus (51%), announced in October 2017.
The choice of the A220 is most relevant for the Air France network. This plane is much cheaper to buy than an A320 Neo, with equivalent seat costs. Above all, on short stages such as those of the short and medium-haul network of Air France, the A320 NEO is not optimal according to some experts. For them the A320 NEO is more suitable for carriers with a medium-haul network with sectors of about 3,500 kilometers. However, at Air France, the average stages are much shorter (three to four times less).
In other words, lots of little aircraft are more profitable than a few big ones; that is, if you have plenty of slots available. Note also that AF has only ten A380s anyway, half of them leased, out of a worldwide fleet of some 230. KLM has none.