In the midst of celebrating its ninetieth anniversary, Air France has decided to move. According to our information, it was the Canadian Ben Smith, at the helm of the airline since 2018, who made the decision to make it leave its historic Orly airport to consolidate its activities at Roissy – Charles-de-Gaulle.
The announcement of this move should be made on Wednesday, October 18, during several social and economic committees (CSE) of the group. Even before these meetings take place, the unions believe that the die is cast: “Orly, for Air France, it’s dead! It’s a part of history that is disappearing.”already laments Laurent Dahyot, general secretary of the CGT-Air France. “Orly is a symbol”judge, for his part, a pilot.
This trip to the airport in the large northern suburbs of the capital has begun, “because the flight to Cayenne [en Guyane] has already been transferred », points out Mr. Dahyot. In the coming months, “all Air France flights to the Antilles” will leave from Roissy, predicts the CGT. Today, in addition to Caribbean destinations and Reunion Island, Air France also operates, from Orly, routes to Corsica, according to the principle of public service delegation, and its three “shuttles” to Marseille, Nice and Toulouse.
Fear of a “decline in activity on the national network”
The withdrawal of Air France from its stronghold of Orly is a long-standing movement. It began with the restructuring plan for the company’s domestic network, when the subsidiary Hop!, responsible for short-haul routes, saw, during the Covid-19 pandemic, its activities transferred from Orly to the platforms from Roissy and Lyon.
Ultimately, in a few months, Air France will only be represented at Orly by its low-cost subsidiary Transavia. The unions fear “a drop in activity on the national network for the benefit of Transavia and perhaps even other airlines”. They are not afraid that the company will abandon destinations, but that it will reduce its frequencies to certain cities. Indeed, notes Mr. Dahyot, “Air France already operates domestic routes from Roissy, notably to Marseille”.
These destinations are used by Air France to supply its Roissy hub. In practice, when the company makes five daily round trips to Marseille from this airport, it also operates seven, every day, with its shuttle to Marseille from Orly. “Tomorrow, once at Roissy, will Air France maintain the twelve daily rotations to Marseille or reduce activity? », asks the union.
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