What impact will the BA-AA and Joint Business Agreement have on the French market?
The approval of the American and European authorities for a joint subsidiary managing flights between North America and Europe will intensify our global cooperation and result in a more efficient product. This will enable us to better integrate our schedules and improve connecting opportunities between British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines. This agreement will enhance the attractiveness of the International Airlines Group, the new entity combining the activities of British Airways and Iberia. With American Airlines, we are positioning ourselves as leaders in South and North America through the two highly complementary hubs of London Heathrow and Madrid.
What's in it for the passenger?
Obtaining antitrust immunity puts us on an equal footing with Star Alliance and SkyTeam, which already enjoy similar status. We will, for example, launch codeshare flights on 122 cities in the American Airlines network. We will be extending our range of fares by offering reduced prices on all our networks through a single booking. The agreement also allows miles to be accumulated on all our carriers' programmes and facilitates connections. Finally, we expect greater profitability on the North Atlantic route, which will translate into a better product for the passenger. The agreement is due to come into force in the autumn.
Are you seeing a recovery in departures from France?
We have seen a recovery in demand over the last few months, initially in economy class cabins, but now beginning to make itself felt in premium cabins. We are continuing to stimulate demand in premium classes with regular promotional offers.
