Journalists attending Friday's annual conference ofAir France-KLM in search of big announcements or small revolutions will have come up empty. Low-cost Long-haul, Alitalia, strike action: the 'hot' issues of the moment did not give rise to any decisions within the Group's management, which was focused on the order of the day: Air France-KLM's operating and financial results. It is true that the 2017 results provided a positive basis for discussion, as did the operating profit of 1488 million eurosThis represents an increase of 41.8% compared with the previous financial year. " Air France-KLM closes 2017 with solid results in a buoyant economic environment "This is what Jean-Marc Janaillac, CEO of Air France-KLM, summed up. " The Group confirmed its leading position in Europe in terms of traffic, while recording an increase in operating income of 42% and significantly improving its financial profile. These achievements go hand in hand with major strategic advances, in particular the strengthening and expansion of our network of alliances and the successful launch of Joon. At the start of 2018, against a backdrop of rising oil prices and increasingly intense competition, we will continue to go on the offensive, working on our competitiveness and reducing our unit costs, and capitalising on the achievements of 2017 to maintain our growth momentum. profitable growth "continues Jean-Marc Janaillac.
To face up to this " increasingly intense competition "Air France-KLM executives would like to be able to count on a little help from the French authorities. And they are eagerly awaiting the Air transport conference to be held in 2018. The aim is to close the competitiveness gap with German airlines, for example... Of course, the comparison is no accident: Lufthansa's thirst for size seems inexhaustible, and the German group is even eyeing Alitalia. Air France must therefore solve a complex equation: keep the Italian airline within the Lufthansa fold? SkyteamFor the time being, Air France-KLM is not counting on external growth to face up to this fierce competition. As for the launch of a long-haul low-cost carrier - an option chosen in particular by the IAG group with Level - the project is not on the programme either. " We don't want to make the same mistake "This is not the case with the arrival of the European low-costs," says Jean-Marc Janaillac. The business model of long-haul low-cost airlines is not yet fully established: the recent results of these carriers still raise a number of questions. ". The CEO of the Air France-KLM group is not definitively closing the door on such a project, but would obviously like to be spared such an adventure...". If the strengthening of our alliances and our pricing measures prove insufficient, we will have to devise a more structured response. But that time has not yet come "he assures us. For the time being, therefore, there seems to be an urgent need to wait for a group which, buoyed by its good results for 2017, intends to continue with its strategy.
