{"id":229617,"date":"2026-09-17T12:09:42","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T10:09:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/?p=229617"},"modified":"2026-09-17T12:12:40","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T10:12:40","slug":"nadia-azale-premium-france-air-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/en\/nadia-azale-premium-france-air-france","title":{"rendered":"\u00abOur upmarket strategy is paying off\u00bb: Nadia Azal\u00e9, Air France's Managing Director for France"},"content":{"rendered":"

The French market remains relatively solid. How is business travel evolving more precisely?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nadia Azal\u00e9 \u2013<\/strong> Business travel behaviour is quite different from leisure travel. We are seeing very strong performance across several business travel segments. In a complex geopolitical context, premium cabins are holding up well. The redeployment of our offer towards certain Asian destinations has also largely contributed to this performance, resulting in unit revenue that remains well valued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are nevertheless significant differences between companies. Some large corporations continue to do very well, while smaller ones are adopting a more wait-and-see approach given the international climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the destinations where corporate demand remains the strongest?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nadia Azal\u00e9 \u2013<\/strong> We mainly find the very large destinations. New York and Shanghai are performing particularly well, as is Tokyo. In Europe, business remains stable, with prices holding up well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Country by country, Tanzania is seeing good growth and is becoming an interesting destination on the French leisure market. Portugal is also performing very well, as is Northern Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We note in particular a strong increase in Scandinavia, in Denmark and in Sweden. In addition to the major northern cities, Air France serves several secondary northern cities with operations that can prove to be highly seasonal, such as Lapland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do the United States remain a strong market despite the current context?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nadia Azal\u00e9 \u2013 <\/strong>Yes. Even though the US market is generally more difficult, we have managed to maintain our passenger volumes. We are now present in 19 destinations in the United States, with both major cities and secondary destinations such as Phoenix. Las Vegas, for example, became our 19th destination in the United States with the launch of the direct service from Paris-Charles de Gaulle in April 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do business travellers continue to favour premium cabins?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nadia Azal\u00e9 \u2013<\/strong> When we look at the results, the premium cabins are doing very well. Even First Class is posting good performance. This is driven in particular by very strong flows between Europe and Asia, as well as between Europe and the US West Coast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Air France, this is encouraging because it proves that our upmarket strategy is paying off. We are investing more than a billion euros a year in renewing our fleet and cabins. And we are seeing the return on investment in customer satisfaction and loyalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Premium Economy is thus experiencing the same momentum as the Business and La Premi\u00e8re cabins?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nadia Azal\u00e9 \u2013<\/strong> The Premium cabin is growing strongly, both in terms of passenger numbers and revenue. It is following a trend comparable to that of Business class and is meeting a genuine demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That doesn't mean it has cannibalised Business class. It\u2019s an intermediate product that meets a different need, offering more comfort than the Economy seat and a specific experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The initial customer feedback is very positive. Satisfaction has increased by 24 points compared to the first-generation fixed-shell seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n