Air France to retire A380s

Fleet simplification was in the air at Air France last week with a decision to replace the company’s Airbus A380s and order 10 Airbus A350-900s. It brings the total number of A350s to 38, including three already delivered.

The airline’s partner, KLM, is said to be already well on its way to simplifying its own long-haul fleet, which will ultimately consist of only Boeing B777 and B787 aircraft, sharing a common pilot type rating.

Officials said the Air France order was the next step as that airline pursues the same fleet simplification strategy. As a result, the Air France long-haul fleet in 2023 will consist of 116 aircraft split among only four families.

These are A330s and A350s, plus B787s and B777s, which the carrier said as at KLM would bring Air France greater operational flexibility and an opportunity for significant economies of scale, reducing the number of pilot qualifications to three.

The new-generation aircraft will replace the Airbus A380s now in operation at Air France, which are to be retired by the end of 2022, and will also allow the company to accelerate the departure of the Airbus A340s during the first quarter of 2021.

www.airfranceklm.com

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Barry Graham, US

What a shame.