Air France collects two awards this week

At the World Airline Awards held at The Paris Air Show this week, Air France picked up the award for the World's Most Improved Airline - the company is now committed to moving upmarket with all its products and services to give passengers an exceptional tarvel experience.

For the second year running it received the Best First Class Airline Lounge Dining Award for its restaurant in its Premiere lounge at Charles de Gaulle airport.

You can read more from Air France by clicking here.

Air France - most improved Airline at World Airline Awards

Leading European Airlines meet to agree a new strategy

The Chief Executives of Europe's five largest airline groups have met in Brussels in response to the new EU Transport Commissioner's consultation on a new EU aviation strategy.

CEO's from Airfrance/KLM, easyJet, International Aviation Group (BA and others), Ryanair & Lufthansa agreed today to work together to develop a strategy to support growth and jobs across Europe, strengthen the aviation sector and give Europe's passengers more choice and lower fares.

Four measures to support the Commissions objectives were agreed - click here to read more

Airline leaders met in Brussels to help develop a new EU aviation strategy

Pilots' strike costs Air France KLM

The Air France KLM group has just posted its 2014 financial results that reflect the costs of last year's repeated pilots strikes.

The figures show the strike cost the company around 425m Euros in profit, and indicate that but for the disruption it would have achieved a significantly improved result for the year over 2013.

Despite the strike passenger numbers increased by 1.3% over the year, and the company achieved a modest reduction in costs.

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KLM Airbus A330

Every cloud has a silver lining?

Every cloud has a silver lining?

According to reports Easyjet experienced an increase in passenger numbers as a result of the recently concluded Air France Pilots strike.

While it is inevitable that those people planning to use Air France during the strike needed to make other arrangements, it is likely to be true that many who chose to book an alternative flight with the low cost airlines will have been converted to the benefits of not using one of the national carriers.

So from Air Frances point of view the strike may have proved to be doubly costly. Firstly the absolute loss in revenue over the strike period from cancelled flights. Secondly there is the more intangible cost of lost future business in respect of passengers now permanently lured away to the other carriers.

Ironically the strike centred on Air France's plans to develop its own low cost brand - however the after effects of the action may have a negative affect on the airline for some time to come.

Our experience in selling luggage is that the low cost airlines are the preferred choice for many travellers as more people question what they pay the extra for with the big brands.