subject: Information On Air France [print this page] Four transport companies of France and Aeropostale, the carrier of airmail at that time, merged to form the Air France. On 7th October,'33, at the Le Bourget airport, the official charter of the airline took place. At that time, 259 aircrafts were assigned to it. The airline?s logo was taken from the Air Orient emblem, which has the image of a sea horse with wings.
By the year'45, the civil aviation industry of France was nationalised and the responsibility of the entire air transportation network of France was handed over to Air France making it the flag carrier for the country. The Paris ? New York route was inaugurated in July of'46. Modernisation soon followed and like the luxury ocean liners, ?The Parisian Special? that linked Paris and New York had on board champagne, gourmet meals and private cabins.
Between the years'59 and'60, the Boeing 707 and the Caravelle were put in to the Air France fleet, reducing the travel-times by half. In the year'74, Air France changed its base, and shifted to Charles de Gaulle airport. Around the same time, the Air France also established a separate division in cargo operations, which became a huge success. In'76, the airline also launched the state of the art Concorde.
The'90s saw several mergers between the Air France and the other carriers, the most recent one being the merger with KLM, which happened somewhere in the early 2000s. Air France also joined the SkyTeam alliance, in order to provide an extensive network of destinations to its customers.
Air France today has three major business areas: First the customers, followed by the cargo, and then the aircraft maintenance. Air France boasts most modern fleet of Europe, comprising of over 389 aircrafts, out of which two-thirds are owned; whereas one-third is leased.
The airline is persistently working hard to come up with new ideas and solutions for its passengers. Besides, the normal services like booking your flights by Internet and online check in, Air France also offers services such as ?smartboarding?, wherein the customers needn?t wait in a queue for a security check. The baggage tracking can be done through a microchip, and passengers can keep their mobile phones on while on the flight.
In addition to these services, Air France is also dedicated to quality. Punctuality of flights is a main priority for them.
Air France, being a SkyTeam Alliance member, has flights which operate out of South Africa, to all main destinations across the globe. Besides, the self-operated flights by the airline, it also offers its customers with flights that are operated by the other members of the alliance, which are Aeromexico, China Southern Airlines, Aeroflot, Delta, CSA Czech Airlines, Continental, KLM, Northwest, Korean Air, and Alitalia. This offers customers with an even more wide-ranging network of destinations across the globe.
