Once an early adopter of the superjumbo aircraft, Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith stands by the airline’s 2020 decision to phase out the A380 completely. Air France began operating the A380 in 2009, and had 10 of the aircraft in its fleet.
Some airlines – including British Airways, Qantas, and Korean Air – parked their A380 fleets in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. But as demand bounced back, these carriers returned the superjumbo jet to revenue service.
Qantas is set to restore 10 A380s to service by the end of this year.
‘No Regrets’
Air France swiftly phased out its A380s in May 2020, with many now set to be scrapped.
Speaking at the Paris Air Forum on Friday, Smith said he has “no regrets” about retiring the A380 fleet, FlightGlobal reported.
The aircraft was largely not profitable for the French airline, he shared, except during peak summer periods. Just to refurbish the aircraft’s interiors, the price tag would have reached nearly $70 million per aircraft.
It was “really great from a customer perspective,” Smith added, but the A350 makes more sense for the airline.
He called the A350 “extremely successful” for Air France. The airline has 37 A350-900s in active service with more on order.
