Air France announced late on September 25th that it will “immediately withdraw” the Transavia Europe project in a proposal to end the 10-day strike by flight crew which is “heavily penalizing the carrier, its staff and customers.” In view of the concession, management has called on pilots to “return to work immediately.”
In addition to withdrawing Transavia Europe, Air France said it will further develop Transavia France “in competitive economic conditions and accompanied by the safeguards as discussed in the negotiations so far.”
According to an Air France statement, “This balanced proposal meets the unions’ requirements by providing a renewed guarantee that there will be no relocation. It preserves the Transavia development project, a ‘made in France’ solution to face the competition from foreign low-cost carriers and conquer this rapidly expanding market.” The statement went on to say the proposal “meets the needs of employees who want their company to get back on track” and “enables us to find an immediate outcome to this destructive conflict.”
Air France-KLM chairman and CEO Alexandre de Juniac and Air France chairman and CEO Frédéric Gagey jointly stated: “Our Transavia project is a 100% pro-France project. It is about developing Transavia to encourage growth in France and quickly create more than 1,000 jobs in France, including 250 pilot jobs. With the withdrawal of the Transavia Europe project, there is now no reason to strike because there are no longer any concerns about relocation. We therefore call on the striking pilots to return to work immediately.”