Air France celebrates 70 years operating in Colombia

Air France celebrates 70 years of its first operation in Colombia: since then, the company has operated uninterruptedly in the South American nation. The first service was between Paris Orly – Bogota in 1953, when the route lasted 24 hours with four stopovers in Lisbon, Santa Maria, Martinique and Caracas. It was operated in a Lockheed Constellation with capacity for 66 passengers.

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In 1960, the company reduced the duration of its flights to the Colombian capital to 16 hours and 50 minutes with three stopovers in Lisbon, Guadeloupe and Caracas operating in a Boeing 707 with a capacity of 179 passengers. In 1977, the French airline introduces its first wide-body service to Colombia with its Boeing 747-100, which had a single stop in the Venezuelan capital.

In 1996, Air France began to offer the first non-stop service between France and Colombia with the route Paris – Charles de Gaulle (CDG) – Bogota (BOG) operated in an Airbus A340-300 with a capacity of 275 seats; then, in 2013, the company offered in-flight entertainment screens in every seat of all its classes.

In 2018, the airline abandoned its operations with four-engine aircraft and started using more fuel-efficient twin-engine models with lower carbon dioxide emissions with the introduction of the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, which currently operates in the Colombian capital.

Air France continues with its commitment in Colombia and as of March 26, 2023 will modify its schedule on the Paris (CDG) – Bogota (BOG) route by changing to the Airbus A350-900 with a capacity of 324 seats in three classes (34 Business Class/24 Premium Economy/266 Economy), an increase of more than 15% in the number of seats offered compared to the winter season.

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According to data obtained by Aviacionline through Civil Aeronautics statistics, the French airline mobilized 149,913 passengers in the January – November 2022 period between Paris (CDG) – Bogota (BOG), a 92.5% recovery in passenger traffic, compared to 2019 levels.

For the 2023 summer season, Air France will be the third largest European airline in Colombia in terms of seats per kilometers offered (ASK) according to the Cirium platform, only behind Iberia and Air Europa.

See also: Air France announces new non-stop flights between Los Angeles and Nice for Cannes Film Festival