Air France seeks ‘level playing field’ with Chinese rivals – Bloomberg

Air France is struggling to compete with Chinese rivals due to being barred from Russian airspace last year. The French airline is looking to President Emmanuel Macron to introduce taxes or other measures that would create a similar cost base for the French company and Chinese competitors. Before the pandemic, Air France operated 32 flights per week to mainland China, compared to six per week scheduled for this month. The company is reportedly seeking to increase the number of weekly flights to 14 in July, pending Chinese government approval. According to Air France, the need to bypass Russia adds two to three hours when flying from China, meaning extra fuel and staff costs.