18:17     05 April 2021    

France and the European Commission have agreed on the outline of a state-backed refinancing package for the French arm of Franco-Dutch airline group Air France-KLM, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire announced Sunday.

France and the European Commission have agreed on the outline of a state-backed refinancing package for the French arm of Franco-Dutch airline group Air France-KLM, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire announced Sunday. Le Maire said in a television program that negotiations with the commission have been concluded, but the amount of money has not yet been clarified. “It is very good news for Air France. It’s very good news for the whole French aviation sector,” he said. Saying that this good news should encourage the company to be more competitive, he said Air France will have to give up some landing and take-off sites at Orly airport. Le Maire said the state has provided 7 billion euros ($8.23 billion) worth of aid to the company so far and that they expect Air France to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions and become the world leader in this regard. The Air France-KLM partnership lost 7.1 billion euros ($8.35 billion) in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak. The company's turnover decreased by 59% last year compared to the previous year and its debt doubled to $11 billion.