Air France is planning to launch flights to Male in the Maldives! The airline has announced the new flight to begin in November 1, 2017. The airline is adding a new destinations to its very expansive route network. Male is the gateway to the Maldives, and boasts some of the most stunning beaches in the world. The airline announced the service on Monday February 6th. This will add to the number of leisure destinations served by the airline. The twice weekly service will fly on Wednesdays and Saturdays out of Paris, and the following day out of Male.
New 777s Will Fly the Route
The airline plans on launching their newest cabins on the route. The 777s will have 3 classes of service. Business class will have all aisle access, lie flat seats. There will also be Premium Economy and Economy class on the aircraft. Lucky, form One Mile at a Time, has flown their excellent business class and had only good things to say. It is worth noting that the airline still has angled-flat seats on some of their 777s and their A380s. That makes this route one of the few that has their excellent hard product.
Air France and Competition
I suspect that the airline is launching flights to the Maldives given the pressure it faces from leisure carriers. Recently, La Compagnie and XL Airways merged. This gives the new company a bit more leverage when it comes to leisure routes out of France. The airline will also compete with Air France on transAtlantic flights to New York. Air France offers a far superior product to either of these carriers, but the airline does demand a premium for them. We will have to see if they can turn a profit on this route.
Landing Thoughts:
I am happy to see Air France launch flights to the Maldives. They have an excellent inflight and ground experience. Per their press release, they expect people to fly into Male and continue on to any of the other islands in the country. The Maldives is one of the countries in my bucket list. I hope I get to fly there on Air France some day soon!
What do you think? Would you fly Air France to the Maldives? Do you prefer leisure carriers for these routes?
