Taxe de Solidarité sur les Billets d'Avion

Dear President Smith,

Time is so critical for the French aviation industry that our Community NSAAF feels the need to speak out.

With the probable application of the "Taxe de Solidarité sur les Billets d'Avion", and so shortly after partially recovering from the CoVid event, our industry is facing a new threat.

We, at NSAAF will follow the Unions' instructions for November 14th general strike.

Indeed, despite all efforts AirFrance probably deployed to minimise the impact of such a tax on the Group revenues, it seems like small arrangements on this tax have made your governance satisfied enough not to protest anymore.

Recent publications show a neat decrease in the volume of flights with a near similar passenger capacity over S24 season.

Aeroroutes - AF S24 Frequency Change

Aeroroutes - AF S24 Frequency Change

This makes HOP , once again the ideal candidate to adjust flight volumes losses while maintaining Passenger capacity at AirFrance mainline Medium Haul.

This is not Science Fiction, as this HOP/AirFrance balance was organised well in advance when you decided HOP would be 100% chartered for AirFrance.

Moreover, after having very smartly used HOP for the post CoVid rebound, will you now take advantage of the tax to accelerate the obvious downsizing plans for HOP! until a probable stop?

Whatever your future plans for HOP are, you are accountable to your employees, and it is your responsibility to ensure that pilots at both AirFrance and HOP are treated fairly and equally, with the same rights and conditions as we share the same duties and responsibilities to our costumers.

Therefore, we urge you to commit to an immediate recognition of HOP pilots as part of the AirFrance pilot pool.

This is an additional reason for us to give all power to our Unions to negotiate with AirFrance in the wake of the new tax regulation, all plans for HOP’s pilots.