AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France.

It is a subsidiary of the Air

France–KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance. As of 2013 Air France
serves 36 destinations in France and operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 175
destinations in 78 countries (93 including overseas departments and territories of France) and also carried
46,803,000 passengers in 2019. The airline's global hub is at Charles de Gaulle Airport with Orly Airport as
the primary domestic hub. Air France's corporate headquarters, previously in Montparnasse, Paris,[5] are
located on the grounds of Charles de Gaulle Airport, north of Paris.[6]

Air France was formed on 7 October 1933 from a merger of Air Orient, Air Union, Compagnie Générale
Aéropostale, Compagnie Internationale de Navigation Aérienne (CIDNA), and Société Générale de
Transport Aérien (SGTA). During the Cold War, from 1950 until 1990, it was one of the three main Allied
scheduled airlines operating in Germany at West Berlin's Tempelhof and Tegel airports. In 1990, it acquired
the operations of French domestic carrier Air Inter and international rival UTA – Union de Transports Aériens.
It served as France's primary national flag carrier for seven decades prior to its 2003 merger with KLM.

In 2018, Air France and its regional subsidiary HOP! carried 51.4 million passengers.[7] Air France operates
a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing widebody jets on long-haul routes, and uses Airbus A320 family aircraft
on short-haul routes. Air France introduced the A380 on 20 November 2009 with service to New York City's
JFK Airport from Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport. HOP! operates the majority of its regional domestic and
European scheduled services with a fleet of regional jet aircraft

In late 2016, the marketing head at Air France India needed a strategy to acquire additional business-class
customers. Although Air France India had been performing well in the economy-class segment, revenues in
the business-class segment remained a challenge. Which customer group should the airline target to
acquire more business-class travellers? How should the company increase its brand image for this target
customer group? And how should the company reach out to these new customers? The marketing head also
needed to decide whether the company should act alone and implement a strategy of direct marketing,
pursue a partnership using a co-branding strategy, or utilize a combination of those options.

Learning Objective:
This case is suitable for both undergraduate and graduate courses in introductory and specialized
marketing. It is ideal for use in discussions on direct marketing, international marketing, and the consumer
behaviour of premium-class customers. Students will develop their analytical and strategic decision-making
skills, specifically in terms of

 customer acquisition when targeting customers of premium services and products in an

international market.
 co-branding and direct marketing of premium services and brands; and
 brand management, consumer behaviour, and marketing strategies in the Indian market.