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DALLAS — French flag carrier Air France (AF) has announced that it will stop offering its own flights out of Paris-Orly Airport (ORY) by summer 2026.
The airline has seen a significant drop in demand, of around 40%, for domestic flights originating from Orly, as a great part of its customers are switching instead to its main hub at Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG).
This transition is, according to the airline, a consequence of the drop in domestic business travel and the growing shift toward rail, impulsed by the current French government as a measure to fight climate change and promote rail travel.
During the next three years, all Air France connections to Toulouse (TLS), Marseille (MRS), Nice (NCE), and overseas domestic flights out of Orly will remain operative. However, in 2026, the airline will fully withdraw from Paris' secondary airport and will leave Transavia France (TO) as the main Group operator.
Orly, Relegated to Low-cost Travel
The termination of AF flights out of ORY will not only translate into a more sustainable and greener aviation economy in Paris, but it will also make the airport the main low-cost travel destination airport for passengers traveling to the French capital.
There are countless premium airlines that still mostly choose to fly to Paris-Orly instead of Charles de Gaulle today, like Iberia (IB), Air Europa (UX), Royal Air Maroc (AT), or TAP Air Portugal (TP). With the AF exit, this event may now invite these carriers to switch sides and move to CDG as well.
The division between traffic will then be clearer than ever. From 2026 onwards, CDG will be destined for all premium and business travel flights, while ORY will now have an exclusive role in the transit of leisure, low-cost, and former-colonial airline travel.
Featured image: Adrian Nowakowski/Airways
https://airwaysmag.com/air-france-klm-airbus-a350-order/
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