Laudable L’Avion
August 15, 2008 – 7:34 amTime has a piece out this week discussing L’Avion’s successful sell to British Airways. When L’Avion sold, much of the press was about how this marked the end to the first batch of business class airlines. And while that storyline wasn’t all that wrong, it did miss one thing: L’Avion did not go into bankruptcy.
The article goes on to note a variety of reasons leading to L’Avion’s faux-survival: correct aircraft choice, optimal pricing, careful cost controls. L’Avion was nice, but it wasn’t really really nice (I flew on it this past Spring) and that was the whole plan. No splashy lounge, no flatbeds…just a business class seat. My opinion is that L’Avion did well by matching the right market with the right product. As the article notes, “L’Avion looked for shelter from the competition by getting slots at Paris’ Orly airport, which are hard to come by, and by going for a higher proportion of leisure travelers, who might be lured from coach by the price and the prospect of not being treated like over-the-pond scum. Delta and Air France counterpunched with a J.F.K.–Orly flight, but it didn’t last because too many of their passengers connect out of Charles de Gaulle, the bigger, better Paris airport.”
Regardless, it is very very important to note that L’Avion fared better than its competitors because of management. This has nothing to do with oil or the economy. L’Avion had a better plan. And while I’m sure they all hoped they’d exit with a richer offer, perhaps given the oil and the economy, it was the best the management team could muster.