The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air France-KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Alexandre de Juniac says the Franco-Dutch carrier has longterm plans to develop regional hubs in West and East Africa.
Speaking in the Ivory Coast last week, de Junaic said his firm saw potential for Abidjan to become a West African hub in ten years time, while Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta could play the same role for East Africa. As such, plans call for local regional operators to provide feed into the Europeans' longhaul network.
"In the next five to ten years, as a strategic destination for us, yes, we see Abidjan as a regional hub," he was quoted by the AFP.
Air France is ideally positioned within West Africa through a 20% minority shareholding in Air Côte d'Ivoire (HF, Abidjan) while KLM holds a 26% stake in East African powerhouse, Kenya Airways (KQ, Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta).
