With the rise of low cost companies who captured 40% of the market in volume

With the rise of low cost companies who captured 40% of the market in volume, many traditional companies developed their low cost services: Lufthansa developed Germanwings (2002) and British Airways developed Vueling (2004). Thus, Air France had the strategic obligation to introduce its low cost service named Transavia (2007). However, within the company and among the workers and the unions, the position towards low cost business modes vary widely: while some unions and employees think that going into the low cost sector is a strategic error that cannibalizes Air France services, others think that Low cost is definitely the travel solution that suits all clients and all destinations which means that Air France should rethink all its business. This reveals a serious ambiguity upon the identity and the future of Air France.
The place of Transavia is one topic among many others (the place of Hop!, the hubs strategy, medium and long distance network strategy…) that need to be clarified so as to create a clear and common vision about the company’s future.