Air France launches Joon airline targeted at younger passengers to better compete against Gulf carriers

Air France Monday formally launched its new “Joon” lower-cost airline, which it hopes will attract a younger clientele and restore some routes to profitability.

Air France said Monday that Joon would start off by flying to six destinations.

Starting from Dec. 1, Joon will fly to four cities in Europe – Barcelona, Berlin, Lisbon and Porto.

It will then fly to Fortaleza in Brazil and the Seychelles in summer, 2018.

Joon, which is targeting the ‘millennial generation, will be run by Jean-Michel Mathieu.

Mathieu has been involved with the project since its start and has held various positions in sales, digital and revenue management within the Air France-KLM group.

Air France wants to bring down costs in order to compete better against Gulf carriers on long-haul routes and against budget carriers on short-haul routes.