Air France was formed
on the 7th of October 1933, from a merger of Air Orient, Air
Union, Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, Compagnie
Internationale de Navigation Aérienne (CIDNA) and Société
Générale des Transports Aériens (SGTA).
Of these airlines, SGTA was the first commercial airline company
in France, having been founded as Lignes Aériennes Farman
in 1919. The constituent members of Air France had already built
extensive networks across Europe, to French colonies in North
Africa and farther afield. During World War II, Air France moved
its operations to Casablanca (Morocco). On the 26th of June 1945
all of France's air transport companies were nationalised. On
the 29th of December 1945, a decree of the French Government
granted Air France the management of the entire French air transport
network. Air France appointed its first flight attendants in
1946. The same year the airline opened its first air terminal
at Les Invalides in central Paris. It was linked to Paris Le
Bourget Airport, Air France's first operations and engineering
base, by coach. At that time the network covered 160,000 km,
claimed to be the longest in the world. Société
Nationale Air France was set up on the 1st of January 1946. European
schedules were initially operated by a fleet of Douglas DC-3
aircraft. On the 1st of July 1946, Air France started direct
flights between Paris and New York via refuelling stops at Shannon
and Gander. Douglas DC-4 piston-engine airliners covered the
route in just under 20 hours. In September 1947 Air France's
network stretched east from New York, Fort de France and Buenos
Aires to Shanghai. By 1948 Air France operated 130 aircraft,
one of the largest fleets in the world. Between 1947 and 1965
the airline operated Lockheed Constellations on passenger and
cargo services worldwide. In 1946 and 1948, respectively, the
French government authorised the creation of two private airlines:
Transports Aériens Internationaux – later Transports
Aériens Intercontinentaux – (TAI) and SATI. In 1949
the latter became part of Union Aéromaritime de Transport
(UAT), a private French international airline.
Lockheed Super Constellation of Air France at London (Heathrow)
Airport in April 1955 Compagnie Nationale Air France was created
by act of parliament on the 16th of June 1948. Initially, the
government held 70%. In subsequent years the French state's direct
and indirect shareholdings reached almost 100%. In mid-2002 the
state held 54%. On 4 August 1948 Max Hymans was appointed president.
During his 13-year tenure he would implement modernisation practices
centred on the introduction of jet aircraft. In 1949 the company
became a co-founder of Société Internationale de
Télécommunications Aéronautiques (SITA),
an airline telecommunications services company. In 1952 Air France
moved its operations and engineering base to the new Paris Orly
Airport South terminal. By then the network covered 250,000 km.
Air France entered the jet age in 1953 with the original, short-lived
de Havilland Comet series 1, the world's first jetliner. During
the mid 1950s it also operated the Vickers Viscount turboprop,
with twelve entering service between May 1953 and August 1954
on the European routes. On the 26th of September 1953 the government
instructed Air France to share long-distance routes with new
private airlines. This was followed by the Ministry of Public
Works and Transport's imposition of an accord on Air France,
Aigle Azur, TAI and UAT, under which some routes to Africa, Asia
and the Pacific region were transferred to private carriers. |
