It is known that airlines are the transport par excellence to reach any of the New 7 Wonders of the World and the New 7 Wonders of Nature. Hence the importance of the growth of these firms and the new tracts that they constantly present around the planet.
In the case of the Air France-KLM group, the firm recorded a record net profit of 1,75 billion euros in 2025, thanks to the remodeling undertaken and the moderation of fuel prices, the French-Dutch group reported this week.
The group’s revenues last year also reached a record figure of 33 billion euros, 4.9% more than in 2024, according to Air France-KLM in a statement.
“Despite the persistent external uncertainty, we face 2026 with confidence and a commitment to rigorously and disciplined implement our strategic roadmap to achieve our medium-term goals,” said the group’s executive director, Benjamin Smith, after underlining the “solid performance in a complex environment” of Air France-KLM in 2025.
The group’s airlines “carried more than 100 million passengers and generated recurring operating revenues of more than 2 billion euros, a first in our history,” Smith said.
Lufthansa in first place
This historic result for the group that groups the airlines Air France, KLM and Transavia, of transporting exactly 102.8 million passengers in 2025 places it in third place in Europe, behind the Luftthansa group (131 million passengers) and the IAG group (126 million passengers).
The CEO explained the good results, largely, due to the implementation of his more cost-effective premium strategy (first class, business and premium), improving the customer experience in all his airlines, in particular, with new cabins, high-speed wifi and VIP lounges around the world, while achieving improvements in sustainability through fleet renewal and greater use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
Expectations for 2026
The group anticipates moderate growth and strong financial discipline by 2026, in line with its sustainable development and value creation strategy.
Specifically, it foresees an increase in capacity of between 3% and 5% compared to 2025. It also estimates that the unit cost will vary between 0% and 2%, of which approximately 0.5% will be linked to the ‘premiumization’ process, that is, to continue to raise the category of its offer.
In terms of investments, the group envisages net capital expenditures of around EUR 3 billion and maintain a balanced financial structure.
The renewal of the fleet is also a structural axis of Air France-KLM’s transition plan and a central pillar of its strategy of decarbonization and improved operational efficiency.
As part of this roadmap, the group continues to incorporate new generation aircraft, including the Airbus A350, Boeing 787-10, the Airbus A320neo family, the Airbus A220 and the Embraer 195-E2.
These models consume up to 25% less fuel per passenger-kilometer and reduce the sound footprint by up to 63% compared to the previous generation aircraft they replace, Air France-KLM said.
At the end of December 2025, new generation aircraft represented 35% of the group’s fleet, which represents an increase of eight percentage points compared to 2024. And for 2030, the group expects up to 80% of its fleet to be composed of new generation aircraft.
With information from: Efe, Afp and DW.