Editorial StaffBack in July, we let you know that Air France was launching a new airline targeted at Millennials. Light on details at the time, we are now learning more about what a Millennial-friendly airline actually looks like.
Air France’s new “Joon” carrier will begin operating medium-haul flights out of Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport on December 1, serving four European cities, and then plans to expand the service next summer with flights to Brazil and the Seychelles.
Air France’s original announcement stated that the “new airline is “especially aimed at a young working clientele, the Millennials (18 to 35 year-olds), whose lifestyles revolve around digital technology.” In its latest announcement, Air France notes that the new airline “has been designed to meet the expectations of a new generation of travelers,” and will provide “flexibility” and “a personalized and tailor-made travel experience.”
Details regarding “flexibility” were noticeably lacking from Air France’s latest announcement, but with regard to the “personalized and tailor-made travel experience,” the new airline is a “fashion brand, a rooftop bar, an entertainment channel, a personal assistant … and Joon does flying too!”
As a “fashion brand” Joon points specifically to the chic, electric blue uniforms that will be worn by its flight attendants. Perhaps chic means “retro” because one reviewer pointed out that the uniforms look like the same ones worn by 1960s-era PanAm flight stewardesses (that’s what they were called way back when).
Perhaps something got lost in the translation, or maybe “rooftop bar” means something else to Millennials, but Air France describes it as “a free catering offer in the Business cabin and a new paid option in Economy.” This catering includes about “sixty tasty treats,” of which 20% will be organic…which begs the question of who is going to eat the other 80%, given that Millennials are reputedly responsible for making “organic” mainstream.
As an “entertainment channel,” Joon will offer its Millennial customers access to in-flight streaming on their own smartphones or other portable devices. So much for the seat-backrest video player, but each passenger will have their own USB port. And on the two long-haul routes next summer Joon will provide its Business Millennials with an AlloSky Virtual Reality Headset. We suppose that Air France believes that “real” reality just doesn’t work for Millennials. Because VR is a nascent technology and some users reportedly experience nausea while using it, we trust that Joon will still include air-sickness bags in the seatback pockets. Or maybe they’re developing an App for that.
The “personal assistant” component includes an auto service that will take care of your car for you while you are away by renting it out to other private individuals, and several amorphous tour experiences that we suppose could represent the “flexibility” component Joon mentioned.
The “personal assistant” will also include a soon-to-be-launched “fund-me” campaign—“Paper Plane”—for Millennial travellers who cannot afford their airfares. Little doubt that those Millennials still living in their parent’s basements will take advantage of this particular service.
As for Joon itself, who knows whether Millennials—basement dwelling or not—will flock to it? If nothing else, marketers are certainly finding them to be unpredictable.
