Originally Posted by
Falco Peregrinus
There is a small hidden gem that for some reason, you did not translate:
Originally Posted by Pierre-Henri Gourgeon
Elles (nos couvertures pétrolières) nous ont rapporté beaucoup d'argent par le passé.
which translates into "We used to make a lot of profit with fuel surcharges".
Actually "couvertures pétrolières" are not
fuel surcharges (ticket price increase depending on oil prices) but
oil hedging.
Air France-KLM has hedged 78 percent of its fuel consumption through March 2009, at $70 to $80 a barrel. Through a policy of hedging fuel four years in advance, the company saved about $35 a barrel when oil was at $120 a barrel.
This policy was an important competitive advantage when oil prices were high (with the exception of Southwest Airlines, most US airlines are less hedged than European ones).
But as fuel now is below $80 a barrel, Air France is currently paying oil at a more expensive price if it would buy it at Brent spot prices.