The first quarter of the year is historically the most challenging for airlines in the northern hemisphere. This is also the case for many European airlines that record their worst results in this quarter. Main reasons reside in the end of the winter holidays and, as in 2025, the absence of any festivity including easter. An overall opportunity find excellent deals as a traveler, a much tougher time if you're on the other side. That said, Air France and KLM (Air France-KLM Group) have reported better results compared to last year in this first quarter of 2025 but still failed to turn a profit.
AF-KLM Group: Passengers and Revenue Rise in Q1 2025 Over 2024
The best news concerns passenger volumes and revenue for 2025's Q1. The number of passengers carried by the entire group (consisting of Air France, KLM, and Transavia) increased to 21.8 million. This represents a 4.5% increase compared to the same period last year.
The load factor remained almost stable, with a very slight decrease, indicating a sustained ability to attract customers. The slight decrease in load factor is due to increased network capacity (ASK – Available Seat per Kilometer +3.8%) with paying passengers growth not keeping the pace (RPK – Revenue Passengers per Kilometer +3.3%).
Overall this boiled down to a 7.7% increase in revenue over Q1 of 2024, achieving 7.16 billion euros.
Air France-KLM Group Q1: Operating Margin Remains Negative This Year Too
The disappointing news, but entirely predictable and in the cards given the time of year, concerns the group's profits. The Air France-KLM Group closed Q1 2025 with a loss of 249 million euros, or in other terms an operating margin of -4.6%.
The performances between the various airlines and divisions that make up the Air France-KLM Group are markedly different, as we will see below. Note that the group also includes other maintenance operations and the frequent flyer program that generated profits not reported in the table. This explanation is necessary, otherwise the numbers don't add up.
| 2024 Results | 2025 | Change | Air France | KLM | Transavia |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues (€m) | 7,165 | +7.7% | 4,346 | 2,946 | 526 |
| EBITDA (€m) | 396 | +220 | 273 | 69 | -120 |
| Operating result (€m) | -328 | +161 | -183 | -199 | -205 |
| Operating margin (%) | -4.6% | +2.8 pp | -4.2% | -6.7 | -39% |
| Group Net income (€m) | -249 | +231 | – | – | – |
The collapse of Transavia is shocking, as in this first quarter alone it recorded a loss of 205 million euros, or an operating margin of -39%. A loss difficult to recover in the remaining 3 quarters of 2025, which acts as a drag on the Air France-KLM Group's accounts in this Q1.
Out of the two major airlines in the group, KLM performed worse than its french counterpart. The airline is already working on addressing its issues by carrying out an internal restructuring aimed to reduce operating costs. The Dutch carrier recorded an operating margin of -6.7% compared to -4.2% for Air France.
Despite all this having a very negative appearance, these are results that show a clear improvement for the group, which last year in Q1 had recorded losses exceeding 500 million euros.
Unchanged Outlook and Evolving Fleet For 2025
Despite the coming months still showing a certain instability and uncertainty due to the global economic and political scenario, Air France-KLM has maintained unchanged expectations for 2025.
The fleet evolution also continues, now composed of 28% new generation aircraft that help reduce the largest item among operating costs, fuel.
In this first quarter, the following were phased in to the fleet:
- 2 Airbus A350
- 2 Airbus A321neo
- 4 Airbus A320neo
- 1 Airbus A220
While the following were phased out:
- 1 Airbus A320
- 1 Airbus A319
- 1 Embraer E190
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