Bonjour Paris! London Gatwick welcomes first Air France flights with a stylish new twice-daily service
- London Gatwick has welcomed its first Air France flights since 1996, connecting passengers to Paris and worldwide destinations
- Early booking trends show rising interest in warm weather escapes, iconic global cities and bucket list adventures further afield
- London Gatwick is welcoming nine new airlines this summer, including Jet2, AirAsia X and Condor
London Gatwick passengers now have even more choice for trips to the French capital and beyond, as Air France has officially touched down at the airport with a twice daily service to Paris–Charles de Gaulle (CDG).
The route, operated on the airline’s modern Airbus A220, provides more opportunities for family getaways, foodie weekends, romantic escapes and connecting to Air France’s impressive global network - and reflects the strong demand from leading carriers to operate at London Gatwick. With two flights each day, passengers can choose timings that suit their plans.
From Paris, passengers can connect seamlessly to destinations across the United States, Africa, Asia and South America - offering even more choice from London Gatwick as the airport continues to grow its global connectivity.
Early trends show strong demand for warm weather escapes to iconic global cities and inspiring bucket-list adventures.
The service also supports inbound travel to London and the South East, with visitors able to arrive at Gatwick and reach central London in just half an hour.
Jonathan Pollard, Chief Commercial Officer, London Gatwick said: “It's fantastic to see Air France now operating from London Gatwick, giving passengers even more choice for direct flights to Paris and seamless access to Air France’s extensive global network.
“Welcoming such a prestigious and world-famous carrier underscores the strength of Gatwick’s offer and the continued appetite from leading airlines to operate here. Their arrival, alongside other major brands joining the airport, reflects both the strong demand for Gatwick slots and the momentum behind our ongoing growth.”
Jerome Salemi, Air France-KLM General Manager (UK & Ireland) said: "We are delighted to launch our new London Gatwick to Paris service, further strengthening Air France’s footprint in London and the South-East. The strong interest we are already seeing highlights the importance of connectivity for both local and international travellers, be it for holidays, business trips or to visit friends and family.”
Air France is one of nine new airlines joining London Gatwick this year as the airport continues to broaden its global network.
Air France flight schedules (local time):
London Gatwick to Paris-Charles de Gaulle: 10:30 (arriving 12:40) and 17:10 (arriving 19:20)
Paris-Charles de Gaulle to London Gatwick: 09:20 (arriving 09:30) and 15:45 (arriving 15:55)
New airlines launching at London Gatwick (March-June 2026):
Animawings
Jet2
Air France
Condor
Eurowings
Pegasus
Beijing Capital
Air Arabia
AirAsia X
With around 43m annual passengers, London Gatwick is the UK’s second largest and one of Europe’s top airports. It is a vital piece of national infrastructure that drives both the national and regional economies by generating £5.5bn GVA and supporting over 76,000 jobs (2023). Almost 60 airlines fly from the airport to over 160 short-haul and more than 50 long-haul destinations. With a declared maximum capacity of 57 movements an hour, London Gatwick is the most efficient single runway airport in the world.
The airport is located 28 miles south of the UK capital and is extremely well-connected, with more than a quarter of England’s population (15m people) – including all of London – less than one hour away by road or rail. A six-year, £2bn sustainable growth programme includes an ambitious plan to be a net zero airport by 2030 and to increase capacity by bringing the airport’s existing Northern Runway into routine use, alongside its Main Runway. VINCI Airports owns a 50.01% stake in the airport, with Global Infrastructure Partners managing the remaining 49.99%.
VINCI Airports, as the leading private airport operator in the world, manages the development and operation of more than 70 airports located in 14 countries. VINCI Airports draws on its expertise as a comprehensive integrator to develop, finance, build and operate airports, leveraging its investment capability and know-how to optimise operational performance and modernise infrastructure while bringing about their environmental transition. In 2016, VINCI Airports became the first airport operator to commit to an international environmental strategy, setting itself the aim of reaching zero net emissions (scope 1 and 2) across the network by 2050 while supporting the territories’ local climate transition.
For more information:
Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of BlackRock, is a leading infrastructure investor that specialises in investing in, owning and operating some of the largest and most complex assets across the energy, transport, digital infrastructure and water and waste management sectors. With energy pragmatism central to our investment thesis, we are well positioned to support the global energy transition.
GIP’s scaled platform has over $170bn in assets under management. We believe that our focus on real infrastructure assets, combined with our deep proprietary origination network and comprehensive operational expertise, enables us to be responsible stewards of our clients’ capital and to create positive economic impact for communities. For more information, visit www.global-infra.com .
