When it landed on the tarmac of Mexico Central on 27 April 1952, exactly 65 years ago, the Lockheed Constellation F-BZAT was paving the way for years of Air France history in Mexico!
Since then, it has witnessed many great events, as links have become stronger over the years.
Above the Atlantic
Nothing led anyone to believe that Air France would flourish in Mexico. In America, the airline first chose to fly to the United States in the North, and countries located on the "legendary" Paris-Santiago de Chile route in the South. It was not until 1946 that regular services flew across the ocean. That year, thanks to the commissioning of the Douglas DC-4, Air France launched two strategic routes: Paris-Santiago de Chile (via Rio, Montevideo or Buenos Aires), then Paris-New York. From then on, the airline chose to expand massively on long-haul routes across the Atlantic. A third "oceanic" route linked Paris to Caracas and Bogota in 1953, via the French West Indies. Air France wove its American network around these three routes. Mexico City was launched in 1952 as a continuation of the Paris-New York "flagship" route.
Strong links
Mexico City soon became a key destination on Air France's American network. Traffic took off, Paris-Mexico City services multiplied, with one then two weekly connections in 1952, rising to seven in 1954. New services to other Mexican cities were added: Guadalajara in 1969 and Puerto Vallarta in 1971. The link between the airline and Mexico was strengthened in 1992 by the signing of an exclusive partnership agreement with the national airline Aeromexico. Air France now connects Paris-CDG to Mexico City by A380 seven times a week and Cancun with 3 weekly flights by Boeing 777.
