Joon: Ill fated 'airline for millennials folds' – admits 'too difficult to understand'

Millennial Air: Joon was launched by Air France in 2017 with niche appeal to young flyers. Photo / Flickr.com, Victor

The 'Millennial Airline' which aimed to lure in younger flyers has come back down to earth with a thud as it is set to close trading after under two years in operation.

Joon, part of Air France, was launched in 2017 with enticing low fares, 'on trend' uniforms and the promise of quinoa bowls and craft beer.

However, the French parent airline confirmed that operations would be winding down after the brand concept proved "too difficult to understand."

The carrier allayed fears of crew and staff, saying that all Joon staff would be transferred to Air France's operations and all tickets would be honoured.

"After much discussion with employees and customers alike, and in consultation with the unions, Air France has decided to launch a project studying the future of the Joon brand and the integration of Joon employees and aircraft into Air France.

"Despite the many positive impacts of Joon, in particular the invaluable contribution of the teams at Joon who launched the company and worked with passion and dedication, the brand was difficult to understand from the outset for customers, for employees, for markets and for investors.

"The plurality of brands in the marketplace has created much complexity and unfortunately weakened the power of the Air France brand.

"Through integration, Air France would see many benefits thanks to fleet, brand, and product harmonisation.

"Managing the operation would be improved through a common fleet of aircraft. Air France will also be able to ensure a smooth transition of the Airbus A350, currently on order, to the Air France fleet with a more economical cabin configuration."

The announcement comes less than a year after another European budget airline, Primera Air, ceased trading.

After the UK cut-price airline collapsed in 2018 passengers were left stranded across its network.

Budget travel: A la carte

Joon's brief career in the air of was characterised by a slender but curated choice of destinations, entertainment and in-flight dining.

Beginning with a small network of European hubs - Barcelona, Berlin, Lisbon and Porto - before expanding to more "aspirational" long-haul in Brazil and the Seychelles, the instagram approved destinations read like someone's Airbnb wishlist.

Which is not surprising as one of the airline's largest partners was the booking website Airbnb, which sold bookings and "experiences" to passengers through the airline.

Meals were determined to chase after the fickle tastes of young travellers with "cappuccinos and craft beer." Laudable efforts to introduce inflight tapas and baobab juice to airline meals seem to have been met with a luke-warm reception.

However most of the meals and business class cabin were catered to by the main Air France "A la Carte" menu.

Perhaps the most lasting impression for anyone who flew with the French airline's effort at "new wave" air travel was the dual-language safety video.