The Rodez-Paris airline will be saved until… the end of August announced the Rodez airport joint union

Les représentants du syndicat mixte : Christian Teyssèdre, Arnaud Viala, Marie Lacaze et Dominique Costes. CENTRE PRESSE – JOSE A.TORRES

La compagnie Amélia va continuer à assurer les vols. Les billets sont en vente depuis ce vendredi.

"I only have one word: phew!" Dominique Costes, president of the CCI Aveyron, does not hide his satisfaction. An emergency solution for the Rodez-Paris airline has just been found. The companion Amelia, who was due to leave Aveyron on January 19, will finally operate her flights until the end of August. The four parties of the joint union of the Ruthenian airport (Department, Region, Rodez Agglomération and CCI), manager of the connection, announced this Thursday, January 11 during a press point.

And it was President Arnaud Viala, for the Department, 70% shareholder of the consortium, who was the first to congratulate himself: "There will be no discontinuity in this line essential. And we can only congratulate ourselves." Christian Teyssèdre, president of Rodez Agglomération and Marie Lacaze, Aveyron representative for the Occitanie Region also welcomed this agreement with Amelia present on the Aveyron tarmac since 2020.

1 An agreement under what conditions ?

A question still arises: under what conditions did Amelia, who was not a candidate for the last unsuccessful call for tenders for the period 2024-2028, accept to extend its lease, with the same rotations and same pricing for the next seven months ? Arnaud Viala did not, yesterday, wish to provide the details of this public expenditure. "It’is a costly commitment", nevertheless said Christian Teyssèdre, mayor of Rodez. For its part, the French company welcomed "this confidence granted". Without going into the details of this emergency agreement either.

2 The end of turbulence ?

If this is good news for the region, it does not mean the end of the turbulence for the Rodez-Paris line. Because the joint union has launched a new call for tenders to ensure the connection for the next four years. The latter will end in August. And we still don’t know who will apply.

Chalair Aviation, the only company interested until then, was rejected, its offer not being in line with the expectations of local decision-makers. Whether from a financial point of view – more than 25 million euros requested for the four years, compared to 9.6 million for Amelia the last four years, according to our information –, and "not simply", Arnaud said Viala this Thursday. And if Amelia accepted the emergency solution, nothing says that she will position herself on the new call for tenders. Yesterday, its director, Jean-Jacques Labadie, did not wish to answer this question. Could other candidates emerge between now and then? Nothing is less certain. Because as elected officials reminded us yesterday, the big companies "are no longer interested in these internal lines”.

3 A financial distribution to be reviewed ?

Currently, 55% of the funding for the Rodez-Paris line, known as regional planning, is provided by the State. The airport's joint union shares the rest: 70% for the Department, 15% for the Region, 10% for Rodez Agglomération and 5% for the CCI. The last contract with Amelia was worth 9.6 million euros, not counting the numerous compensations following the health crisis. How far can the communities go, in a more than uncomfortable position, with the next delegate ? "We have to get together around a table and review everything", announced Arnaud Viala yesterday, for whom "the Department is today taking a more than significant share of the pie".

With Christian Teyssèdre, president of Rodez Agglomération, they do not hide their desire to see the Region become more involved in the distribution key, as is the case in other airports… Especially since the CCI, for legal reasons, will no longer be able to ensure its 5% participation in the next delegation.

4 What about the maintenance center ?

In February 2021, Amelia and her CEO from Aveyron, Alain Regourd, announced on the airport site their desire to install a maintenance base there for its fleet. A project to say the least welcome at a time of an industrial crisis experienced by the department, from Bosch to Sam. Because in the end, the businessman promised around thirty ;jobs… To do this, the joint union announced that it would renovate two hangars, with an area of ​​6,000 m2, for this future installation.

So, if Amelia were to not stay on the Aveyron tarmac, will the maintenance center see the light of day ? Yes, according to our information. Yesterday, Arnaud Viala confirmed that the work would begin soon. Total cost: between three and four million.

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