How much would you pay for unlimited flights to London or Paris? For Frantz Yvelin, CEO of boutique airline La Compagnie, $35,000 is the magic number.
On Saturday, Yvelin's business-class only airline will sell 10 unlimited flight passes for travelers flying between New York and London or Paris.
The airline is looking to collect $350,000 in revenue on the idea that $673 a week is a great deal for New York-area travelers making numerous round-trip flights to London or Paris, which can easily cost in the thousands of dollars.
"Numerous," however, is key. Though business travelers who fly every week or two between New York and London or Paris would surely get their money's worth, those flying less frequently would likely be better off shopping around.
"We are very confident in this offer," Yvelin told CNBC. "We thought this was a good way for us to celebrate our second birthday."
Based in Paris, France, La Compagnie has been flying since July 2014. Its fleet consists of two Boeing 757-200 planes filled with 74 business class seats. And while its offer is sure to garner plenty of attention, it's also a sign of how competitive international business class travel out of New York has become.
The aviation research and consulting firm OAG said the number of overall business class seats available between New York and London has jumped 35 percent in the last six years. Delta is one major carrier that is targeting business class flyers out of the Big Apple. Its increased presence at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport has contributed to that airline's 54 percent increase in business class seats between New York and London since 2010.
"The New York to London market is the iconic long-haul business market, with significant corporate demand offering very good yields for the scheduled airlines operating the route," said John Grant, senior analyst at OAG. "Competition will always be fierce in this market, with airlines always seeking to raise the bar in their services, all of which will improve the offering for the regular business class traveler."
For La Compagnie, that means trying new approaches in hopes of standing out in a crowded market. When it comes to international business travel, flyers tend to be brand loyal to build up points with an airline's rewards programs, or to access their larger international route network. That gives legacy airlines two distinct advantages over La Compagnie, which only flies between New York and London and New York and Paris. (Its New York-area airport is Newark, which is located in New Jersey.)
Still, Yvelin said $35,000 for unlimited travel is an offer too good for some frequent flyers to pass up.
"The demand is there," he said. "When we started our load factor [the percentage of seats filled on a plane] was 30 percent. These days we are oscillating between 70 percent and 90 percent load factor."
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