Air Côte d’Ivoire receives first Airbus A330neo for new long-haul route to Paris

The outbound flight from Paris departs at 8:00 AM local time and arrives in Abidjan at 12:30 PM. The return leaves Abidjan at 2:30 PM and lands in Paris at 11:00 PM, with each leg lasting about six hours. The aircraft will remain overnight in Paris before returning.

The A330neo accommodates 242 passengers across four classes: four first class seats, 44 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 173 economy seats. With six weekly flights planned initially, Air Côte d’Ivoire will offer up to 1,452 seats per week on this route.

Government spokesman Amadou Coulibaly commented on the delivery: “The financing, the subject of this agreement, will allow Air Côte d'Ivoire to launch direct and regular long-haul flights from Abidjan to several major American and European cities such as New York and Paris and several other international destinations.”

On the competitive front, Air France currently operates twice-daily nonstop services between Abidjan and Paris using Airbus A350-900s or Boeing 777s. Air France also owns a minority stake in Air Côte d’Ivoire (20%). Brussels Airlines offers one-stop connections via Brussels Airport; other airlines like Air Senegal (via Dakar) and Air Algérie (via Algiers) provide additional options with stopovers.

Air Côte d’Ivoire plans to use its position as a regional connector to offer onward connections beyond Abidjan for travelers arriving from or departing to Paris. Potential connecting cities include Lomé, Ouagadougou, Bamako, Kinshasa, Yaoundé, and Dakar.

Domestically within Ivory Coast, the airline serves cities such as San-Pedro, Man, Bouaké, Korhogo, and Odienné. Its subregional network covers destinations including Abuja, Lagos, Dakar, Casablanca, Accra among others.

Currently operating a fleet of five Airbus A319s [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/aircraft/search?search=1&operator=Air+Cote+d%27Ivoire), four Dash 8 turboprops [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/aircraft/search?search=1&operator=Air+Cote+d%27Ivoire), two Airbus A320-200s [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/aircraft/search?search=1&operator=Air+Cote+d%27Ivoire), one wet-leased Airbus A320neo [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/aircraft/search?search=1&operator=Air+Cote+d%27Ivoire), and now one A330neo [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/aircraft/search?search=1&operator=Air+Cote+d%27Ivoire), Air Côte d’Ivoire’s average fleet age stands at about seven years according to ch-aviation data [source](https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/operators). In partnership with Ethiopian Airlines it also codeshares flights to New York JFK.

A second A330neo is expected for future delivery as part of ongoing expansion plans targeting new intercontinental routes such as London or New York.