French President Macron announces 'historic' Airbus/Malaysia Airlines deal
Macron said such deals highlighted the importance of trade between France and Asia, as Europe faces up to likely tariffs from U.S President Donald Trump.
"I am thinking of the projects signed in the key minerals sector, in the rare earths sector with the company Carester which has just opened up a factory in the region of Lacq, the transport sector with this historic co-operation between Malaysia Airlines and Airbus, and in the energy transition sector," said Macron.
Industry sources told Reuters this week that Airbus was close to winning an order from Malaysia Aviation Group for more A330neo long-haul jets.
"Airbus has been our focus. Malaysian Airlines 20, and AirAsia another 50," added Ibrahim.
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Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
My problem with being a restaurateur? Flaky customers
We are a small- to medium-sized neighbourhood restaurant, probably averaging 40 to 45 covers per night, serving simple but – we hope – delicious food. It's casual, but there are tablecloths and we hope to give nice service. But we sometimes have a problem: flaky customers. It's one shared by Olivier Vincent, the chef and owner of a 20-seater restaurant called L'îlot in the Loire Valley. For him, it's reached such a breaking point, he's decided to impose fines: if a group does not contain the exact reserved number of guests, they are now charged €15 (£12.92) per missing or additional person. It sounds heavy handed, but I wasn't surprised to read that Vincent had taken action – on missing customers, at least. For small, independent businesses, too many or too few customers showing up for a booking can have a big impact, in different ways. If you book a table of eight and turn up with six, we could have reconfigured and given that table to someone else. Or someone might have turned up hoping for a walk-in of two and we've turned them away, which is sad for us because it's horrible turning people away. If the big table had just called and said, 'I'm really sorry but we're going to be six now,' it's annoying, but at least you can reset the tables. A table turning up with too many people is annoying in a different way. I think we've had a table of nine that has suddenly been 14, which is 50 per cent more. Sometimes there is just genuinely not the space. Meanwhile, the people on the table are starting to get annoyed at you for not having room. What are we supposed to do? Sometimes people don't understand that as a restaurant you have a responsibility to all of your diners and not just one table. A table of eight turning up with 12 or 13 changes the dynamic of the room. A huge table will sometimes take over the restaurant in a way that isn't fair on the rest of the diners. I feel like restaurants are the final frontier of understanding that if you commit to coming you ought to pay. If you buy a theatre ticket and you can't make it last minute, you're not going to get your money back. The same with a massage or a ticket for an exhibition. For some reason that psyche doesn't apply to restaurants. Partly it's because you haven't paid for your meal upfront, although some restaurants now make you do that. People feel aggrieved about the notion of having to pay something to a restaurant if their plans change. I sometimes wonder what people think restaurants make, money-wise. When you look at a waiter, or a chef, does anyone think they are living a life of luxury? None of us are rolling in it. Mostly we do this because it's a passion. One or two people not showing up might not seem like a big deal, but actually it is a big deal financially. A table of 10 dropping to a table of six is a 12.5 per cent service charge of those four people that none of the staff are going to see. I don't think people realise that someone's pay cheque is instantly reduced if fewer people than expected turn up. The problem is definitely getting worse. A lot of customers lie about their reasons for not showing up, too. It is hard for us to negotiate that. Some restaurants make it very clear there are no exceptions. I don't know if I agree with that. Sometimes people genuinely have had an emergency. But sometimes people have a table of eight but one of their party is sick so none of them come, which is ridiculous. Part of the problem is people being reluctant to call on the phone. When we opened Cafe Deco I refused to have an online booking system, because I was so depressed by the fact people were so scared to pick up the phone and speak to a human. I hated the few experiences I'd had when I'd gone in to book a restaurant and been directed to the online database. Ultimately we had to move to a booking system because having to ring was putting off so many people coming. If you don't have to speak to someone, you don't have to take responsibility. If you're doing something that you know is going to be annoying for a restaurant, maybe if you don't have to speak to someone it's not so bad for you. The generation who started dining out before everything was digitised are better at ringing. It's the younger customers who are less considerate and less understanding of their commitment. We have a cancellation fee; if you cancel with less than 24 hours notice, you'll get charged. For tables over six, we take a £30 deposit per head up front, which incentivises people to figure it out. If you turn up with more people than your booking, it's really annoying but we're not going to lose money unless we have no space and they all walk out, so we have no plans to implement a fee for that. It's important to say that these cases are still the exception, rather than the rule. It just happens a bit too often. It doesn't give us the chance to give you the best experience, which is what our job is, and what we aim to do every time.
Times
an hour ago
- Times
French air traffic control strikes: which airports and flights are affected?
A strike by French air traffic controllers is causing widespread disruption across the country, with the knock-on effect also felt in other parts of Europe. The walkout over working conditions by members of the UNSA-ICNA union is taking place on Thursday, July 3 and Friday, July 4, with airports in Paris and the south of France particularly heavily affected. Ryanair said it has cancelled 170 flights, affecting 30,000 passengers, while other airlines including easyJet and Air France have also been forced to make reductions to their schedule. If you're planning to travel in the next couple of days, here's what you need to know. The latest strike by French air traffic controllers represented by the UNSA-ICNA union is taking place over two days, on July 3 and 4. The French civil aviation authority, DGAC, has warned of disruption across multiple airports in France on July 3 and 4. These include: Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi, Figari, Lyons, Marseille, Montpellier, Nice, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Paris Orly and Paris Beauvais. DGAC has also asked airlines to cut a quarter of flights in and out of Paris airports on July 3 and almost half of all flights on July 4. In other parts of the country, airlines were asked to reduce flights by between 30 to 50 per cent. Ryanair said that it has cancelled 170 scheduled flights over the two days, affecting 30,000 passengers. This includes flights to and from France as well as those flying over French airspace, including those to the UK, Ireland, Greece and Spain. Easyjet has cancelled 22 flights to or from the UK scheduled for July 3, and 38 for July 4. The airline said in a statement: 'As required by the French authorities (DGAC) easyJet proactively cancelled some flights in advance and customers were contacted directly with options to transfer to another flight for free or a refund. As this action could result in further disruption to (the) airline's flying programmes, we advise all customers travelling on 3 or 4 July to check the status of their flights on our Flight Tracker online for the most up to date information.' British Airways has also made adjustments to its schedule, but it has not confirmed the number of cancellations. It is, however, using larger aircraft where possible to accommodate those affected by cancelled flights. The best way to monitor the status of your flight is to use the 'check flight status' feature on the website of the airline you're flying with. If you have the app for the airline installed, it should also give you details of upcoming flights there. More generally, it's worth making sure the airline has the correct contact details for you so they can notify you if there are any changes to your flight. • When are the next train strikes and will they affect my holiday?• What happens if I miss my flight because of security queues? Usually airlines will start cancelling flights a couple of days before travel in the case of air traffic control strikes, so you have some time to make alternative arrangements. You'll have the option to receive a refund or, if you still want to travel, to choose an alternative flight — although in this case your options may be limited to trains, which you'll need to book yourself. Unless the airline's staff are on strike, you will not receive any compensation, as anything outside the airline's control is considered an extraordinary circumstance — this includes strikes by air traffic controllers. However, the airline still has a legal obligation to help you. If your flight is cancelled, the airline needs to provide two options for you: a full refund (including any affected return journeys) reimbursed within seven days, or an alternative flight, including with a rival airline. The replacement flight can be the next available one, or one on a future date. You are within your rights to request a full refund if the alternative flight isn't suitable for you. And if you have a connecting flight and you decide not to travel, the airline must take you back to your original departure point. Extraordinary circumstances aside, all flights departing from the UK, flights with a UK destination operated by a UK or EU airline, and UK airline-operated flights with an EU destination are covered by UK law regarding refunds and compensation when it comes to delays and cancellations. The legislation was adopted from EU Regulation 261/2004, with any compensation paid in sterling rather than euros. • Compensation for cancelled and delayed flights: everything you need to know• When does the Etias scheme start for UK travellers? Everything you need to know
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘The American system is being destroyed': academics on leaving US for ‘scientific asylum' in France
It was on a US-bound flight in March, as Brian Sandberg stressed about whether he would be stopped at security, that the American historian knew the time had come for him to leave his home country. For months, he had watched Donald Trump's administration unleash a multipronged attack on academia – slashing funding, targeting international students and deeming certain fields and even keywords off limits. As his plane approached the US, it felt as though the battle had hit home, as Sandberg worried that he would face reprisals over comments he had made during his travels to the French media on the future of research in the US. 'It makes you think about what your status is as a researcher and the principle of academic freedom,' he said. 'Things have really changed … The entire system of research and higher education in the United States is really under attack.' Soon after, he became one of the nearly 300 researchers to apply for a French university's groundbreaking offer of 'scientific asylum'. Launched by Aix-Marseille University, the programme was among the first in Europe to offer reprieve to researchers reeling from the US crackdown on academia, promising three years of funding for about 20 researchers. Last week, Sandberg was revealed as one of the 39 researchers shortlisted for the programme. 'The American system is being destroyed at the moment,' he told the 80 reporters who turned up to meet the candidates. 'I think a lot of people in the United States and as well as here in Europe have not understood the level to which all of higher education is being targeted.' As reports began to emerge of funding freezes, cuts and executive orders targeting institutions across the Atlantic, institutions across Europe sprang into action, announcing plans to lure US-based academics. At Aix-Marseille University, hundreds of applications came in from researchers tied to institutions such as Johns Hopkins University, Nasa, Columbia, Yale and Stanford. Three months after they launched their programme – named Safe Place for Science – the university said it had received more than 500 inquiries. It was a glimpse of the 'historic' moment the world was facing, said Éric Berton, the university's president. 'More than 80 years ago, as France was under occupation and repression, America welcomed exiled researchers, offering them a helping hand and allowing them to keep science alive,' he said. 'And now, in a sad reversal of history, some American scientists have arrived in France in search of a space for freedom, thought and research.' Last week, the university opened its doors, allowing reporters to meet a handful of the Americans who were in the final running to join the programme. As high-profile battles play out between universities such as Harvard and the White House, all of them asked that their institutions not be named, citing concerns that their employers could face reprisals. Some declined to speak to the media, while others asked that their full names not be used, offering a hint of how the Trump administration's actions are sowing anxiety among academics. 'The worry is that we've already seen that scientists are being detained at the border. Granted they're not US citizens, but they're even saying now that if you speak out against the government, they will deport you,' said a biological anthropologist who asked to be identified only as Lisa. 'And so I don't need anything against me at the moment until I can officially move here with my family.' Together the researchers painted a picture of a profession that had been plunged into uncertainty as the US government slashes spending on research grants and dismantles the federal institutions that manage and hand out funding. Months into Trump's second presidency, politics is increasingly blurring into academia as the government works to root out anything it deems as 'wokeism' from the post-secondary world. 'There's a lot of censorship now, it's crazy,' said Carol Lee, an evolutionary biologist, pointing to the list of terms now seen as off-limits in research grant applications. 'There are a lot of words that we're not allowed to use. We're not allowed to use the words diversity, women, LGBTQ.' Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion While the swift pace of change had left many nervous about what may lie ahead, many were not taking any chances. 'People are moving, for sure,' said Lee. 'A lot of top people have already moved to China. And China is laying out the red carpet. If people are getting an offer from Canada, people are moving to Canada.' For Lisa, the biological anthropologist, the reality of dismantling her life in the US and moving her husband, a schoolteacher, and their two kids across the Atlantic was starting to sink in. 'It's excitement, but it's nerve-racking,' she said. She knew she had to get out when it became clear that Trump had won a second term. Months later, she has found a potential path to do so, but is still wrapping her head around all that taking part in Aix-Marseille University's programme would entail. 'It is a big pay cut,' she said. 'My kids are super gung-ho. My husband is just worried that he won't find a job. Which is my worry too, because I don't think I'll be able to afford four of us on my salary.' But for her, and several others on the shortlist, the view was that there were few other options. 'It's a very discouraging time to be a scientist,' said James, a climate researcher who asked that his full name not be used. 'I feel America has always had a sort of anti-intellectual strain – it happens to be very ascendant right now. It's a relatively small proportion that doesn't trust scientists, but it's unfortunately a very powerful segment.' His wife had also been shortlisted for the same programme in southern France, leaving the couple on the brink of uprooting the lives and careers they had spent decades building in the US. 'I have very mixed feelings,' he said. 'I'm very grateful that we'll have the opportunity, but really quite sad that I need the opportunity.'
