Air France's new Nashville-to-Paris nonstop isn't just about vacations.
The connection will boost tourism for both cities and drive at least $80 million in Tennessee economic impact annually, officials from both cities said at a BNA event Oct. 14 celebrating the new route.
The first flight takes off May 14, and tickets are now on sale.
"We recruited some of the largest economic development projects into this state from France," Gov. Bill Lee said. "The economic development prospects this provides for our state, at the end of the day, means more jobs for Tennesseans and access to opportunity. That goes both ways."
For Air France, the new Nashville flight is part of an ongoing expansion the airline is making across the U.S. The flag carrier of France also
added San Diego service for next year, totaling 20 American routes.
"Why Nashville? The city has a rhythm like no other," Air France-KLM North American Vice President Charlotte Bouman said. "The travel average from Nashville is three times higher than the average from the U.S. It is a strong growth market, not only strong for the party from here, but also European passengers wanting to come here, wanting to explore Nashville."
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee Department of Tourist Development Commissioner Mark Ezell and Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp President and CEO Deana Ivey were among those in attendance at a celebration of the flight at the BNA Hilton hotel on the morning of Oct. 14.
Nashville-to-Paris demand is up
A Paris nonstop has been on the Metro Nashville Airport Authority's shortlist of most-wanted international flights for at least two years. After London and Dublin, it is the third-most-traveled European destination for travelers flying out of Nashville with a 27% increase in demand from 2024 to 2025. For the last several years, Nashville airport representatives have been working to recruit Air France, and they succeeded in July of this year when they flew to France for their final presentation to the airline.
"We continued to build our case as the airport grows, and we're highly confident that we'll be able to fill their A350," Metro Nashville Airport Authority President and CEO Doug Kreulen said.
Service will start out at three days a week, but he hopes to increase to continue meeting growing demand. In all, MNAA expects about 225,000 travelers coming over on the flight within the first year.
"This is certainly Nashville to Paris, but what it really is, from my perspective is Tennessee to the world," airport commissioner and Tennessee's head of economic development Stuart McWhorter said. "We compete globally, and we're in this global competition now."
Airport, city and state officials designate funds year-round for airline incentives, and Kreulen said Air France will receive waived operating fees for at least the first two years that the new route is running.
"We might be providing $2 million or $3 million in incentives on a yearly basis, but we're generating $80 million to $100 million in business in Tennessee. It's a good deal from Air France. It's a good deal for the city of Nashville, and I would say, Tennessee," Kreulen said.
The Paris flight is Nashville's fourth European nonstop to be recruited in the last two years. At the start of 2024, BNA maintained just one nonstop European route with British Airways' London flight, which has been hopping back and forth across the pond for about seven years. Air France confirmed the new addition to its spring 2027 schedule on Oct. 8.
Tennessee's economic ties to France
France is Tennessee's second biggest foreign investment partner since 2019. Data from McWhorter's Department of Economic and Community Development shows that there has been over $5 billion in capital investment in Tennessee from French businesses since 2019.
"Certainty in Tennessee is our currency," McWhorter said. "Companies that are looking to make investments in our state want certainty. They want to be in an economic environment that they feel comfortable with and to de-risk their investments. It's a matter of the health of their business, and that's something that's really important here."
That fall, Nashville airport officials hosted two events just two weeks apart announcing new routes to Reykjavik, Iceland, and Dublin, Ireland. Since their launches in April 2025, Icelandair and Aer Lingus have respectively dubbed each flight a success. While the Iceland flight was originally labeled a summer seasonal flight, Icelandair extended the service through the winter due to demand. Meanwhile, Aer Lingus added a fifth weekly flight connecting Dublin and Nashville less than a year after the inaugural flight.
Especially over the last decade, Tennessee officials have emphasized the importance of international connection for Nashville and the greater state. Approximately 20% of new jobs announced in Nashville come from foreign investors and the number of foreign-owned companies in the area is 340 and growing, according to data from the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce.
"We led the nation in international visitor tax revenue in the last 10 years," Ezell said. "We've been dreaming of this flight."
Hadley Hitson covers business news for The Tennessean. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com. To support her work,subscribe to The Tennessean.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville-Paris flight expected to generate $80M for Tennessee
