Hello from France, as I continue the outbound portion of my review trip to Bangkok! For the second segment of my trip, I flew Air France’s Boeing 787-9 business class on the 6hr25min flight from Montreal (YUL) to Paris (CDG).
While I fly Air France across the Atlantic fairly frequently, it had been many years since I flew the carrier’s Dreamliner business class, which admittedly doesn’t have the latest products (unlike some Airbus A350-900s and Boeing 777-300ERs).
I’ve gotta say, as usual, Air France impresses across the Atlantic, even if the Dreamliner doesn’t have cutting edge seats. I found the service to be friendly and efficient, food and drinks to be very good, and entertainment and amenities to also be excellent.
While I’ll have a full review soon, in this post I’d like to share some initial thoughts.
In this post:
Air France’s 787 business class seats are competitive
Air France’s 787s have a total of 30 Safran Cirrus seats. This is a pretty standard last generation reverse herringbone product, so I find it to be perfectly comfortable, though it’s not as cutting edge as the carrier’s newer cabins (in terms of there not being doors, and tech not being that updated).
Given that these seats are quite old at this point, they’re very well maintained, and I found the cabin to be looking pretty fresh.
What really helped with getting comfortable was the bedding, including a well padded pillow and blanket, plus the new Sofitel mattress pads, which I found to materially add to the bed’s comfort. It’s awesome how these can be placed on the seat at the beginning of the flight, and can remain there even through landing.
Beyond that, slippers were offered to all business class passengers, along with the typical amenity kit. I’m a fan of the Clarins hand cream, as my hands get super dry when I fly a lot, as I do on these review trips. Other than that, the kit isn’t anything remarkable, so it’s something I think Air France could update at some point, given how it otherwise has a leading product.
Air France’s 787 business class entertainment & Wi-Fi are good
Air France’s 787s have 16″ touchscreen displays at every business class seat. They’re not 4K or super high definition, unlike in Air France’s new business class, but they’re still sufficient, and the entertainment selection is huge.
The Dreamliners also have Wi-Fi available for purchase. The cost for a full flight is 29 EUR, which I find to be a bit on the high side, given that the speeds aren’t great on the Dreamliner (fortunately Air France is transitioning to free Starlink Wi-Fi for most of its fleet). Since this was an overnight flight, I decided to just use the free messaging pass that’s available to all passengers, since I didn’t need the Wi-Fi otherwise (on a daytime flight, I would’ve purchased it).
Air France’s business class food and service flow are great
I think Air France consistently nails the service flow on short overnight transatlantic flights. Airlines need to strike the right balance between offering a satisfying and high quality meal, while not having the service drawn out too much. It’s amazing how many airlines get that wrong.
For example, I always judge how fast airlines get out their first drink in business class, because most passengers want a drink as soon as possible. Of course there’s a lot of preparation required before serving the meal, but Air France has a smart system. Just 25 minutes after takeoff, the crew passed through the cabin with trays of champagne (or other limited drinks), plus some cheese crackers (which are addictive).
Then 40 minutes after takeoff, a tray was brought out with the appetizer duo, salad, cheese, and dessert. This is such an efficient system for delivering the meal. The appetizer consisted of fennel and watermelon salad, plus scallop with citrus fruit zest, while the dessert consisted of a raspberry and nougat tart.
Despite the efficient presentation, that doesn’t mean the crew doesn’t take their time with each passenger. For example, it’s a nice touch how they offer cracked pepper with the appetizer.
For the main course, I opted for the lobster with rice bisque, corn, and edamame. The dish tasted great, and given that Air France doesn’t plate its business class meals onboard, I thought the presentation was excellent as well (all too often these pre-plated dishes come out looking like someone had a bathroom accident).
Then just under 90 minutes before landing, breakfast was served. Despite the short flight duration, there was the choice of a hot or cold breakfast, and I chose the former. This included scrambled eggs (as someone who isn’t a fan of breakfast meat, I appreciate that Air France typically keeps these dishes vegetarian), a croissant, yogurt, and fruit.
Honestly, what more can one ask for on an overnight flight like this? It’s the perfect balance, as I see it. Of course there are airlines with more intricate meal services, but that comes with a compromise in terms of efficiency.
I also have to say, the crew was just lovely, as I find to typically be the case on Air France, In particular, the chief purser, Corina, was a delight. She was originally from near Strasbourg, and also spoke German, so that’s how we communicated the whole flight, which was fun. It was like flying Lufthansa, except it was a good experience. 😉
Bottom line
Air France is Europe’s highest quality global airline, and it’s nice to see just how much the company has improved over the years. Even when not flying the carrier’s new business class, I still had a great experience.
These reverse herringbone seats have held up nicely, offering good comfort and entertainment, though obviously I prefer the carrier’s new seats.
Air France’s business class soft product is also very consistent. I don’t think there’s an airline flying across the Atlantic that strikes a better balance between the quality of the meal, and the pace at which it’s served. On these overnight flights, that can be such a tough balance, but Air France gets it right.
I am curious to see what happens with these 787s in the long run. Air France has a fleet of just 10 of these, and no plans have been announced for them to be reconfigured, so there are a few ways I could see this playing out.
What’s your take on Air France’s 787 business class?
Fly immense about for my job. Gone 2/3s of the year different locations different places. Never had an issue with Air Frances Business Class product. Usually clean (oddly you would be surprised how dirty seats can be if you look), food is decent, and attentive cabin crew.
Oh if you seek to snag a paid upgrade Air France allows you to purchase a flight 24-48 hours depending if it's international or domestic via the app. Set your timer get on it and you will see the seats that they release. Have snagged transatlantic as cheap as 400 from Paris to USA.
@ Ben. Hey Ben, I had an issue recently with Air France where I transfered points from an American Express credit card in my name, to an Air France FlyingBlue account in my name, for a ChinaEastern flight in my name. The credit card I used for taxes was the same credit card I transfered points with, also in my name. It was booked a day in advance through airfrance.com. They flagged it for fraud...
@ Ben. Hey Ben, I had an issue recently with Air France where I transfered points from an American Express credit card in my name, to an Air France FlyingBlue account in my name, for a ChinaEastern flight in my name. The credit card I used for taxes was the same credit card I transfered points with, also in my name. It was booked a day in advance through airfrance.com. They flagged it for fraud and canceled it. The flight was from CAN>BKK so I couldn't even check my email in China to know it had been canceled. When I called they kept telling me to go to the airport and speak with an Air France employee. Air France has no flights to Guangzhou and I told them that repeatedly but still half heartedly went to the airport to try. There were no employees at the airport. I spent 3 hours on the phone, then got a hotel, then paid $350 for a flight the next day on a different airline. I tried for compensation and of course... no go. I would love it if you would put them on blast for doing this. They get away with the fraud excuse with no reprocussions. I think you are the last bastian of hope for the consumer. There is no way I would be able to bypass China's biometric tech to fraud my way onto the plane. The airlines and CC companies make a huge amount of money from these points then do everything in their power to not let you use them.
How is that air france's problem if you credit card was flagged as suspicious by the third party payment system and you didn't check your emails for a confirmation while booking a day ahead?
The credit card was not flagged as being suspicious. The transaction with miles is what was flagged by the fraud department. It was not a bank issue.
With slippers provided in J/F, has anyone wondered why the front of the plane doesn’t smell like feet and socks?
Yeah, but as you mention, the A350 is nicer. I was lucky to have the newer (48 J seats) version on a CdG-BOS leg last August in 1A. Have the same seat BOS-CDG next April. The extra space in the bulkhead J seats doesn’t serve much of a purpose, but, boy, it has a great psychological effect.
" It was like flying Lufthansa, except it was a good experience. "
This is BRILLIANT. Air France should use it in a commercial for certain flights (they won't).
Other than the mattress pad it' looks like the experience I had. It was subpar. The wine choices are worse than what is provided on United, which for done reason, people love to hate.
The food was mediocre.
If there is one thing Air France is consistent at, it's the inflight service. It's consistently poor.
I'm not sure why we still keep getting such rosy trip reports for Air France.
If I may share a tip to flying AF: the more reserved and polite you are the better service you'll get (not implying you were in any way impolite, but the reserved part is central in the country's culture).
I am the same and don't seem to have a problem getting decent service on United, EVA, Lufthansa, Qantas, Thai Airways.....I could go on. But somehow moment I step on Air France aircraft I become a monster. That must be it.
Eww Skyteam
I still prefer KLM's 787, namely because of the delft blue house in Business.
Yep, I do that too.
I couldn't agree more; Air France offers a very compelling business class offering across the Atlantic, especially with the recent addition of slippers and bedding. In particular, I have found that their business class product on Eastbound Trans-Atlantic flights is in many ways often BETTER than La Premiere, especially when it comes to onboard service and the timeliness of serving dinner. The business dinner is a multicourse affair with plenty of refills on wine as...
I couldn't agree more; Air France offers a very compelling business class offering across the Atlantic, especially with the recent addition of slippers and bedding. In particular, I have found that their business class product on Eastbound Trans-Atlantic flights is in many ways often BETTER than La Premiere, especially when it comes to onboard service and the timeliness of serving dinner. The business dinner is a multicourse affair with plenty of refills on wine as the meal progresses efficiently. In La Premiere, I often find it can take (even when the cabin is half full) almost an hour to receive the first post take off drink and even longer for the meal to start.
I agree that the new Sofitel bedding is absolutely awesome and significantly contributes to the sleep quality. I am usually a very bad airplane sleeper, but on my AF flight from LAX to CDG a few days ago I slept like a baby.
And I have to say that the new Business Class cabin on AF‘s 777-300ER is top-notch!
I've flown them a few times TATL this year, all in business, and they have very much been YMMV. One flight was great, one was downright awful, and the rest ranged from mediocre to perfectly pleasant. The crews were much more hit or miss than what I was accustomed to with AF. I take the YMMV approach with any flight on any airline, but AF has been noticeably more up and down for me than any other.
Presentation is pretty along with the ceramicware. I also appreciate the creativity and even the yogurt being in a bowl rather than in it's own packaging.
I just can't understand for the life of me how most airlines even the ones that are high-regarded don't even bother with presentation.