Air France has been improving nicely in recent times, investing in the passenger experience, especially in premium cabins. However, it appears that the airline is at least considering some service cuts on short haul flights, as the details of an upcoming trial have been revealed.
Continue reading: Air France Trials Buy On Board Service In Short Haul Economy
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
What, are they also gonna excuse this on "green initiative"?
Major airlines charging a premium fares, offering an LCC service.
And it's okay because it's green.
We're living in the days where a scam is legalized.
Perhaps I'm an AF stan but I don't think this is really too much of a hit. Morning flights with AF are already coffee tea and water only and a small snack. The sandwiches are mid at best and terrible at worst. The cookies are good for most flights and if I actually was hungry I would prefer to have a substantial sandwich than the half sandwich they offer (the nutrition info is on the packaging they are usually less than 250 calories).
I'm booked to fly af in economy in March and was actually surprised to see that they would offer way more than what competitors are offering... Thinking.. How does that make sense and how long till it will be cut.
The main European airlines in the other alliances are even “cheap”er.
SkyTeam has a lot of fairly rubbish carriers, but not universally. AF (and KLM to an extent) are decent, as is China Airlines and Delta (by US standards at the very least).
This was announced a while ago and was supposed to launch on 11 February. The news is actually that it's being postponed until April.
Let's hope the trial is a failure and the current service will remain. I pay extra to fly AFKL among other things because they don't have BOB and crews still have the attitude of hospitality rather than being salespeople. If they drop to the level of Lufthansa, I might as well fly Lufthansa which is usually cheaper and more direct (since I live at one of their hubs).
You mean introducing a service that is still way above LHG (*A) and IAG (OW)? While SkyTeam is a terrible alliance, AFKL is the best of the big 3 airlines in Europe.
To be honest, in economy on European flights, it isn’t an issue to most. I still bring my own snack on some flights and can manage without eating for 2-3 hours. Business class is unaffected. They will still serve water, which many airlines don’t even do gratis.
I'm not concerned about lack of free food (although AF sandwiches are phenomenal and I'd miss them), I'm concerned about the overall change of the on board experience. BOB takes attention away from hospitality to selling stuff (especially if it's true that CC will earn 10% comission). AFKL flights are very relaxed and that's what I pay extra for.
Water is currently free on all of the big 3 airlines. AF's trial concept will include select other soft drinks. But BOB is still a massive downgrade.
Economy in Europe is competing with LCC. Yield is generally very low and many routes not really profitable. If a passenger flies eg Frankfurt Paris New York, when prorated the sector from FRA to CDG maybe as low as €10.
When the passengers are searching for fares within Europe they are usually looking for the best deal and if they buy a ticket Paris Milan Paris for €80 taking into account all costs for fuel and so forth, the airline is making around €5-10 and you expect to get a meal ? In fact the majority don’t.
Customers in business class , especially those connecting onto longhauls in business or la premiere, are bringing in far more revenue.
This is only a test on two routes for a couple of months. As far as I’m aware other carriers that have BOB didn’t even bother to do this and just suspended the full service from a certain date.
At the end of the day, it would mean the end of the mini insipid vegetarian sandwitch you get in economy I always decline... While leaving the rest and enabling the possibility to BoB something nice. Love it!
I don't really understand why it is a service cut. On short/medium haul economy, nowadays, you just have a drink and a small cookie/sandwich. and that's it. This will still be available for free. Having the possibility to buy something else is an improvement (as it's better than nothing).
If this applies to business class, yes, it would be a service cut. But speaking of economy, am I missing something?
Yes. You're missing that sandwich and most drinks will be enhanced away. Instead of a (really good) sandwich and a glass of wine, you'll get water and cookie. That is a service cut. Not to mention losing those lovely interactions with crew, AF staff is among the most hospitable in the European sky, now they're being turned into sales people.
Problem is that Air France will never be cheaper than LCC. I currently pay extra to fly with them because of a much better on board experience - not because of the free food (though their sandwiches are fantastic), but because it's much more relaxed and pleasant. Lack of BOB is a big part of that.
Of course, AFKL can go on to become a new Ryanair but then I won't pay 3 times the Ryanair fare to fly with them.
AF: complimentary coffee/tea
BA: complimentary water
LH: complimentary water and small chocolate
IB: complimentary 28" legroom
I rest my case
The meat sandwiches on Air France are fantastic. Veggie version quality depends on what they have that day but they're usually very good too. But unless someone's vegetarian I definitely recommend going for the meat option, even though it's smaller.
KLM sandwiches on the other hand are crap, won't be missed and I don't mind them enhanced away. But BOB will just ruin things.