Corsair is a French low cost carrier that primarily operates longhaul flights between Paris Orly and the Caribbean, though they have some other routes as well. Currently the airline doesn’t fly to the US (they did back in the day, though all those routes have been discontinued), but that will soon change.
Corsair will be launching 3x weekly flights between Paris Orly and Miami as of June 10, 2019, with the following schedule (on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays):
SS918 Paris Orly to Miami departing 11:40AM arriving 3:50PM
SS919 Miami to Paris Orly departing 6:00PM arriving 9:00AM (+1 day)
The flight will cover a distance of 4,586 miles, and is blocked at 9hr eastbound and 10hr10min westbound.
Corsair intends to use an Airbus A330-200 for the route, which is extremely densely configured with nine seats per row in economy (compared to the usual eight seats per row).
Corsair introduced a business class product a bit over a year ago, so the flight will feature 12 business class seats, spread across two rows in a 2-2-2 configuration. Unfortunately Corsair opted for angled seats in business class, which I don’t find to be comfortable.
This is an interesting route for Corsair to launch, given that they’re going head-to-head with both American and Air France (though the airlines fly to Charles de Gaulle rather than Orly). American flies a 777-200 in the market, while Air France flies a 777-300ER or A380, depending on the season.
As you’d expect, Corsair has attractive economy fares, with fares starting at about $350 roundtrip, though that doesn’t include luggage, food, drinks, etc.
As I usually find to be the case with Corsair, their premium fares aren’t actually that compelling. The cheapest premium economy fare I see is $1,900+ roundtrip, which seems steep.
Then business class is just under $2,500 roundtrip, which I guess is fine, though is hardly remarkable for an angled product.
What do you make of Corsair’s new flight between Miami and Paris?
(Featured image courtesy of Mark Harkin)
Has any flown on these new flights personally yet? I’m eager to get feedback on the cramped seats and level of service. How were the meals? Did you have a choice of selections? Even in basic economy? So vous plait! Pictures of the meals would be nice too. Any airline loyalty frequent flyer programs they partner existed. with that we could earn miles on instead if you see you flying Corsair one and done? Any...
Has any flown on these new flights personally yet? I’m eager to get feedback on the cramped seats and level of service. How were the meals? Did you have a choice of selections? Even in basic economy? So vous plait! Pictures of the meals would be nice too. Any airline loyalty frequent flyer programs they partner existed. with that we could earn miles on instead if you see you flying Corsair one and done? Any help is a thrill and much appreciated! Travel smart and well my friends!
Jonathan
@Moritz, full service? 9 across on an A330 has got to be brutal. That’s really dense. I don’t even think AA’s Dougie P would do that. I suppose we ample Americans might be a wee bit wider, but still....
I don’t think we can qualify Corsair of a Low-cost. It’s pretty close to a full service airline with a decent product in all cabins. Although the lowest economy class fare doesn’t include a checked in luggage, it does allow 12kg of cabin luggage and all fares include drinks and food.
MIA getting so much love
Two notes of caution:
- Orly is under reconstruction until at least mid 2019 - connecting Orly Sud and Orly Ouest (W).
- In the last 2 years, the flights from Orly to Montreal and back Corsair 900 and 901 were with HiFly. Nasty surprise for the last one as I paid to try the business class. Old Air Sri Lanka A340, duct tape in the washroom, nasty food and clueless FA. Paid same price...
Two notes of caution:
- Orly is under reconstruction until at least mid 2019 - connecting Orly Sud and Orly Ouest (W).
- In the last 2 years, the flights from Orly to Montreal and back Corsair 900 and 901 were with HiFly. Nasty surprise for the last one as I paid to try the business class. Old Air Sri Lanka A340, duct tape in the washroom, nasty food and clueless FA. Paid same price recently for BC with Air Canada. The chief purser, which was from Corsair, told me that they did not have enough planes to do all their scheduled routes
I wish they were flying their 747 with economy seating in the nose, for some reason. In summer they will also be competing against XL Airways, with an even more punishing all coach 3-3-3 A330.
As soon as Joon ends