Air France is already by far Europe’s most premium global airline, and the airline just keeps improving. Air France’s long haul business class is excellent, among the best out there, though I’ve long said that the biggest area for improvement is with the bedding. Well, there’s an exciting update, as Air France is rolling out mattress pads in business class!
In this post:
Air France partnering with Sofitel on mattress pads
Air France and Sofitel are launching a partnership, to introduce mattress pads in long haul business class. The mattress pad has been created in partnership with Sofitel MY BED, which is Sofitel’s top-of-the-line bedding collection. I appreciate Air France’s focus on showcasing French products and brands, so the partnership with Accor’s luxury hotel brand makes a lot of sense.
As Air France describes it, this mattress pad “has been carefully crafted and designed to make passengers feel like they’re floating on a cloud,” and “it can be rolled out on the seat for an extra layer of comfort, creating a true cocoon of well-being that offers the ideal conditions for relaxation from takeoff to landing, and in any seat position.”
The mattress pad will be placed at business class seats before boarding, alongside a pillow, blanket, and slippers. Then when passengers are ready to use the mattress pads, they can simply slide them over the seat headrest, and smooth it down against the backrest and seat cushion. The mattress pad adapts to all of Air France’s long haul business class seat types, including on the Boeing 777, Boeing 787, Airbus A330, and Airbus A350.
Here’s how Fabien Pelous, Air France’s SVP of Customer Experience, describes this development:
“We are delighted to join forces with the expertise of Sofitel MY BED, an exceptional partner, to continue making Business cabin travel a true haven of well-being in the sky. The introduction of a new mattress pad will further enhance the comfort offered on board, ensuring even more restful nights before arrival at destination, as well as greater relaxation during daytime flights.”
Mattress pads will be introduced as of July 2025
So, when can we expect Air France’s new business class mattress pads to be available? They’re going to be progressively rolled out as of July 2025. The expectation is that they’re going to be available on all long haul flights by the end of the year, regardless of departure time or flight duration.
I really appreciate the consistency with which Air France is rolling out these mattress pads, as they won’t just be available on ultra long haul flights. There aren’t any other European carriers that offer both slippers and a mattress pad on all long haul flights, so I think that’s pretty great.
Bottom line
As its latest passenger experience improvement, Air France is introducing mattress pads in business class on long haul flights. Air France is partnering with Sofitel on this project, with the mattress pads being inspired by Sofitel’s MY BED concept. You can expect these mattress pads to be rolled out starting in July 2025, and available on all flights by the end of the year.
What do you make of Air France rolling out business class mattress pads?
Tried these last Nov on an old config 777 (no doors) from SFO to CDG and they made a huge difference in comfort to sleep on. I later learned it was a trial flight and most pax didn't know what the additional item on their seat was, hence never used them. Very pleased to hear they are becoming a standard.
Too bad down pillows are no longer a thing, though, having been replaced with synthetic stuffing in both J and Y over the last couple of years.
This is a great improvement, but will not change the biggest impediment to actually getting good sleep on Air France - it's too hot! I've consistently noticed that they crank up the cabin temperature after the meal service and then I spend the night roasting instead of sleeping.
I have not had this problem this consistently on any other airline (though I have not flown Asian carriers long-haul, which I expect are also quite warm).
I have no idea whether this will be reflected in the new AF bedding but I’ve found the beds at Sofitels among the most consistently comfortable of any hotel chain. Mattress pads really do make a difference when flying, IMO, so hopefully these will be good.
this is the single best thing airlines can do to elevate the business class experience.
Having a lie flat seat w/o proper padding defeats half of the purpose of a lie flat sleep - to comfortably sleep
Nice extra for AF in BC. I would just wish that KLM would do the same, as a lot of transatlantic flights by AF are actually KLM flights out of AMS.
Take this, Lufthansa! Your scratchy blanket pales in comparison …
LOL yes Lufthansa is cringe AF
Alex, do you realize that you just made E39 to go through a mental breakdown?
@Mason — hah, this actually made me laugh. Good one Mason
I just flew Air France in business-class to Paris last night.
This is so overdue, especially since Air France's business-class is the airline's best product or class of service on quite a few routes.
Last night, I grabbed a blanket from an empty seat and used that.
Now they need to make their blankets wider and longer.
Flying SFO-CDG in late August. (First long haul leisure flight with the wife since we had kids!) Fingers crossed.
Meh. Keep the pad and bring back some award availability instead.
The most overrated business class out there. Good thing there are adding something of substance to it.
BBT …. Not another very happy sounding comment. Could it be sour grapes because the US airline industry and airlines are lagging behind the rest of the world?
20 years ago, your comment would hold some water. But not today.
France is a piss poor product. I’m so glad they’re trying to improve it. And they have a lot of room to do just that.
Bbt, I can taste your sour grapes from this side of the pond.
Surely even you are aware of the fact that AF are judged to be No: 7 in the World Airline Rankings.
The highest rated US offering is DA at only No: 21.
Eat your words Bbt!
This is amazing news, it really was the one thing missing from their business class.
lol I always have the worst type off luck with this stuff! I'm flying the A350 business bulkhead in late June. Ugh!
Could be worse, you could be flying the old J seat without the massive amount of room.
New Air France business class is excellent and this is an excellent development. In a world where so many carriers are charging more and providing less, Air France is doing great things in business class.
This isn’t a Sofitel mattress pad. You will not find one of these pads in a single Sofitel room anywhere.
Air France have entered into a license agreement to use the Sofitel brand on a mattress pad that has nothing to do with Sofitel.
I mean I would hope that Sofitel isn't using mattress pads in their hotel rooms but proper mattresses lol... And it has something to do with Sofitel since it is Sofitel branded. Sofitel likely developed it in collaboration with Air France.
RR***not …. Not very happy sounding comment, could it be sour grapes because the US airline industry and airlines are lagging behind the rest of the world?
I just hate people and brands licensing their name to something that isn’t one of their products. Someone think that Wolfgang Puck or Gordon Ramsey have anything to do with the food sold in the restaurants with their name on them?
Since you want to compare US to USA… compare Delta One or United Polaris to Virgin Upper Class hard product. Or compare JetBlue Mint to British Airways short haul where you get less pitch that Ryanair.
I'll wager Sofitel is definitely using mattress pads, or "mattress toppers", because they can be easily removed & laundered, unlike the mattresses themselves. Some hotels (not Sofitel AFAIK) give guests a choice of "plush, medium, or firm" mattress pads.
Does this include the front row business suits?
It does, yes.
It is very nice that AF will offer the type of mattress pad that slips over the headrest! This type allows the seat to recline (and return upright and recline again) with no issue of pad slippage.