Hello dear FTers,
I just landed in NYC using AF008, the first AF flight equipped with the new Business, Premium Economy and Economy cabins (BEST). And let me tell you that I am really impressed by the comfort and elegance of the plane interior, in all classes.
But of course, there is some fair criticism as everything cannot be perfect.
Also, it is important for me to precise that I was part of a press trip, invited as a blog owner.
Lounge
A dedicated area of the lounge (the K gates lounge mezzanine) was dedicated to the press flying on AF008. A handful of TV media was there, as well as AF staff including Bruno Matheu, the long haul Product Manager at AF. He flew with us, and it was funny to see he had some Club 2000 tags on his various bags
Boarding
Flight was boarding from gate K41. Boarding started early, 50 minutes before departure time, and started with SkyPriority of course. However, it started to be messy as the Security inspector for the SkyPriority lane was being picky... So the Air France staff started to open the General boarding lane, so SkyPriority was really useless...
In the jetbridge, 10 Air France staff ladies were welcoming passengers, as this was supposed to be the inaugural flight for the new cabin (even if it is effectively running since June 20th, 3 days before).
The 772 was docked to 2 jetbridges, one for J and the other for W and Y, but no one was directing passengers to one or the other.
The new J seat (beware, this is going to be picture heavy 
)
So... Here it is for real, no simulation or pilot, the real one. And it is even better than pilots or than in pictures!
General view:
Tablet space:
IFE screen:
IFE remote:
IFE usage:
Personal cabinet:
Blanket, pillow and slippers:
Headrest:
Cabin shot:
Night light:
Middle seats:
Power and USB outlets:
The seat in night position:
Selfie:
To summarize, a list of pros and cons...
Pros:- The cabin, overall, is very fresh and elegant. Completely to my taste and probably the North American one too. Not bling at all, but not cold either. A good mix, really.
- The seat is really comfortable. The choice not to use leather for the seat itself is very wise as leather generates sweat... Good fabrics that add into the high quality feeling the passenger has.
- The cabinet for personal stuff is adequately sized for electronics.
- The USB outlet allows people to charge 2 devices at the same time
- The new IFE systems is 20 years ahead the previous one, finally on par with the last versions of Delta or American, but with way more content (not as much as, for example, EK ice, for sure!)
- The bed position is completely adequate for a sleep. I think it was one of my best sleeps on a day flight without taking pills. Slept right after service, woke up when the light meal service was starting. However, I doubt about the complete flatness of the seat. But I dit not feel uncomfortable at anytime, unlike the bed position on the CX cirrus seat
Cons:- Not much in terms of look and feel, but I have the strange sensation of fragility of the systems: after 3 days, some IFE screens do not close well, my cabinet door was hard to open and the light button did not work. Not good for the future.
- Also, I did notice some bumps on the seat in the night position visually. This feeling was not confirmed while using the seat for sleeping.
Service
The service does not change from the usual Business service in the BEST cabins. However, this flight was a "Toques dans le ciel" one, and Régis Marcon and the Servair Executive chefs were there to present their menus and advise passengers on their meal choice.
A precision: unlike the chef in OS or TK flights, they did not prepare the plate, so the pictures below reflect the exact presentation you would have had on a normal flight.
Regis Marcon and the Servair chef:
Amenity kit:
Oshibori:
Amuse-bouche:
Service Tray:
Appetizer, a lobster salad with caviar:
Entree : Lamb
Cheese:
Dessert: Trio with some sorbet and green Chartreuse
Light meal before arrival:
The other cabins:
As mentioned in the post describing the new cabins I discovered in Shanghai, the W cabin is not really different from the previous one.
However, the Y cabin is really better, with a more comfortable seat and a bigger IFE screen.
Conclusion
Even if there is room for improvement, I really felt, traveling on this flight, that AF finally reached the 21st century in terms of travel comfort in Premium cabins.
I hope you enjoyed the report! Feel free to ask additional questions.