adrouault

Greetings FlyerTalk.
I recently flew between Los Angeles and Paris, aboard Air France's A380.
The A380 leaves from the Tom Bradley International Terminal, whereas Air France's other flight, on a 777, leaves from terminal 2.
I arrived at LAX 3 hours in advance, and got in line for SkyPriority check in.
5 minutes later, I was checked-in by a very pleasant Air France agent, who gave my my boarding pass as well as a lounge pass to the Korean Air lounge.
I didn't see any priority line at security, but was able to get through in about 10 minutes.
I had a bite to eat at Petrossian in the main terminal area, and then set off to find the KE lounge.
It took about 15 minutes to found, because I didn't find it to be particularly well-marked.
When I got there, after schlepping around TBIT, I honestly wasn't impressed.
There was a small selection of cold drinks, some stale, cold food, and a small variety of spirits.
While I wasn't impressed, I didn't vocalize my discontent.
Another passenger in the lounge, however, wasn't so inconspicuous with her disappointment.
She began yelling at the lounge staff about the low quality of the amenities, and kept repeating that she had encountered better lounges in Pakistan.
After spending roughly an hour using the internet in the windowless cave-I mean lounge, I went back out to the main area, to get a glimpse of the A380.
It took about ten minutes to get back to the gate area, from the lounge.
This is also a point which I fault Skyteam on.
Star Alliance has their lounge directly above the concourse, while Skyteam has theirs in an isolated part of the airport.
Boarding commenced shortly thereafter. I was welcomed onboard by a polite flight attendant, who took my jacket, and hung it up.
Pre-departure beverages were offered roughly 20 minutes later.
I had a glass of the Billecart Salmon, which was adequate.
The captain made an announcement before departure, notifying us that our expected flying time would be roughly 10 hours, and we should expect a bumpy flight.

We took off to the west, on 24L. It was my first time on an a380, and it felt like an extremely powerful takeoff.
As we reached our cruising altitude over San Bernadino, menus were distributed.


The Amuse Bouche was a piece of Balik salmon with Granny smith apple.
For our appetizers, we were offered a plate of duck terrine with pistachios, and poached shrimp on the side.
For the main course, the choices were:

Pan-seared tournedos of beef with Burgundy-style butter, buttered flat beans, and mushroom risotto.

Shrimp with Cajun sauce and saffron rice.

Cepe mushroom Ravioli.



Desert trio.

Chocolate mousse with Raspberry ganache.
Mango cake with coconut and raspberry,
And Macaron.


Hot towels were distributed, followed by the menu.
A beverage service started shortly thereafter, accompanied by the spiced mini-gaufres.
The smoked salmon appetizer was served on a white plastic spoon, and while it was tasty, I would suggest AF serve it with a plate underneath as well. It feels unpleasant to be given just a spoon like that.

The duck terrine appetizer was good enough.
It was a bit bland, but the fig chutney helped.
The poached shrimps tasted fresh enough, and were delicious with the mayonnaise sauce.

Next was the main course.
I chose the beef, which was served close to medium-well. While that isn't usually my preference, it was juicy, and not tough.
The risotto served alongside was more like a glue than a risotto.
It tasted fine, and definitely had the taste of mushrooms, but there was just a texture issue.

I sampled the dessert trio, along with calvados.
The dessert trio items were tasty, and rich.
The calvados was a nice way to end the meal.
After everything was cleared, I put the seat into its (angled) reclined mode, and was able to get 4-5 hours of sleep.
I watched Blue Jasmine, the recent Woody Allen film, until breakfast came around.
I chose the crêpe with scrambled eggs and cheese.
It was tasty, although the crêpe part was too thick, and therefore excessively doughy.

After landing, we had to wait about twenty minutes for the doors to be connected and for us to be let off.

Baggage delivery began at 11:50, and it took about 20 minutes for my bag to arrive, even though it had a priority tag. It was one of the last ones off the plane.



Once I got my bag, I made my way across all of the terminals of T2, to the arrivals lounge, where I enjoyed a shower.
This was greatly appreciated by me, after a ten hour flight.
Overall, I'd say Air France was an adequate experience.
The only thing that was fantastic was the fact that I didn't arrive with any pain in my back, which is a certainty when I fly economy.

Here's a link to pictures.

http://imgur.com/a/T9nr1#VbFeX96

Betteronacamel

Thank you - short but sweet ^

Mabuk dan gila

The above mentioned KE/Skyteam lounge used by AF at LAX TBIT is scheduled to be permanently closed as of today Jan 20, in order to relocate to the NEW LAX TBIT KE/Skyteam lounge which should be vastly improved. While the closure of the old lounge is slated for today, it is unclear if that corresponds with the opening of the new lounge simultaneously or if their will be an interim changeover period. The old lounge became a "windowless cave" back when they built a new terminal over it's windows. For a while the windows offered an interesting view of construction of the new terminal but then they went away and it has been rather bleak since. It is scheduled to be demolished and I believe the empty space will be incorporated into the new OneWorld lounge later this year.

adrouault

Thanks for the update!

I have to say, that was one of the disappointments of this trip.
Compared to many of the really bright and spacious lounges that exist, it felt pathetic.
In terms of space alone, my favorite was the transborder lounge maple leaf at YUL. So bright and airy.

FreqTrav27

Does anyone know if the new lounge is open? I am flying this flight on Friday.

JetstreamJ

Going on same trip this summer. When did boarding begin for Business Class? How was the TSA line going into TBIT? We have to walk from T-6 to TBIT in less connection time that I wanted. Just wanted to enjoy the new SkyTeam lounge. Anxiously waiting for a FT report and maybe a Youtube when available.

thebluejean

It looks like the new lounge is open. Look at the photo at the bottom of the page to show the new lounge entrance. Looks nice.

http://kr.koreanair.com/Main/Airport...irportcode=LAX

Has anyone been there? Do they have separate first/business section?

tmontemb

Do you (OP) or anyone else, have pics of the current Amenity Kit that Air France uses in Affaires? It's not still the tan one is it?

adrouault

No clear priority line was available.

Boarding began on time, but was chaotic. The economy passengers were crowded around, and blocking our path.

avm2806

Thanks - LAX TBIT lounges seem far behind major airports elsewhere - hopefully The qantas lounge will change that

adrouault

Definitely.

It made AA lounges at DFW seem like paradise.

fly747first

It's pretty spartan for the most part, so don't account on having anything great.

adrouault

Flimsy socks, eyeshade, generic toothbrush and toothpaste, and a few other unremarkable additions.

tmontemb

Had already traveled at this point. Was curious if I would get the CDG-JFK anniversary kit flying CDG-ATL.

I did FWIW. Same pouch (with a different colored zipper) as in Premium Economy.

adrouault

Sorry for my delayed response.