A Pleasant Surprise - Air France New Business Class: YVR-CDG
Nov 30, 2015, 7:18 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: US Left Coast
Programs: DL, CX, UA
Posts: 4
A Pleasant Surprise - Air France New Business Class: YVR-CDG
Hello! Long time lurker, but never took the initiative to register and post until now!
First and foremost, I don’t fly AF frequently. Therefore, I apologize if I am not very detailed concerning the lingo and terms associated with their products, especially with regards to the level and seniorities of the crews. Anyhow I will do my best.
When I booked this trip, the business configuration for this sector was set for the old 2-3-2 configuration. It was the sliding seats (aka NEV4). At that time and all the way to the few days leading up to the departure, it was the seat I expected to greet me when I step inside the cabin. I mean throughout those times, that was the layout being displayed on the online seat map whenever I retrieved my booking. Considering how a minority of the fleet has been retrofitted with the so-called “BEST” cabin, I had never imagined I would be able to sample it that early. If I’m not mistaken the new cabin did not debut until the middle of last year? If that is accurate, then it has barely been 1.5 years where the majority of the fleet still has the old hard product (including the 380s). On top of that, AF historically has been quite notorious for being very slow in the retrofitting process from what I have heard.
Then a few days prior to departure, I could no longer change my assigned seat nor could the online system even allow me to pull out the seat map under the “Your Reservations” tab on the AF site. I tried doing the same via the DL website and no luck there as well. Still at that time, I wasn’t aware what was going on that caused those features to be disabled for my booking. Regardless, I was not aware I would be treated to the new business seat until the moment I set foot inside the cabin. Could this be the reason those features were unavailable online for my reservation? I don’t know. Perhaps some AF regulars can answer that.
Flight: AF 379
Class: Business
Route: Vancouver (YVR) – Paris (CDG)
Departure: 14:40
Arrival: 8:35+1
Aircraft: B777-200ER, F-GSPI
It was a rare sunny day for the region during this time of year as I walked into the YVR terminal building at around 11:15am for an afternoon departure.
I happen to be someone who prefers to arrive quite early for the airport. 3.5 hours prior to departure for an international flight is average for me and that is what I aim for whenever possible. So when I located the AF counters inside, it was not a surprise the queues had just opened with little to no wait.
My passport was taken by the lady at the counter who issued my boarding pass and tagged my one checked luggage with the yellow priority tag. She also wrote on left tab of my BP the name of the lounge I have complimentary access to – The Plaza Premium (more on this later in the report).
YVR is certainly one of the most pleasant airports in North American to depart from. The infrastructure and artwork around the airport are certainly delightful. Some landside shops along the way from the counters to the security check point also reflect some of those artwork.
The landside departure terminal also happens to have a sculpture that attracted the attention of many children. Though I am not quite sure what it symbolizes nor what it is about.
Another shop.
There was a fast track screening at security thought I don’t recall what the line was called. I was just directed by one employee to go through the much shorter queue. He saw my boarding pass being labeled “business” and perhaps that’s how he directed me. There was also a green “YVR” sticker on my BP. Not sure if that gives the indication for the fast track. Anyhow from my experiences, going through the CATSA has been more pleasant in comparisons to the TSA and that day was no exception.
More shops post-security.
With the holiday spirit.
There are no designated Skyteam lounges in the international departure area. All are directed to the Plaza Premium Lounge located a short walk from the CATSA check point. The lounge itself is open to the public for a fee of $40 CAD and up for those flying in the back without status. To be honest, the lounge itself is not bad at all, but I certainly would not be paying the price they are charging just to get in.
There is a designated section at one end of the lounge reserved exclusively for AF/KL passengers though there are no checks to get into that area. Not that it is a spacious area with something special there.
Buffet selections and beverage areas.
There is also made to order Laksa. All I had to do was call one of the ladies behind the buffet to serve one.
After having the brief meal, I headed over to the shower area to refresh. However, all the doors for the shower rooms were locked when I tried to get in. Initially I thought they were occupied. But then a housekeeping staff passing by informed I had to get someone at the receptionist desk at the entrance to open one.
It was a very short walk back to the front and back again to have someone unlock the door, so no big deal.
After a nice cool shower, I exited the lounge and headed for the gate which at that time was about another 25 minutes before boarding commenced.
Another artwork sculpture. This time airside.
Quick check of the departure board revealed no change in the departure status.
I reached Gate D67 where my plane, operated by F-GSPI, was already parked and stationed.
Priority boarding was announced shortly and it was time to zip through the airbridge. After a FA at the door directed me “gauche” into the business cabin, I had to rub the eyes twice to cross check that I wasn’t in a sweet dream mode. “Really?......Is this reality or are my eyes being deceptive?” Seriously those were my reactions the moment I saw the 1-2-1 configuration.
BTW this is how the “Pleasant Surprise” title of the report came into play. Turned out some of the J passengers were also surprised for the “BEST” switch and many snapped photos of the new seat.
3A was the seat I reserved initially and was kept as such when configuration was changed.
View of Seat 3A.
Footrest
Seat controls
Reading light
Headphone inside mini storage.
Mirror inside the mini storage door.
Adjustable vertical armrest on the aisle side.
Touch screen PTV that can be extracted to be perpendicular to the seating angle. To me, it looks like an oversized ipad once it has been popped out.
Slippers already provided at the seat.
Two male and one female FAs soon came around to welcome us, introduce themselves, as well as introduce the “BEST” cabin which was roughly half full that day. At the same time toiletries bags were distributed.
Pre-takeoff drinks were also being offered.
We pushed back roughly on-time and taxied out for departure on a sunny afternoon. Takeoff was towards the west and we had to make a U-turn afterwards towards the northeast. Flight time to CDG was roughly estimated to be 8.5 hours, making a relatively short transatlantic flight for sleeping purposes even shorter.
The remaining daylight on this flight after takeoff was minimal. But prior to darkness, we were treated to some lovely snow-capped mountain sceneries.
I happen to be a big fan of the 3-D moving maps and it was available on this flight as part of the new cabin.
Flight path was fairly normal and took us through interior British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Hudson Bay, Greenland, across the Atlantic, then above Ireland, the UK and into France.
Tray table
Menus were distributed soon after takeoff. Let’s have a look.
Close to 16:00 on the west coast…….
Service for lunch began with Mise en Bouche, biscuit crackers and a glass of champagne. And no that is not stingy champagne pouring there. I don’t drink much alcohol so I asked the FA to pour just a quarter of the glass.
Salad, salmon and foie gras appetizer. FA offered me both red wines and I obliged to try a little bit of both. The cabin crews serving J on this sector were all great BTW. AF crews from my experiences are better than the ones I regularly get with DL or UA. Though the best crews I have had are still with NH.
I went with the halibut for the main course which was very good.
Cheese that came after.
Followed by desert.
Upon conclusion of the meal service, I went to the lavatories to switch into the PJ I had brought in my carryon and converted the seat into a fully-flat position.
The seat itself is very comfortable in flat position, a very nice change from the sliding ones on NEV4. Also the vertical spacing of the leg area is higher. As a result I don’t easily bump my toes to the top like I do on the NEV4.
The timing of the flight however is just downright terrible. By the time the lights were dimmed, it was barely around 18:00 PST. I typically do not go to bed until close to midnight. It was close to impossible for me to pass out at that time. Heck someone could even place a normal bed in the cabin and I’d still be lying on it fully awake. I assume the flight has been timed for certain connections and the best AF can do is an early afternoon departure / early morning arrival. For sleeping purposes I much prefer BA’s departure time of around 21:00.
Seeing that was I wake, one of the FA offered and gave a box of Laduree candies and Haagen Dazs ice cream.
By the time I fell asleep, it was more or less close to landing. Overall I managed only an hour’s worth of sleep.
Breakfast was served about an hour prior to landing and the omelette I had was not very impressive.
It tasted very bland and the overall portion size of the meal more or less resembles the breakfast portion size served in SQ Y. Wish I had chosen the crepes instead. However, I was pleased that they at least served a hot breakfast for the west coast departure transatlantic sectors. From what I have been told, only a continental version is served for east coast departures due to the shorter time.
Sunrise view during breakfast.
After the conclusion of the breakfast service, the crews began preparing the cabin for landing. At the same time, they went around thanking each passengers and asking everyone for their opinions with regards to the “BEST” cabin. I assume the term “BEST” is used primarily as a marketing strategy. Whether it is the “BEST” is of course subjective.
OTOH, I must give high marks for the crews serving the J cabin on this sector. Considering all hell that broke loose on the evening of Nov 13 just several days ago prior to this flight and the diversion of two other transatlantic flights due to threats, it certainly was not the easiest of times to put on a smile, maintain an upbeat attitude regularly and deliver very good service. But the FAs did a great job in those areas.
Final descent into Paris was a little bumpy as we had to dive through thick clouds.
Just past 8:30, we landed at CDG on rainy morning.
Overall it was a very good flight that I enjoyed. Minus the flight timing and the omelette of course. The absolute treat no doubt was the surprise of the new seat in the new cabin being deployed.
For bonus purposes, here are some Parisian photos I snapped during my brief 2-night stopover there before I continued my journey to the UK.
First and foremost, I don’t fly AF frequently. Therefore, I apologize if I am not very detailed concerning the lingo and terms associated with their products, especially with regards to the level and seniorities of the crews. Anyhow I will do my best.
When I booked this trip, the business configuration for this sector was set for the old 2-3-2 configuration. It was the sliding seats (aka NEV4). At that time and all the way to the few days leading up to the departure, it was the seat I expected to greet me when I step inside the cabin. I mean throughout those times, that was the layout being displayed on the online seat map whenever I retrieved my booking. Considering how a minority of the fleet has been retrofitted with the so-called “BEST” cabin, I had never imagined I would be able to sample it that early. If I’m not mistaken the new cabin did not debut until the middle of last year? If that is accurate, then it has barely been 1.5 years where the majority of the fleet still has the old hard product (including the 380s). On top of that, AF historically has been quite notorious for being very slow in the retrofitting process from what I have heard.
Then a few days prior to departure, I could no longer change my assigned seat nor could the online system even allow me to pull out the seat map under the “Your Reservations” tab on the AF site. I tried doing the same via the DL website and no luck there as well. Still at that time, I wasn’t aware what was going on that caused those features to be disabled for my booking. Regardless, I was not aware I would be treated to the new business seat until the moment I set foot inside the cabin. Could this be the reason those features were unavailable online for my reservation? I don’t know. Perhaps some AF regulars can answer that.
Flight: AF 379
Class: Business
Route: Vancouver (YVR) – Paris (CDG)
Departure: 14:40
Arrival: 8:35+1
Aircraft: B777-200ER, F-GSPI
It was a rare sunny day for the region during this time of year as I walked into the YVR terminal building at around 11:15am for an afternoon departure.
I happen to be someone who prefers to arrive quite early for the airport. 3.5 hours prior to departure for an international flight is average for me and that is what I aim for whenever possible. So when I located the AF counters inside, it was not a surprise the queues had just opened with little to no wait.
My passport was taken by the lady at the counter who issued my boarding pass and tagged my one checked luggage with the yellow priority tag. She also wrote on left tab of my BP the name of the lounge I have complimentary access to – The Plaza Premium (more on this later in the report).
YVR is certainly one of the most pleasant airports in North American to depart from. The infrastructure and artwork around the airport are certainly delightful. Some landside shops along the way from the counters to the security check point also reflect some of those artwork.
The landside departure terminal also happens to have a sculpture that attracted the attention of many children. Though I am not quite sure what it symbolizes nor what it is about.
Another shop.
There was a fast track screening at security thought I don’t recall what the line was called. I was just directed by one employee to go through the much shorter queue. He saw my boarding pass being labeled “business” and perhaps that’s how he directed me. There was also a green “YVR” sticker on my BP. Not sure if that gives the indication for the fast track. Anyhow from my experiences, going through the CATSA has been more pleasant in comparisons to the TSA and that day was no exception.
More shops post-security.
With the holiday spirit.
There are no designated Skyteam lounges in the international departure area. All are directed to the Plaza Premium Lounge located a short walk from the CATSA check point. The lounge itself is open to the public for a fee of $40 CAD and up for those flying in the back without status. To be honest, the lounge itself is not bad at all, but I certainly would not be paying the price they are charging just to get in.
There is a designated section at one end of the lounge reserved exclusively for AF/KL passengers though there are no checks to get into that area. Not that it is a spacious area with something special there.
Buffet selections and beverage areas.
There is also made to order Laksa. All I had to do was call one of the ladies behind the buffet to serve one.
After having the brief meal, I headed over to the shower area to refresh. However, all the doors for the shower rooms were locked when I tried to get in. Initially I thought they were occupied. But then a housekeeping staff passing by informed I had to get someone at the receptionist desk at the entrance to open one.
It was a very short walk back to the front and back again to have someone unlock the door, so no big deal.
After a nice cool shower, I exited the lounge and headed for the gate which at that time was about another 25 minutes before boarding commenced.
Another artwork sculpture. This time airside.
Quick check of the departure board revealed no change in the departure status.
I reached Gate D67 where my plane, operated by F-GSPI, was already parked and stationed.
Priority boarding was announced shortly and it was time to zip through the airbridge. After a FA at the door directed me “gauche” into the business cabin, I had to rub the eyes twice to cross check that I wasn’t in a sweet dream mode. “Really?......Is this reality or are my eyes being deceptive?” Seriously those were my reactions the moment I saw the 1-2-1 configuration.
BTW this is how the “Pleasant Surprise” title of the report came into play. Turned out some of the J passengers were also surprised for the “BEST” switch and many snapped photos of the new seat.
3A was the seat I reserved initially and was kept as such when configuration was changed.
View of Seat 3A.
Footrest
Seat controls
Reading light
Headphone inside mini storage.
Mirror inside the mini storage door.
Adjustable vertical armrest on the aisle side.
Touch screen PTV that can be extracted to be perpendicular to the seating angle. To me, it looks like an oversized ipad once it has been popped out.
Slippers already provided at the seat.
Two male and one female FAs soon came around to welcome us, introduce themselves, as well as introduce the “BEST” cabin which was roughly half full that day. At the same time toiletries bags were distributed.
Pre-takeoff drinks were also being offered.
We pushed back roughly on-time and taxied out for departure on a sunny afternoon. Takeoff was towards the west and we had to make a U-turn afterwards towards the northeast. Flight time to CDG was roughly estimated to be 8.5 hours, making a relatively short transatlantic flight for sleeping purposes even shorter.
The remaining daylight on this flight after takeoff was minimal. But prior to darkness, we were treated to some lovely snow-capped mountain sceneries.
I happen to be a big fan of the 3-D moving maps and it was available on this flight as part of the new cabin.
Flight path was fairly normal and took us through interior British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Hudson Bay, Greenland, across the Atlantic, then above Ireland, the UK and into France.
Tray table
Menus were distributed soon after takeoff. Let’s have a look.
Close to 16:00 on the west coast…….
Service for lunch began with Mise en Bouche, biscuit crackers and a glass of champagne. And no that is not stingy champagne pouring there. I don’t drink much alcohol so I asked the FA to pour just a quarter of the glass.
Salad, salmon and foie gras appetizer. FA offered me both red wines and I obliged to try a little bit of both. The cabin crews serving J on this sector were all great BTW. AF crews from my experiences are better than the ones I regularly get with DL or UA. Though the best crews I have had are still with NH.
I went with the halibut for the main course which was very good.
Cheese that came after.
Followed by desert.
Upon conclusion of the meal service, I went to the lavatories to switch into the PJ I had brought in my carryon and converted the seat into a fully-flat position.
The seat itself is very comfortable in flat position, a very nice change from the sliding ones on NEV4. Also the vertical spacing of the leg area is higher. As a result I don’t easily bump my toes to the top like I do on the NEV4.
The timing of the flight however is just downright terrible. By the time the lights were dimmed, it was barely around 18:00 PST. I typically do not go to bed until close to midnight. It was close to impossible for me to pass out at that time. Heck someone could even place a normal bed in the cabin and I’d still be lying on it fully awake. I assume the flight has been timed for certain connections and the best AF can do is an early afternoon departure / early morning arrival. For sleeping purposes I much prefer BA’s departure time of around 21:00.
Seeing that was I wake, one of the FA offered and gave a box of Laduree candies and Haagen Dazs ice cream.
By the time I fell asleep, it was more or less close to landing. Overall I managed only an hour’s worth of sleep.
Breakfast was served about an hour prior to landing and the omelette I had was not very impressive.
It tasted very bland and the overall portion size of the meal more or less resembles the breakfast portion size served in SQ Y. Wish I had chosen the crepes instead. However, I was pleased that they at least served a hot breakfast for the west coast departure transatlantic sectors. From what I have been told, only a continental version is served for east coast departures due to the shorter time.
Sunrise view during breakfast.
After the conclusion of the breakfast service, the crews began preparing the cabin for landing. At the same time, they went around thanking each passengers and asking everyone for their opinions with regards to the “BEST” cabin. I assume the term “BEST” is used primarily as a marketing strategy. Whether it is the “BEST” is of course subjective.
OTOH, I must give high marks for the crews serving the J cabin on this sector. Considering all hell that broke loose on the evening of Nov 13 just several days ago prior to this flight and the diversion of two other transatlantic flights due to threats, it certainly was not the easiest of times to put on a smile, maintain an upbeat attitude regularly and deliver very good service. But the FAs did a great job in those areas.
Final descent into Paris was a little bumpy as we had to dive through thick clouds.
Just past 8:30, we landed at CDG on rainy morning.
Overall it was a very good flight that I enjoyed. Minus the flight timing and the omelette of course. The absolute treat no doubt was the surprise of the new seat in the new cabin being deployed.
For bonus purposes, here are some Parisian photos I snapped during my brief 2-night stopover there before I continued my journey to the UK.
Dec 1, 2015, 12:09 am
#2
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: AZ
Programs: DL, AA
Posts: 359
Great trip report. Looking forward to seeing the UK portion?
I'm a big fan of Airport Art & was curious about the sculpture you photographed, with children climbing on it.
http://www.yvr.ca/en/about/art-archi...ida-Gwaii.aspx
I'm a big fan of Airport Art & was curious about the sculpture you photographed, with children climbing on it.
http://www.yvr.ca/en/about/art-archi...ida-Gwaii.aspx
Last edited by ACCDraw; Dec 1, 2015 at 12:11 am Reason: Clarification
Dec 1, 2015, 6:15 pm
#8
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: EWR
Posts: 2,112
great start ^ I agree that the lounge in YVR is adequate for entry via status/membership but not for paid entry-interesting to see the full lunch set-up, as I have only been able to catch them setting it up so far before I've had to leave
Dec 4, 2015, 10:22 pm
#11
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: IAH
Programs: DL DM, Hyatt Ist-iest, Stariott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 12,789
Interesting to see the new AF J product, which looks pretty good. I flew AF in economy IAH-CDG earlier this year and was very underwhelmed by it, especially in comparison to it's half-sibling KLM, which I flew from AMS-IAH.
Dec 6, 2015, 11:41 am
#13
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: YVR - Vancouver, with most winter weekends in Whistler.
Programs: Aeroplan 35K, Alaska MVP, Marriott Titanium / Lifetime Platinum, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 4,609
Nice to see a Air France Trip report on the forum. MrsWT73 took this route last year for work, but her photo taking skills were not nice like yours. 
The sculpture at YVR is The Spirit of Haidi Gwaii. It's intended to represent aboriginal fishing heritage and has all the mythical characters that have to depend on each other in order to survive.
This sculpture was represented on the back of the Canadian $20 bill from 2004 - 2012.
The sculpture at YVR is The Spirit of Haidi Gwaii. It's intended to represent aboriginal fishing heritage and has all the mythical characters that have to depend on each other in order to survive.
This sculpture was represented on the back of the Canadian $20 bill from 2004 - 2012.
Dec 6, 2015, 5:43 pm
#14
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 2,344
OP, thanks for your report and photos.
I took AF J on this route in Jul and Aug and had the old 2-3-2 configuration. The seat wasn't great, but the service was outstanding, and the food & beverage selection was good as well. I was very pleasantly surprised, because I had poor experiences with AF J previously, but that was back in the late 90's.
I'll be flying this route again in a couple of weeks and won't count on getting the BEST seats. BTW, which day of the week did you fly on? I had read on here that BEST is deployed only on Mondays on this route...
I took AF J on this route in Jul and Aug and had the old 2-3-2 configuration. The seat wasn't great, but the service was outstanding, and the food & beverage selection was good as well. I was very pleasantly surprised, because I had poor experiences with AF J previously, but that was back in the late 90's.
I'll be flying this route again in a couple of weeks and won't count on getting the BEST seats. BTW, which day of the week did you fly on? I had read on here that BEST is deployed only on Mondays on this route...
Dec 7, 2015, 7:18 pm
#15
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: US Left Coast
Programs: DL, CX, UA
Posts: 4
Thanks for all the comments!
Thanks for the information. ^
I did not even notice!
Usually I avoid serving myself salads at the buffets.
Yes. Here is a shot of the two middle seats from where I was seated with the deployed partition:
I flew on a Thursday departure. From all the times I've read the thread concerning the new cabin, it seemed it was only being scheduled during the summer period for this route and only once a week. Before I booked the flight, I checked all dates from November and beyond and all showed the old layout. I assume a last minute aircraft switch landed me with the new seat. So I guess last minute switches can go both ways - the good and the bad. Best of luck to you.
I'm a big fan of Airport Art & was curious about the sculpture you photographed, with children climbing on it.
http://www.yvr.ca/en/about/art-archi...ida-Gwaii.aspx
http://www.yvr.ca/en/about/art-archi...ida-Gwaii.aspx
The sculpture at YVR is The Spirit of Haidi Gwaii. It's intended to represent aboriginal fishing heritage and has all the mythical characters that have to depend on each other in order to survive.
This sculpture was represented on the back of the Canadian $20 bill from 2004 - 2012.
This sculpture was represented on the back of the Canadian $20 bill from 2004 - 2012.
I did not even notice!
Usually I avoid serving myself salads at the buffets. Best of luck to you.