A pleasant surprise by AF
Feb 15, 2001 | 1:24 am
#1
Original Poster
Moderator: Flying Blue (Air France & KLM), France and TravelBuzz!
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Paris, France, AF F+ Rouge pour toujours, Flying Blue whatever, LH FTL, HHonors Gold, formerly proud SCC Executive, now IC Ambassador, BA down to nobody, Grand Voyageur Le Club
Posts: 12,512
A pleasant surprise by AF
AF FLIGHT 050 FROM CDG TO ORD - A340
Well, I had a pleasant surprise this week-end, flying from Paris to Chicago on a lowly peon L-fare, which made it a very enjoyable flight.
Check-in
For my saturday flights to the US, leaving around noon or 1:00 PM, I usually come early (2 1/2 hrs) in order to have lunch at the airport, as we are usually served lunch on board around 3:00 PM or 4:00 PM, which is quite late. Remember, I am French, and lunch is our main meal ...
Check-in was a breeze, as I am now Frequence Plus Rouge and can check-in at the Business counters which, in Terminal 2C, are centralized for all destinations. (Unfortunately, that is not the configuration in Terminal 2D, for Schengen countries; each destination has its own combination of l'Espace and Tempo counters, and check-in opens only 60mn at the utmost before the flight). Check-in at the individual Tempo counters, especially for Mexico, or at the Continental counters seemed to be quite long at that time.
I had an uneventful lunch in a very bland restaurant and then went to the AF lounge in Terminal 2C, which has different areas for the Club 2000 and FC passengers on one hand, and the Skyteam Elite Plus and Business passengers on the other hand. The lounge is quite large, but was very crowded at the time. The selection of wines and liquors was pleasant, but the Internet access was down on the available PCs.
So off to boarding which was done by Aerobus (mobile lounge), with two successive aerobuses, which meant boarding was done based on the time of arrival at the gate and not based on flight class or elite status.
I was already dreading a long flight in a cramped environment when I saw arriving a class of young high school students for an exchange program. Which meant the Tempo cabin would be even more crowded and noisy than usual ... I was morally preparing myself for the ordeal and presented my boarding pass to the FA on boarding the airplane, when I was suddenly stopped, along with another passenger and whisked off to the forward cabin and a business seat !
What a heavenly surprise from AF who usually never upgrades ANYONE ! So what should have been an ordeal suddenly became quite enjoyable.
Comfort: seat pitch is quite decent, as well as the recline and the headsets are very good.
Lunch: quite good in my opinion. Here is the summary:
- pre-take-off Heidsieck Monopole Gold Top Vintage 1995 with mixed nuts; very good, better than the non-vintage Veuve Clicquot, far better than the Nicolas Feuillate served in Tempo, although it is neither Krug or Roederer Cristal (well, this is not FC and I did have an L-fare ...)
Choice of Hors d'Oeuvre
- fillet of red mullet, tomato sauce with olive oil, sun-dried tomato and gourmet salad
- smoked breast of duck, goat cheese canap, julienned zucchini and tomatoes, gourmet salad
- foie gras de canard
I had the foie gras which was delightful and which I would have enjoyed if it had been served in any good Paris restaurant.
Choice of main courses
- pan-seared sirloin of lamb, sauted porcini mushrooms with herbs, potatoes au gratin, provencale-style tomato
- from Provence: monkfish and rockfish stew, saffron potatoes
- from Provence: today's special dish, avignon style lamb stew, served in a sauce enhanced by tapenade, mushrooms and orange zest, with basilic raviolis and nicoise style tomato with tarragon.
For its long-haul international flights, in all its classes of service, AF has special dishes from a French province, which changes every two months. After Savoie in November and December, it is now Provence until the end of February.
Disregarding all FT advice, I chose the fish which I also found extremely pleasant ...
Selection of cheese: Camembert, Comt, Rigotte, quite good
Choice of desserts
- chocolate szechuan pepper tart
- St tropez cake,
- Tarte Tatin
- sherbet with petits fours
- basket of fruit
As this was my second lunch, and although I am very "gourmand", I elected to take only a fine mango sherbet with petits fours.
Coffee and a selection of tea were then proposed; I took the Yunnan Imperial and finished the meal with a delicious pear Eau-de-Vie, instead of opting for more serious stuff such as the Armagnac XO, the Cognac XO or the Calvados Hors d'age.
The selection of wines was as follows:
- the very good Heidsieck Monopole Gold Top Vintage 1995 that I had before lunch
- a white Loire "Pouilly Fum Les Logres 1999 - Maison Guy Saget"
- a Rhone valley red "Chateauneuf du Pape Terre de Gallets 1997 - Maison Meffre"
and I actually took an excellent red wine from Bordeaux:
- "Moulis Cru Bourgeois 1993 Chateau la Closerie de Grand Poujeaux"
Needless to say that I chose to go to sleep after the meal, which I hadn't looked forward to doing in Tempo, and I just woke up before being served a small snack of cheese and fruit before the arrival in Chicago.
One special note for the FAs. I agree that they are gorgeous, whether they are seasoned white-haired veterans or very young and bright. But what I have also felt, whether in Business on long-haul flights or in discounted Tempo intra-European flights, is the fact that, taking into account the different classes of service, they have always had the special touch to make my flight enjoyable and memorable. (Please note that my speaking French helps, although the FAs always start addressing me in English, because I am of Asian descent, which I hate, and that I exclude the intra-France shuttle flights from my positive appreciation ...). On this flight, they were absolutely superb !
Altogether a most enjoyable flight, even for an AF partisan, which I am, unashamedly, but also apologetically for all the people who on this board have had very bad experiences with AF.
Some critical comments to follow in a later post.
[This message has been edited by JOUY31 (edited 02-18-2001).]
Well, I had a pleasant surprise this week-end, flying from Paris to Chicago on a lowly peon L-fare, which made it a very enjoyable flight.
Check-in
For my saturday flights to the US, leaving around noon or 1:00 PM, I usually come early (2 1/2 hrs) in order to have lunch at the airport, as we are usually served lunch on board around 3:00 PM or 4:00 PM, which is quite late. Remember, I am French, and lunch is our main meal ...
Check-in was a breeze, as I am now Frequence Plus Rouge and can check-in at the Business counters which, in Terminal 2C, are centralized for all destinations. (Unfortunately, that is not the configuration in Terminal 2D, for Schengen countries; each destination has its own combination of l'Espace and Tempo counters, and check-in opens only 60mn at the utmost before the flight). Check-in at the individual Tempo counters, especially for Mexico, or at the Continental counters seemed to be quite long at that time.
I had an uneventful lunch in a very bland restaurant and then went to the AF lounge in Terminal 2C, which has different areas for the Club 2000 and FC passengers on one hand, and the Skyteam Elite Plus and Business passengers on the other hand. The lounge is quite large, but was very crowded at the time. The selection of wines and liquors was pleasant, but the Internet access was down on the available PCs.
So off to boarding which was done by Aerobus (mobile lounge), with two successive aerobuses, which meant boarding was done based on the time of arrival at the gate and not based on flight class or elite status.
I was already dreading a long flight in a cramped environment when I saw arriving a class of young high school students for an exchange program. Which meant the Tempo cabin would be even more crowded and noisy than usual ... I was morally preparing myself for the ordeal and presented my boarding pass to the FA on boarding the airplane, when I was suddenly stopped, along with another passenger and whisked off to the forward cabin and a business seat !
What a heavenly surprise from AF who usually never upgrades ANYONE ! So what should have been an ordeal suddenly became quite enjoyable.
Comfort: seat pitch is quite decent, as well as the recline and the headsets are very good.
Lunch: quite good in my opinion. Here is the summary:
- pre-take-off Heidsieck Monopole Gold Top Vintage 1995 with mixed nuts; very good, better than the non-vintage Veuve Clicquot, far better than the Nicolas Feuillate served in Tempo, although it is neither Krug or Roederer Cristal (well, this is not FC and I did have an L-fare ...)
Choice of Hors d'Oeuvre
- fillet of red mullet, tomato sauce with olive oil, sun-dried tomato and gourmet salad
- smoked breast of duck, goat cheese canap, julienned zucchini and tomatoes, gourmet salad
- foie gras de canard
I had the foie gras which was delightful and which I would have enjoyed if it had been served in any good Paris restaurant.
Choice of main courses
- pan-seared sirloin of lamb, sauted porcini mushrooms with herbs, potatoes au gratin, provencale-style tomato
- from Provence: monkfish and rockfish stew, saffron potatoes
- from Provence: today's special dish, avignon style lamb stew, served in a sauce enhanced by tapenade, mushrooms and orange zest, with basilic raviolis and nicoise style tomato with tarragon.
For its long-haul international flights, in all its classes of service, AF has special dishes from a French province, which changes every two months. After Savoie in November and December, it is now Provence until the end of February.
Disregarding all FT advice, I chose the fish which I also found extremely pleasant ...
Selection of cheese: Camembert, Comt, Rigotte, quite good
Choice of desserts
- chocolate szechuan pepper tart
- St tropez cake,
- Tarte Tatin
- sherbet with petits fours
- basket of fruit
As this was my second lunch, and although I am very "gourmand", I elected to take only a fine mango sherbet with petits fours.
Coffee and a selection of tea were then proposed; I took the Yunnan Imperial and finished the meal with a delicious pear Eau-de-Vie, instead of opting for more serious stuff such as the Armagnac XO, the Cognac XO or the Calvados Hors d'age.
The selection of wines was as follows:
- the very good Heidsieck Monopole Gold Top Vintage 1995 that I had before lunch
- a white Loire "Pouilly Fum Les Logres 1999 - Maison Guy Saget"
- a Rhone valley red "Chateauneuf du Pape Terre de Gallets 1997 - Maison Meffre"
and I actually took an excellent red wine from Bordeaux:
- "Moulis Cru Bourgeois 1993 Chateau la Closerie de Grand Poujeaux"
Needless to say that I chose to go to sleep after the meal, which I hadn't looked forward to doing in Tempo, and I just woke up before being served a small snack of cheese and fruit before the arrival in Chicago.
One special note for the FAs. I agree that they are gorgeous, whether they are seasoned white-haired veterans or very young and bright. But what I have also felt, whether in Business on long-haul flights or in discounted Tempo intra-European flights, is the fact that, taking into account the different classes of service, they have always had the special touch to make my flight enjoyable and memorable. (Please note that my speaking French helps, although the FAs always start addressing me in English, because I am of Asian descent, which I hate, and that I exclude the intra-France shuttle flights from my positive appreciation ...). On this flight, they were absolutely superb !
Altogether a most enjoyable flight, even for an AF partisan, which I am, unashamedly, but also apologetically for all the people who on this board have had very bad experiences with AF.
Some critical comments to follow in a later post.
[This message has been edited by JOUY31 (edited 02-18-2001).]
Feb 15, 2001 | 8:53 am
#2
Original Poster
Moderator: Flying Blue (Air France & KLM), France and TravelBuzz!
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Paris, France, AF F+ Rouge pour toujours, Flying Blue whatever, LH FTL, HHonors Gold, formerly proud SCC Executive, now IC Ambassador, BA down to nobody, Grand Voyageur Le Club
Posts: 12,512
some critical comments to complement my report trip from CDG to ORD:
1/ boarding
In the last three months, my AF flights aboard A340s from CDG to SFO or ORD have always had boarding by aerobuses, which is not too good. I have noticed that several AF 747s as well as a Delta plane and a Continental plane had a gate. I am given to understand that it isn't possible to use neighboring gates at Terminal 2C when you have a large Jumbo Jet at one of them. Well, I do hope that the extensions projected for 2003 (creation of Terminal 2E) and 2004-2006 (new satellites) will allow all Skyteam airplanes to be boarded without going by bus or aerobus. I'll also check on my next AF flight to Los Angeles, this time on a 747.
2/ elite pre-boarding
Well this seems, at best, a fuzzy area, for which new practices are evolving. What I have gathered from my last intra-France, intra-European and North American trips:
- intra-France: there is no elite pre-boarding; on the contrary, non-elites are boarded first, and elite are boarded last, apparently in order to reduce the time they waste in the queue. I have experienced this on the first day of August, when most French people leave for their vacations and found it sensible.
- intra-European flights: I haven't seen any specific elite boarding, either on AF flights or on the OS flights. Only once have I seen the boarding style used for Intra-France flights.
- long-haul international flights: I haven't seen any specific elite boarding at CDG, either on my AF flights or my Delta flight. What's more, when boarding is done, alas, by aerobuses, I understand that choosing between the two aerobuses should be done not on the basis of elite status but rather on the basis of the time you arrive at the gate.
For return flights to CDG from SFO and ORD, I have always seen a specific boarding for l'Espace passengers, in which the Skyteam Elite and Elite Plus could participate. The latest documentation I have received from Skyteam specifies that Delta and Aeromexico have a specific boarding, with a pre-announcement, whereas Korean Air and AF allow Elite and Elite Plus passengers to board at their convenience (meaning with l'Espace passengers) , for long-haul international flights.
In ORD, Elite Plus boarding is even easier since the lounge gives direct access to the boarding ramp ...
3/ warm nuts
The nuts were not warmed, as many people on this board enjoy them.
4/ glasses for wine and Champagne
AF uses the same type of glasses for all beverages in its l'Espace classes. I quite agree that having specific types of glasses for wines originating from different regions would be an improvement.
[This message has been edited by JOUY31 (edited 02-17-2001).]
1/ boarding
In the last three months, my AF flights aboard A340s from CDG to SFO or ORD have always had boarding by aerobuses, which is not too good. I have noticed that several AF 747s as well as a Delta plane and a Continental plane had a gate. I am given to understand that it isn't possible to use neighboring gates at Terminal 2C when you have a large Jumbo Jet at one of them. Well, I do hope that the extensions projected for 2003 (creation of Terminal 2E) and 2004-2006 (new satellites) will allow all Skyteam airplanes to be boarded without going by bus or aerobus. I'll also check on my next AF flight to Los Angeles, this time on a 747.
2/ elite pre-boarding
Well this seems, at best, a fuzzy area, for which new practices are evolving. What I have gathered from my last intra-France, intra-European and North American trips:
- intra-France: there is no elite pre-boarding; on the contrary, non-elites are boarded first, and elite are boarded last, apparently in order to reduce the time they waste in the queue. I have experienced this on the first day of August, when most French people leave for their vacations and found it sensible.
- intra-European flights: I haven't seen any specific elite boarding, either on AF flights or on the OS flights. Only once have I seen the boarding style used for Intra-France flights.
- long-haul international flights: I haven't seen any specific elite boarding at CDG, either on my AF flights or my Delta flight. What's more, when boarding is done, alas, by aerobuses, I understand that choosing between the two aerobuses should be done not on the basis of elite status but rather on the basis of the time you arrive at the gate.
For return flights to CDG from SFO and ORD, I have always seen a specific boarding for l'Espace passengers, in which the Skyteam Elite and Elite Plus could participate. The latest documentation I have received from Skyteam specifies that Delta and Aeromexico have a specific boarding, with a pre-announcement, whereas Korean Air and AF allow Elite and Elite Plus passengers to board at their convenience (meaning with l'Espace passengers) , for long-haul international flights.
In ORD, Elite Plus boarding is even easier since the lounge gives direct access to the boarding ramp ...
3/ warm nuts
The nuts were not warmed, as many people on this board enjoy them.
4/ glasses for wine and Champagne
AF uses the same type of glasses for all beverages in its l'Espace classes. I quite agree that having specific types of glasses for wines originating from different regions would be an improvement.
[This message has been edited by JOUY31 (edited 02-17-2001).]
Feb 15, 2001 | 5:58 pm
#3
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Burlingame, CA
Programs: TK Miles & Smiles, AF Flying Blue, AA Advantage, AS Mileage Plan
Posts: 2,160
Excellent report. I have yet to experience L'Espace Premiere or Affaires but I have the feeling that it is top notch. I signed up for Frequence Plus and hopefully the miles will be accumulating. My present FF program might cease to exist by next year (US AIRWAYS SILVER PREF.) so I have been contemplating in switching to a new one (AA Advantage or CONTINENTAL ONE PASS.)
I always enjoy flying Air France just because in my experience the flight crew tend to be polite and professional. On my last flight from MAD to CDG a FA saw me playing w/my camera and offered to take me a picture (nice gesture).
Did you find the wine menu card larger than the food one? This is a strange question but a couple of years ago I got my hands into an AF Business class menu and I was surprised to find that the whole menu was dedicated to wine and only the food part was featured as an insert.
Anyways, I am glad that you were pleasantly surprised and enjoyed your trip.
I always enjoy flying Air France just because in my experience the flight crew tend to be polite and professional. On my last flight from MAD to CDG a FA saw me playing w/my camera and offered to take me a picture (nice gesture).
Did you find the wine menu card larger than the food one? This is a strange question but a couple of years ago I got my hands into an AF Business class menu and I was surprised to find that the whole menu was dedicated to wine and only the food part was featured as an insert.
Anyways, I am glad that you were pleasantly surprised and enjoyed your trip.
Feb 17, 2001 | 12:10 pm
#4
Original Poster
Moderator: Flying Blue (Air France & KLM), France and TravelBuzz!
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Paris, France, AF F+ Rouge pour toujours, Flying Blue whatever, LH FTL, HHonors Gold, formerly proud SCC Executive, now IC Ambassador, BA down to nobody, Grand Voyageur Le Club
Posts: 12,512
Thanks, aw
Actually, the menu had 2 pages (1 in French and 1 in English) devoted to the food part, plus an one page insert for the suggestion of the day. And the wine and beverage list accounted for 3 pages.
I also enjoyed reading your trip report to Madrid and hope you will experience L'espace and enjoy it as I have.
Actually, the menu had 2 pages (1 in French and 1 in English) devoted to the food part, plus an one page insert for the suggestion of the day. And the wine and beverage list accounted for 3 pages.
I also enjoyed reading your trip report to Madrid and hope you will experience L'espace and enjoy it as I have.