Review: Air France A350 – Business Class – Toronto – Paris

Foreword

On September 27, 2019, Air France received its first Airbus A350, first of 28 ordered.

Its name: « Toulouse. » It was followed in October by « Lyon. » A third will join the fleet by the end of the year, and three more in 2020.

For the moment, these aircraft are positioned on rather short flights to familiarize the crews: Abidjan, Bamako, Cairo… and Toronto. They will then take their passengers to longer destinations such as Seoul or Bangkok.

With an A350 on Toronto-Paris flight from October 27, 2019, I decided to burn some of my Flying Blue miles during the exceptional Flying Blue promotion of October to review it!

Our video review

Here is our video report of this Business class in this Air France A350:

Booking this flight

In October 2019, Flying Blue launched a Special Edition of its « Premium Awards ». For a few days, it was possible to book a flight from Toronto to Paris for only:

• 11,000 Flying Blue miles in Economy class
• 25,000 Flying Blue miles in Premium Economy class
• 32,000 Flying Blue miles in Business class, the option I chose.

For the same itinerary, it usually costs the double (and Aeroplan charges 55,000 miles for the same trip on Air Canada).

With American Express US cards in my wallet, I transferred Membership Rewards to Flying Blue, taking advantage of a 25% bonus conversion!

Thus, only 26,500 Membership Rewards have been used to book this flight!

American Express and Flying Blue in Canada?

In Canada, , Flying Blue is not a transfer partner of Membership Rewards from American Express, unlike in the United States.

It is astonishing given the large French diaspora in the country and the many flights offered by Air France and KLM from major Canadian cities.

As Skyteam transfer partners available, in addition to Delta Skymiles which has its usefulness for the North American continent, we have Alitalia MilleMiglia.

Suffice to say… unhelpful for flights to Europe and elsewhere around the world

American Express – Air France: Please offer your Canadian and French customers solutions to travel with their points and miles!

We believed it for a day in 2018:

Marriott Bonvoy to Flying Blue

Meanwhile, the only solution for Canadians to easily earn Flying Blue miles is by converting Marriott Bonvoy points at a rate of 3:1, and benefiting from the conversion promotion per 60,000 points transferred (5,000 miles bonus):

60,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points = 25,000 miles Flying Blue

My opinion on Air France’s Business Class – A350

Boarding

After a visit to the Air France KLM lounge at Toronto Airport, here I am at the boarding gate for this AF 351 flight to Paris Charles-De-Gaulle.

The Airbus A350, with its easily recognizable nose – as well as its « mask » has just arrived from Paris.

While the crew is on board, I am accompanied outside by Yolla – Duty Station Manager – for a unique view of this brand new aircraft:

I then take advantage of the few minutes that will be given to me to review the cabin.

Air France A350 Economy Cabin

Air France has chosen a classic 3-3-3 configuration for the 266 seats in its Economy cabin.

Note the large 11.6-inch touchscreens installed at each seat.

When travelling in Economy Class, I recommend a seat at the emergency exits row for the legroom they provide.

Air France A350 Premium Economy Cabin

The Premium Economy Cabin is insulated from the Economy Cabin by a partition and curtains.

There are 24 seats in the Premium Economy Cabin, divided into 2-4-2.

Unlike most of the other Air France aircraft configurations, these seats are not integrated into a shell. The seat reclines at 124 degrees and has a personal light.

The touchscreen here is 13.3 inches.

Air France A350 Business Cabin

Now, the Business Class of this Air France A350. 34 seats are there, divided into 1-2-1.

The seat can become a 2-meter long bed, and all have direct access to the corridor. It is appreciable considering that some airlines offer configurations on their Airbus A350 enclosing some passengers at the windows, as is the case with Lufthansa.

The 34 business class seats on the Air France A350 are divided into four different ways:

• Individual window seats: A – L (those offering the most privacy)
• Individual window seats but facing the aisle: C – J
• The central seats in the« honeymoon » position: E – F (perfect for couples)
• Aisle-facing central seats: D – H (in my opinion, the least satisfying)

Here are the 4 choices:

As I’m travelling alone, my choice naturally turned to a window seat. It will be the 6L.

Air France A350’s Business Class seat

Unlike Audrey, I have not yet had the opportunity to review the Business Class seat in the « Best » Configuration installed on some B777.

However, this seat is a significant leap forward for Air France (which still offers non-flat bed seats on some of its aircraft)!

Several storage spaces are available:

And what about shades and fabrics, chosen by Air France: the real « French Touch. »

At each seat you’ll find:

• A pillow
• Blanket
• Socks
• Slippers
• A hanger for your jacket

The windows are 30% larger than the previous generation aircraft, and we can see it! I like the « double curtains, » preferring this system to the one on the Boeing 787.

The tablet is large and disappears entirely under the screen when not used.

I switched the seat in bed mode with a surprise; there is a significant gap in the lumbar (hidden under the seat belt):

However, this one will not be inconvenient to sleep, even if a mattress pad would have been appreciated (as offered by other airlines like Turkish Airlines or United).

Note that it is possible to buckle your belt at the ventral level when you sleep.

Once lying down, the legroom is rather broad, and I won’t be disturbed at all during my sleep, even if I turn to the sides.

Note this removable separation to add privacy with the hallway:

The multimedia system

The screen offered in Business Class is significant: 18.5 inches. Here is the famous « milesopedia coaster test ».

Unfortunately for me, I was the only passenger to experience a malfunction on this one: a youthful error quickly addressed by the crew after a system reset (removing the screen from the seat!)

Aside from this inconvenience, the entertainment system perfectly met my expectations (more than 1,400 hours of entertainment are loaded!).

A noise reduction headphone is provided to Business Class passengers.

You can, of course, check the flight route, get information about your flight and your arrival airport. But being #avgeek at heart, my favourite feature will be the outdoor views thanks to 2 cameras!

Wi-Fi is available to all passengers:

• 0 euro for a « Message » pass (Messenger, iMessage, Whatsapp)
• 3 to 18 euros for a « Surf » pass (internet, emails…)
• 30 euros for a « Stream » pass (high speed for streaming and download)

For this night flight, the « Message » pass will suffice and works perfectly well! On the way back, for a day flight, I will test the « Stream » pass!

The Business Service

There is one area where Air France excels in Business class: its onboard service.

The crew members are smiling and caring for the comfort of all their passengers. For example, the Business cabin manager has presented himself to each passenger, calling them by the last name at the beginning and end of the flight to ensure that the service rendered has lived up to their expectations. And during the flight, I will be served with excellence by Cecile.

During boarding, champagne and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are served.

The welcome kit will be brought (and it is possible to choose from 4 categories: I naturally pick the « milesopedia blue »)!

All accessories are there:

• toothbrush/toothpaste
• earplugs
• Mask
• face cream
• shoehorn
• Pen
• Soft wipe for glasses

The evening menu will be presented. On the menu:

• Pan-fried scallops on truffled shiitake duxelle, duck shredded with tarragon, cabbage pickles with turmeric and yuzu marmalade
• Seasonal salad
• Beef stew with blueberry sauce, creamy quinoa with crunchy vegetables, zucchini and young carrots
• Hot chicken paté and foie gras
• Ravioli with portobello mushrooms with porcini sauce and parmesan
• Grilled salmon creamy lemon sauce, potatoes, broccoli and edamame beans
• Cheese
• Raspberry cheesecake, chocolate square, cherry financier

For take-off, the light will be dimmed, giving the cabin an interesting atmosphere!

Once the cruising altitude reached, dinner has been served.

I chose:

• Pan-fried scallops on truffled shiitake duxelle, duck shredded with tarragon, cabbage pickles with turmeric and yuzu marmalade
• Hot chicken paté and foie gras
• Cheese
• Raspberry cheesecake, chocolate square, cherry financier

As an aperitif, Gavottes (crepes stuffed with cheese) will be served.

Like Audrey during her Business Class review between Montreal and Paris, I am surprised to see the cheeses and desserts being brought at the same time as the starter!

Visually uninteresting in this photo, the main course will still be succulent.

One hour and a half after take-off, it’s time to go to bed mode and fall asleep for a few hours. The flight attendant will ask me if I want to be woken up for lunch: I say no.

On transatlantic flights, I usually prefer to have breakfast at the lounge to maximize my sleep time. Note our cruising speed of more than 1,100 kms/hour thanks to the winds!

However, I naturally woke up and so tested the breakfast. There, too, a no-fault service.

Shortly after, we will land on time in Paris Charles-De-Gaulle thanks to very favourable winds, despite a 45 minutes late departure.

Air France A350 Flight Deck

I had asked the flight attendant to visit the cockpit, which will be granted to me once the passengers are disembarked.

Always a great pleasure for a #avgeek like me to enter a cockpit. And I even had the chance to sit in the captain’s seat (pic taken by the captain)!

A big thank you to Bertrand for making this possible!

The arrival will be by bus, which I was hoping to be able to take some day pictures of this first Air France A350: « Toulouse »!

Conclusion

It is always a pleasure to travel on Air France: a great hard product with an outstanding soft product!

Air France is a sharp competitor against Air Canada on this strategic Toronto-Paris route. Let’s hope to see this aircraft land in Montreal one day! And above all, let’s hope for a partnership between American Express Canada and Air France Canada! 😉

Go further with Flying Blue

To maximize your Flying Blue Miles earning, check our complete Flying Blue program guide and our best credit cards to earn Flying Blue Miles in Canada ranking. And if a Miles purchase promotion is running, take advantage via our Flying Blue Miles purchase guide with Air France.