Air France is trying.
While Arabian Gulf carriers have become the global flag-bearers for airline luxury, their rivals are nevertheless working to keep close.
With that in mind, Air France has freshened up its business class. Late last month, Dubai became the third destination to receive this service, after New York and Singapore.
The main thing is that the leather seats in business class now lie fully flat. Because if you don’t have lie-flat seats, you’re not in the game nowadays, at least for travellers from the Gulf.
The entertainment has also been improved. Movies on offer ranged from Birdman (the good) to Anger Management (the bad) to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (the ugly).
Two smart touches: one, you can watch your show while keeping tabs on the flight map on a smaller inset screen; two, the headphones have their own little cupboard, which is handy for storing the detritus that can accumulate during a flight.
I was surprised, though, that Wi-Fi was not available.
“Wi-Fi on the plane?” I asked a passing stewardess. “No,” she said, and seemed a tad incredulous at the question.
The airline says it is running a pilot project to test Wi-Fi.
My trip was better on the return leg from Paris than on the outbound leg from Dubai.
The lounge in Dubai, with about 80 seats, is comfortable but basic. The airline says the SkyTeam alliance of which it is a member will be opening a new Dubai business lounge this year.
On the other hand, the Air France lounges at its Charles de Gaulle base in Paris are havens. The new one at Terminal 2, Gate M covers 3,500 square metres and has hot food, showers, a view of the tarmac through big windows and a relaxing atmosphere, thanks in part to the parkland decor. The space is divided up in such a way that noises are muffled.
As with the lounges, the food served on the two legs of my trip was night and day.
The dinner prepared by French palates was much more tasty than the breakfast assembled at the other end.
Check-in and on-board service were crisp and friendly.
Q&A
What is the airline’s Dubai-Paris schedule?
On the outbound leg, leaving Dubai at 1.15am and landing at Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 5.50am; for the return, leaving Charles de Gaulle at 1.30pm and landing in Dubai at 11.05pm. The new business class is available on only five of the seven weekly flights; Air France says it expects to reach seven of seven later this year.
And price?
Via the airline, round-trip prices start at Dh15,720 all included. On Expedia, the price for a weekday booking was US$4,262 (Dh15,654) all included.
The plane?
A Boeing 777-300ER both ways.
What was in the amenity kit?
It contained a full-sized toothbrush, toothpaste (19ml), earplugs, comb, shoehorn, skin cream, lip balm, mouthwash and padded sleep mask. Shaving kit and a pen were available upon request.
What was on offer for the meals?
On the flight out of Dubai, the main meal was a breakfast before landing. Main course options for the breakfast were mixed grill, veggie tortilla (so-so) and crepes. On the flight out of Paris, the choices for dinner were more interesting: veal, guinea hen, cod with black rice (very good) and mushroom risotto. The cod dish was credited to the French chef Anne-Sophie Pic, whose Maison Pic in south-east France has three Michelin stars.
rmckenzie@thenational.ae
* The writer was a guest of Air France.
