Summary
- Air France celebrates the delivery of its twenty first Airbus A350, featuring recent premium seats and an updated cabin configuration.
- The inaugural flight of the brand new A350 flew from Paris to Vancouver, with a delay as a result of technical issues.
- The brand new business class seats offer passengers full privacy with a sliding door. The updated configuration accommodates fewer passengers but offers a more premium product.
Air France celebrated the delivery of its twenty first Airbus A350 earlier this week. This latest aircraft is the primary to incorporate the carrier’s recent long-haul business class product, making it exciting for travelers globally.
The aircraft arrives because the carrier announced last month that it will introduce a brand new interior configuration for its incoming A350s. For its first revenue flight, Air France deployed the plane to Canada.
Inaugural flight
The aircraft, registered as F-HUVA and named “Aix-en-Provence,” was ferried to Paris to officially join Air France’s fleet on July 18th. In keeping with data from Flightradar24.com, the A350-900 departed Toulouse–Blagnac Airport as AF7409 at 18:00 and landed at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) at 19:29. On Wednesday, the widebody jet operated its first flight with passengers as AF374 to Vancouver, Canada.
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Easy Flying
The flight was scheduled to depart CDG at 10:15, but F-HUVA didn’t leave the gate until around 10:50 and was officially airborne at 11:12. The airplane flew north, passing over Iceland, Greenland, and eventually entering Canada. After an almost 10-hour journey, the jet landed at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) at 11:25.
Two hours later, F-HUVA was scheduled to depart YVR to return to Paris as AF379, but it surely was significantly delayed, with its departure time updated to 17:02. Air France said the delay was
Brand recent plane, brand recent seats
Last month, the airline revealed its recent and exclusive business class seat that debuted on F-HUVA and will likely be installed on incoming A350s. Designed for Air France, the versatile seat reclines fully right into a bed, allowing passengers on long-haul flights to increase their legs and get some rest. Other features include full access to inflight entertainment (IFE) with a 20-inch touchscreen, Bluetooth connectivity, and a tablet that controls the seat’s functions. Plus, a sliding door offers passengers full privacy.
Photo: Air France
Together with the brand new seat is an updated configuration that accommodates 292 passengers. In keeping with AeroLopa, 48 of the brand new exclusive seats are situated in business class in a 1-2-1 format.
In premium economy, 32 seats are placed in a 2-4-2 configuration, featuring a pitch of 37 inches and a width of 19 inches, in keeping with One Mile At A Time. The premium economy seats also offer 121 degrees of reclining and are equipped with USB-A and USB-C charging ports. Passengers can enjoy IFE through a 4K high-definition seatback screen, sized about 13.3 inches, and Bluetooth connectivity. The seats are barely different from the version one seats, reminiscent of redesigned seat cushions and a brand new headrest.
Economy class consists of 212 seats in a 3-3-3 layout. The seats, with 31 inches of pitch and 18 inches of width, also recline as much as 119 degrees. Just like premium economy, 13-inch seatback monitors are built into the seats with Bluetooth connectivity and USB ports. These seats also feature a holder for smartphones or tablets, which is a change from the previous version, in keeping with One Mile At A Time.
Less, but more premium
The updated cabin configuration accommodates fewer passengers than Air France’s barely older A350s already in service. The primary 20 aircraft seats 324 passengers, with 34 seats in business class, 24 in premium economy, and 266 in economy. Meanwhile, F-HUVA and subsequent A350s will feature 48 business class seats, 32 in premium economy, and only 202 in economy, per One Mile At A Time.
Considering the capability reduction within the newer cabin configuration, more premium seats are offered. In comparison with the previous layout, the brand new cabin has 14 more seats in business class and eight more in premium economy.
With F-HUVA joining Air France officially, the airline now operates 21 A350-900s. 20 more are on order, with deliveries expected by 2025.