Air France reveals new Business-class seats that lie flat and have sliding doors
Air France is making extraordinary upgrades to their business class seats and preparing to reveal them to passengers. The airline unveiled the renovations with an exclusive first look at the brand-new seating during the Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023 in Hamburg, Germany.
The press announcement regarding the reveal detailed the new design of the seats.
“The seats feature a sliding door that allows passengers to create a totally private space, and the seat transforms into a full-flat bed measuring nearly two meters in length.”
The new design also includes a central panel that can be lowered to create a private space for passengers flying together.
The upgraded seats were designed exclusively for Air France in keeping with their efforts to increase the standard in cabin comfort across the aviation industry. The new design will be available on the new Airbus A350s that will become part of the carrier’s long-haul fleet in 2025. The Airbus A350 will see renovations to all of the travel classes, including 48 Business seats, 32 Premium Economy seats and 212 Economy seats.
However, if you can’t wait until 2025, the airline is slowly rolling out its new business-class cabins in its Boeing 777-300s. The first 12 aircraft with the luxurious seats fly from New York–JFK to Paris. AFAR gave an extensive first-look at the new cabins.
Air France based the design of the 48 spacious Business seats on the “Three Fs” concept:
Full Flat: the seat transforms into a 53 cm wide and almost 2 meters long, 180-degree, 6.5-feet-long, lie-flat bed.
Full Access: providing all passengers with direct access to the aisle.
Full Privacy: ensuring optimal seclusion. A new sliding door allows passengers to create an enclosed space, out of sight from the other passengers in the cabin.
Technology Upgrades:
Each seat comes equipped with a 7.3-inch, 4K high-definition, anti-glare screen, noise-reducing headphones, and Bluetooth connection so guests can use their own headphones if they’d prefer. A fold-out table, cubby space, and a counter for storing personal items also exist, doubling as a wireless charging station.
Interior Upgrades
Window seats will now feature automated shades. Do Not Disturb buttons will turn a light on the outside of the pod from green to red, so flight attendants know you’d prefer to be left alone.
Service and amenities
The cabin’s menu was carefully curated by a collection of more than a dozen French chefs, including some from Michelin-starred restaurants.
Indulgent entrées including beef filet with port sauce and carrots, duck lasagna with blackcurrant sauce, basil ratatouille cake, salmon with vegetable fondue, and risotto with artichokes and mushrooms, will be available during various flights.
Famed sommelier Paolo Basso was appointed to revise the wine and champagne list to complement the meals.
Business-class travelers will be comfortable on the flight with a blanket, pillow, and a Clarin’s-branded amenity kit containing an eye mask, dental kit, earplugs, socks, lip balm, and lotion. Premiere services for Business-class flyers are also available at the Air France lounge at JFK. Guests can enjoy a complimentary facial before their flight courtesy of Clarin’s Spa.
Martie Bowser is a journalist and public relations professional in Charlotte, NC. She enjoys amplifying the voices of POC and women that fill a void within their community. Her favorite things to cover include “person of interest” pieces, small business highlights, pop culture commentary, entertainment features, and everything about Beyoncé. Her bylines can be found in Blavity, Black Excellence, Signature Bride, Black Wall Street Times, and HipHop Weekly. Martie can be reached via email at martiebowser@detourxp.com.
This story was originally published June 26, 2023 at 1:04 PM with the headline "Air France reveals new Business-class seats that lie flat and have sliding doors."