Air France Unveils New Business-Class Cabin for Airbus A330s
Air France is introducing a refreshed business-class product with its Airbus A330s. The carrier is beginning to offer a 2-2-2 layout and brighter, airy cabin — though each seat will not have direct aisle access.
In all, the new A330 business-class cabin features 36 lie-flat seats. When in its lie-flat position, each of the seats offer 78.74 inches of length — about 6'5" — and 22.48 inches of width.
According to Air France, the cabin was designed to combine comfort and elegance. Its bright interior is a far step above the old seats installed on the A330, which were dark in color. While the color of the seat is changing from a dark blue to a light grey, it'll maintain a similar white headrest.
The new A330 seats offer supreme privacy for all passengers — even though it's in a less-than-ideal 2-2-2 configuration. This is because of the retractable privacy panel.
As far as inflight entertainment, passengers in Air France's new A330 business class can expect 18.5-inch touchscreen systems. The interface can be operated either by touch or a handset.
Additionally, the A330 will offer inflight Wi-Fi, with the opportunity to purchase one of three passes:
- Message pass — send and receive messages throughout the flight for free
- Surf pass — browse the internet, read and send emails from 3 euro to 18 euro (6,000 miles)
- Stream pass — high-speed internet, ability to stream and download files for 30 euro (10,000 miles).
Onboard Wi-Fi is also available on Air France's Boeing 787s, and it's being installed on Air France's Boeing 777 fleet. The airline says that the entire fleet will be equipped with Wi-Fi by the end of 2020.
While inflight, passengers can expect a self-service bar area. While not the extent of a full-size bar a business-class passenger could expect to find on Emirates' A380 or Virgin Atlantic's A340, the option to serve yourself to snacks or drinks while mid-flight is a nice addition.
Service wise, Air France is offering hot towels for passengers. Additionally, business and premium economy passengers can expect amenity kits that celebrate the airline's 85th anniversary, outfitted with Clarins beauty products.
Air France will fly the refreshed A330s to Houston (IAH) for the 2018-2019 winter season (until March 30, 2019). Then, for the 2019 summer season, the new product will fly to Seattle (SEA), Chicago (ORD) and Dallas (DFW) until Oct. 26, 2019. The aircraft will also fly to Delhi (DEL), Bengaluru (BLR), Cotonou (COO), Lagos (LOS) and Niamey (NIM) for the summer season as well as Ouagadougou (OUA) and Accra (ACC) for both winter and summer seasons.
As of time of publication, the route between Paris (CDG) and Houston (IAH) is not yet showing the new seat map on both ExpertFlyer and on Air France's website.
The 15 A330s in Air France's fleet will be fully retrofitted by 2020. In total, the refreshment comes following a 140 million euro investment.
Monday's announcement of the new business-class cabin interior follows a similar announcement in September 2018 in which Air France unveiled what the refreshed premium economy and economy cabins would look like on the A330s.
*Correction 8:30am ET: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the refreshed cabin is in a 1-2-1 configuration. It is, however, a 2-2-2 configuration.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees