Whaleing home: AF LAX-CDG-TLV + Paris layover

Background:
Choosing KLM for the MD11 gave me the chance to fly A380 for the first time, with Air France from LAX to CDG. As I wasn't in Paris since Chirac was president (on his first term    ), I choose the late night flight to TLV what gave me few hours in the French capitol.

After landing in LAX from SEA, I spent just 48 hours in LA as I am not a big fan of the city. I slept in Santa Monica as I didn't want to be too far from the airport and I like the beach area better than the city itself. I took a bet and decided not to rent a car in LA and to relay on public transport. I must say it worked better than expected, it's not London or Hong Kong, but LA has made a big progress in the past few years. I spent the first evening in Santa Monica:








The next day, I took the R10 bus downtown, it took 35 minutes (on a Saturday), had breakfast at the market and walked around:






Next was the mandatory tourist trap in Hollywood:








I took the surprisingly good subway from Down town to Hollywood and back, and the Tram to the next stop – California Science center, to see the space shuttle Endeavour:












Later on, I took the 733 bus to Venice beach, for an evening weekend walk. It worked fine, but I understood who is using LA's public transport as I was the only non-spanish speaker on the bus:






Even fast food is great over there:


Next day, my last in the US, started with last walk on the Pacific beach:






Breakfast:


Afterwards, got back to my hotel to take my luggage, had a shower than started the long journey home for my 15:40 departure. The stop for number 3 bus to the airport ($1) was just around the corner:




Heading to LAX, there was one mandatory stop for lunch, a place I couldn't leave LA without visiting, the world famous in N out burger right outside the airport, so I got off the bus 2 stops before the airport. As it was a Sunday, the place was busy, yet I was lucky to have the table with the best view of landing airplanes, with no less than 3 A380s landed while I was there – SQ, BA & AF – the bird that will take me to Paris:


LH B748:


Singapore A388:




BA A388:


Takeoffs actions:

Well, the view was better than the food:


The hill next to the restaurant was also busy, with some people carrying luggage, therefore coming to or from flights:


I could have stayed there all day long, but I had a plane to catch. As it was a nice day I walked for 15 minutes to Terminal 1 and there hopped on the (hot and busy) shuttle bus to TBIT.

External view:


There was no wait for check in, and before I noticed I was given one boarding pass for both flights, LAX-CDG with my pre-booked 92A, and CDG-TLV for 17B. I immediately asked the agent if he could change my seat to a window one, he looked a moment at the computer and said that the flight is very full. I answered that now it's more than 24 hours before takeoff, no way that all seats already booked (as AF doesn't allow to choose free seats while booking and online check in start just a day before the flight). I guess he had no answer to this, changed my seat to 17A but said that in Paris they may change my seat. Good enough for me. Check in hall:


Boarding pass:


Next stop was security, which was long and hot in a hall that was still under construction (about 30 minutes to pass). Finally, I was at the airside of the newly renovated TBIT:




That place is A380 heaven! There were no less than 6 A380s at the gates – KE, BA, SQ, EK, AF & QF. Add LH B748 and TN A343 and you got a great view of big birds to watch at. Very rare airline for me:


I walked around till boarding time, and when I got to my gate I saw for the first time how crowded it may get when you board 500+ passengers:






Even though there were many people, the process itself was pretty fast. I used the time to take some pics of my huge bird – what can I say, I'm not a whale fan but it is truly impressive piece of machinery. Next to me there were some other people taking pictures of the plane – another thumbs up for airbus, as creating an excitement over an airplane flying since 2007 is an achievement for itself.


Seat map:


Going up:






Boarding from upper deck air bridge was also first time for me. I was very excited and it showed. I wanted to take few pics before takeoff as I wasn't sure I'll be able to walk outside UDYCL after takeoff, so I asked an FA if I can look around. He called the purser who, gladly, showed me around, with his only request was to photograph facing forward and not backwards in order not to harm passengers privacy.

The seating area in front of JCL:


Front stairs:


First class:




Business class:


Premium economy:



Rare stairs:




Main cabin YCL – very wide cabin! No wonder EK wants to shove another seat there:


In my seat – a nice surprise was the very extra elbow room with more storage space on upper deck seats – fantastic advantage for economy class passengers over other airplanes:



Flight: AF65, October 19-20 2014.
LAX-CDG
Airbus A380-800 F-HPJC (built 2010, cn43)
SDT/SAT: 15:40/11:25
ADT/AAT: 15:50/11:30

Airborne time: 10:08
Gate to Gate time: 10:40 (scheduled 10:45)

We pushbacked 10 minutes late, and departed from runway 24L. Taxing to runway we passed by WN73G, man how small it looked from the UD of this whale! Taxing:


And off we go – takeoff was less powerful than I thought it would be.


About in hour into the flight service began. Snack and drinks – I was offered champagne without even asking. We are on French territory after all :


Dinner was, well, disgusting. I got pasta which was blend, sticky and way too greasy:






Crusing somewhere over Nevada:


Passenger shaming!


After trays cleared it was pretty dark outside (as we departed in the afternoon and flew eastbound) and mood lighting was doing its thing putting the cabin into sleep mode:




Later on, I was surprised to see that the rare stairs stayed open during the flight, making it possible for YCL passenger to walk up and down a staircase during the flight so as to walk almost the entire lower deck of the plane, good for starching legs on long flight. Yet, I was the only one who walked between the floors.

The screen had many entertainment options. I was watching some American TV (family guy, modern family, the big bang theory) and somewhere over Canada I fell sleep. When I woke up we were already over Britain with breakfast waiting on my table, again very greasy entrée:


Almost there:


Descending into CDG:


Another A380 advantage:




We landed on 26L, and taxied to gate M24, AF A380s home area:


Passengers disembarked while I was waiting so I can get front view pics of the classes on the upper deck. YCL – you can see the FA who was in charge for out area, who gave us fantastic service, kind and professional, during the flight:


Premium economy:


Business class:


Those huge JCL cabins on the A380 has disadvantage in my opinion, as they seat many passengers making felling on check in, lounges, boarding and flying itself a bit unrefined, common, with masses of people flying on JCL in each airplane. I would, for example, add a bulkhead in this cabin, so I wouldn't look so big. This photo shows only half of JCL seats on the plane! Disembarking:


How small a 747 looks now!


[Edited 2015-01-21 12:07:31]

Still high from my A380 experience, the infamous CDG handling put me back on the ground. After disembarking, all 500+ passengers were forced to take in internal train with 2 stops just to make it to the main terminal (2E). I passed baggage claim as my bag was going straight to TLV, and after 15 more minutes at passport control I was at the landside.


I wanted to get to the city, therefore walked to the nearby RER station. After failing to use the automatic machine, another passenger told me that it only accepts French issued credit cards and coins. Who the hell lands with 19.5 Euros in coins?! I walked to the ticket office, were there was a long line of passengers and just 3 counters open (on a Monday morning), passengers who just want to do the impossible – to buy a train ticket to the city centre in one of Europe's largest airports:


Finally, I got to the train station more than 1.5 hours after landing:


Lucky Paris is to beautiful to make up for it. I didn't have much time, so I just saw the highlights of the city. I disembarked the train on Notre-dame, and walked all the way to Arc de triumph, followed by the Eiffel tower and la defense. I'll let the pictures do the talking:










My first good coffee in 3 weeks:






View of up there:















I used the always classic metro to move around:


My last stop for this trip was la defense:


Now it's really time to go home. The way back to CDG was nerve raking! I walked down to the metro station at la defense at 20:20, for my 23:30 departure. I boarded the number 1 metro line in order to change to the RER line 2 in Chatelet station. While we were driving, there was an announcement, in French of course, with the name 'chatelet' in it. I had no idea what it was saying (they do stop? They do not stop?) and no one seating next to me spoke English. Looking at the map I noticed that the next station is just 3 blocks away, so I can walk it, but luckily it did stop at the station.

In chatelet, I walked to the right platform and boarded that train that was waiting at the station. All signs were in French, yet no hard to understand what "Aéroport Charles de Gaulle" means. I boarded the RER and nothing, it wasn't moving. Again, there was an announcement in French and again, the 2 women seated next to me didn't understand English (and yes, I asked them if they speak English in French!).

Still nothing at 21:00, and by 21:10 I decided that if the train doesn't move in 5 minutes, I will go up to catch a taxi. At 21:15 sharp it started moving, painfully slow. On Gate du Nord station some passengers boarded, and this time there was a young woman how did spoke some English. I asked her what is going on, and she said that there was an accident somewhere on the tracks, but the train is going to the airport. On the train, during the endless wait in Chatelet:


The train was going no faster than 30 km/h, and instead of going straight to the airport it stopped at all stations on the way. Long story short, I was at the airport station at 22:05, no less than 1:45 hours since going to the metro at la defense, thumbs down for this. It's not cheap either (9.75 Euros one way). Many passengers were running once the train stopped as they were late for their flights. CDG FIDS:


This time the airport was more efficient, and since I didn't have to check in I was at the airside within 20 minutes. 2E terminal, looking good (as long as the roof stays on, of course):


Internet access tariff:


Gate:




Aviation-wise, nothing to see that evening, only Air France 777s all over. My ride:




Flight AF1320, October 20th-21st 2014
CDG-TLV
Airbus A320-200 F-GKXO
SDT/SAT: 23:30/05:00
ADT/AAT: 23:49/05:08

Gate to Gate time: 4 hours 19 minutes (airborne 3:43)

Only 2 business class passengers, all the rest were YCL, with load of almost 100%. Boarding – one guy really like me photographing as it seems:


My row:




Legroom was terrible. I know that AF's A320 usually fly 1.5-2 hours flights out of Paris, but on 4 hours ride to TLV it was simply below the unacceptable level. With not much place to walk around in an A320, seating in this seat was torture, and not something I expected from a premium airline like Air France:



I sat in my seat, next to me there was a 14 years old teenager, his ~10 years old sister on the aisle seat, with their mother, a baby and another sister (about 6 or 7) on the other side of the aisle. He was pretty intelligent for 14 years old, and we talked a bit about aviation during boarding and taxi. Window view:


Pushbacked 19 minutes late, then made a long taxi to runway 27L and departed. Don't ask me why, but the boy's mother was I guess freaked out that I was talking to her son (I'm 29 years old) and almost immediately after takeoff she asked him to switch seats with her. So on those cramped 3 seats there was now me, she with a baby on her arms in the middle and her daughter on the aisle – while on the other side 2 kids aged 14 and 7 had 3 seats for themselves.

At first I wanted to say something to her (about her twisted mind that if I am paying attention to a teenager I am probably planning to harm him) but decided to not to embarrass her in front of her children. Well. There was a drinks round (I asked for wine hopping it will help me sleep), that was followed by this meal:


There was nothing wrong with the food, but on a flight departing so late I think there need to be quick drinks and snack/sandwich round and that’s it. Why? Because first the drinks round, then food distributing, then taking the trays away, add to that the duty free round and you get that out of 4 hours flight, on 3 of those the lights were on with crews working in the single aisle, instead of just to let passengers sleep. Cabin view from my seat:


Now that was one crappy flight. I was stuck in my tiny seat, the baby next to me wasn't crying but kept touching me and pulling my shirt while her mother holding her was asleep. Entertainment was something for kids, my phone's buttery was empty, I was tired and since last time I had a flat bad and a shower was in Los Angeles, I really wanted this damn thing to land already.

Finally, I saw the lights of the Israeli coast and we landed on runway 12. Taxing to gate:




My bag made the long way to Tel Aviv, and with my father waiting for me outside I drove home and slept for 13 hours strait. Baggage claim:


Conclusion:
I need to divide airline from airplane for this one. The A388 is amazing, unlike any other. It feels like flying something different, something you never flew before, like flying widebody for the first time. The extra space and storage is great, seats are wide, you can walk a mile while flying – no wonder passengers like it so much.

Air France… that is a different story. Service was indeed very good in the first flight, but that is it. Legroom was less then KLM on long haul flight, and simply unacceptable on the short haul flight. Really, it was like 4 hours in Air Anatolia seats. None of the meals I had was good, and entertainment was also nothing to write home about, yet indeed the LAX-CDG flight was way better than the CDG-TLV one. Inflight magazine and safety cards:


With Air France YCL product is not something I will try again, mainly because of the legroom, and with JCL offering "European business class" seats – YCL with empty middle one, I do not see a reason to fly Air France again. El Al offer way better product on both classes of flights to CDG, while airlines like Arkia, Transavia, EasyJet and Air Mediterranee offer flights for price which is way lower than Air France. The A380 was the reason for booking this airline, and apart from that I do not see myself flying with them again.

Thank you for reading, comments and questions are always welcome. Jonathan

Please take a look at my other trip reports: Northwest? Southwest! ATL-PHX-SEA-OAK-LAX On WN (by EL-AL Dec 27 2014 in Trip Reports) Farewell AirTran: FL54 DCA-ATL / B717-200 (by EL-AL Dec 20 2014 in Trip Reports) Horror Express: US Airways YYZ-PHL-MDT / CRJ2&DH8A (by EL-AL Nov 14 2014 in Trip Reports) Mission MD-11: TLV-AMS-YYZ On KLM + Crown Lounge (by EL-AL Oct 28 2014 in Trip Reports) Russian Duel: SVO-AER-VKO By Aeroflot & Transaero (by EL-AL Jun 10 2014 in Trip Reports) Transformation In Transaero? UN320/311 TLV-VKO-TLV (by EL-AL Jun 6 2014 in Trip Reports) UP And Away! El Al's LCC Inaugural Flight TLV-BUD (by EL-AL Apr 16 2014 in Trip Reports) Euroclass To Mideast: LH686 FRA-TLV Business Class (by EL-AL Jul 17 2013 in Trip Reports) Lufthansa B748 TLV-FRA Demonstration Flight In JCL (by EL-AL Jun 25 2013 in Trip Reports) Trying Israir's New Fleet On A Hop To Jordan (by EL-AL Feb 22 2013 in Trip Reports) Small Island, Small Airline: Bluebird TLV-KGS-TLV (by el-al Sep 25 2012 in Trip Reports) Olympic Air TLV-ATH-TLV + Visit To Hellinikon (by EL-AL Apr 9 2012 in Trip Reports) Chasing The Sun: Arkia B757-300 TLV-ETH (by EL-AL Feb 8 2012 in Trip Reports) A Russian Novel: Transaero TLV-DME-YYZ & Back (by EL-AL Nov 8 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 9/9: El Al LY082 BKK-TLV / B763 (by EL-AL Jul 20 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 8/9: SriLankan HKG-BKK – Perfect! (by EL-AL Jun 29 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 7/9: China Southern CZ3410 KMG-CAN (by EL-AL Jun 18 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 6/9: Vietnam Airlines VN240 HUI-HAN (by EL-AL Jun 18 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 5/9: Jetstar Pacific SGN-DAD (by EL-AL May 28 2011 in Trip Reports) El Al Independence Day Flyover 2011 (by EL-AL May 12 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 3/9: Lao Airlines VTE-PKZ+LPQ & LXG (by EL-AL May 9 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 2/9: Orient Thai DMK-CEI / MD-82 (by EL-AL May 2 2011 in Trip Reports) Indochina Trip 1/9: El Al B744 TLV-BKK + LY Lounge (by EL-AL Apr 24 2011 in Trip Reports) Flying The Box: Ayit Shorts 360 SDV-RPN-SDV (by el-al Oct 10 2010 in Trip Reports) Nightmares And Thefts: Air Malta TLV-MLA-TLV (by EL-AL Oct 22 2010 in Trip Reports) EL-AL Inaugural Domestic Flight 1.8.2010 TLV-ETH (by EL-AL Aug 2 2010 in Trip Reports) 2 Countries, 1 Dollar: TLV-LCA-TLV Arkia E195+B753 (by EL-AL Jun 3 2010 in Trip Reports) Photographed Trip Report To Northern Cyprus (by EL-AL Jun 3 2010 in Non Aviation) Inside Israel: SDV-ETH-TLV; Israir & Arkia (+pics) (by EL-AL May 19 2010 in Trip Reports) Special TR: Preparations For El Al Ind.day Flyover (by EL-AL Apr 20 2010 in Trip Reports) LCC In Spain: TLV-BCN-SVQ-REU With UX, VY & FR (by EL-AL Apr 18 2010 in Trip Reports) Y Viva Espana! TLV-BCN-TLV; EL-AL 'basic' (+ Pics) (by EL-AL Jan 29 2010 in Trip Reports) EL-AL At It's Best: TLV-MXP, FCO-TLV (+pics) (by EL-AL Oct 12 2009 in Trip Reports) First Sun D'or Pax TR TLV-BOJ (new Link To Pics) (by EL-AL Sep 12 2009 in Trip Reports)

[Edited 2015-01-21 12:20:19]

Thank you for your report, and for your fantastic photos of Paris.

Oooh. The A320 from Paris to Tel Aviv does not look comfortable in business or economy!

Nice report on your travels with AF. Great photos of being around Los Angeles and in Paris! My brother used to live in Venice, and it was always fun to visit him and do lots of fun things around there. Great place!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Dinner was, well, disgusting. I got pasta which was blend, sticky and way too greasy:

Sorry to hear the food was so poor. AF catering always in the past has looked pretty good, but the meal you took a picture of does look pretty meager and not great for a long-haul flight like this. Presentation seems a bit sloppy too; in the past their trays always have looked much more full of stuff?

All best,

Matthew (767747)

The meals on long haul seem to have been cut since 5 years ago. They were bigger and very good.

I had a sandwich to Geneva from Paris also about 5 years ago. Thank God I opened it. Half of the ham was white fat.

Ouch! That seating arrangement on the flight to TLV looks cramped. Last week on my flight to TLV on LX they still operated an A340-300 on the ZRH-TLV route but I think they will (or have changed it already) rather soon because on my upcoming flights to TLV of early February it is nothing than a A320 or A321 scheduled for the route.
It was a pleasure reading your reports!

Hey Jonathan,

Thanks for the good read. AF performing as expected here but not good to see such a bad legroom on what looks like an older configed A320. A full flight of course doesn’t help in this aspect  Good to see you liked the A380 - it is a really monstrous plane and very quiet inside.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Well, the view was better than the food

You shouldn’t go to the USA for culinary delights  

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Very rare airline for me

For me too, lovely machine.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): In my seat – a nice surprise was the very extra elbow room with more storage space on upper deck seats – fantastic advantage for economy class passengers over other airplanes

Yes, the upper deck is the place to be. Not every airline has a Y cabin there though.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Passenger shaming!

Yuck! Some people have no respect...

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Lucky Paris is to beautiful to make up for it

How long ago since I was in Paris? Don’t really know but a long long time. Heck, I should book a Thalys ticket and go there again with the kids as they would love to see the Eiffel tower. It’s just a 1h20m train ride away from Brussels!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): as long as the roof stays on, of course

Ouch 

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): With not much place to walk around in an A320, seating in this seat was torture, and not something I expected from a premium airline like Air France

If it wasn’t for the AF logo I would say you were in a VY plane  

Sultanils

Hi Jonathan,

very nice last part of your series! Good to hear you enjoyed the A380 experience - I guess I will never get tired of that bird. Too bad AF's catering disappointed you - usually it's one of its strengths.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): I must say it worked better than expected, it's not London or Hong Kong, but LA has made a big progress in the past few years

LA's great, will always be among my favorites.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Heading to LAX, there was one mandatory stop for lunch, a place I couldn't leave LA without visiting, the world famous in N out burger right outside the airport, so I got off the bus 2 stops before the airport. As it was a Sunday, the place was busy, yet I was lucky to have the table with the best view of landing airplanes, with no less than 3 A380s landed while I was there – SQ, BA & AF – the bird that will take me to Paris:

One of the coolest places aviation enthusiasts can find on this planet - and btw. it can get busy on other days, too.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Well, the view was better than the food:

You didn't like it? Those are really authentic burgers, always freshly made. Much better than the generic stuff you get in the other burger chains.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): There was no wait for check in, and before I noticed I was given one boarding pass for both flights, LAX-CDG with my pre-booked 92A, and CDG-TLV for 17B. I immediately asked the agent if he could change my seat to a window one, he looked a moment at the computer and said that the flight is very full. I answered that now it's more than 24 hours before takeoff, no way that all seats already booked (as AF doesn't allow to choose free seats while booking and online check in start just a day before the flight). I guess he had no answer to this, changed my seat to 17A but said that in Paris they may change my seat.

I can't stand AF's automatic check-in either.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): There were no less than 6 A380s at the gates – KE, BA, SQ, EK, AF & QF. Add LH B748 and TN A343 and you got a great view of big birds to watch at.

Yes, very impressive. LH will also start flying the A380 to LAX this summer.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Next to me there were some other people taking pictures of the plane – another thumbs up for airbus, as creating an excitement over an airplane flying since 2007 is an achievement for itself.

It will never cease to amaze due to its sheer size.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): He called the purser who, gladly, showed me around, with his only request was to photograph facing forward and not backwards in order not to harm passengers privacy.

Good point.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): First class:

Horribly outdated!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): In my seat – a nice surprise was the very extra elbow room with more storage space on upper deck seats – fantastic advantage for economy class passengers over other airplanes:

Yes, the upper deck is great. We just spent some extra money to reserve a two-seater on BA's A380 on schedule in a few months...should be worth it!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Snack and drinks – I was offered champagne without even asking. We are on French territory after all :

Very nice. Now if they had proper glasses...  

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Dinner was, well, disgusting. I got pasta which was blend, sticky and way too greasy:

Bad to hear - the tray doesn't look bad at all!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): When I woke up we were already over Britain with breakfast waiting on my table, again very greasy entrée:

But it's a nice change from the common omelettes.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Another A380 advantage:

One of the highlights. Available on the A350, too.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Those huge JCL cabins on the A380 has disadvantage in my opinion, as they seat many passengers making felling on check in, lounges, boarding and flying itself a bit unrefined, common, with masses of people flying on JCL in each airplane. I would, for example, add a bulkhead in this cabin, so I wouldn't look so big. This photo shows only half of JCL seats on the plane!

That takes away space and space is money...

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Don't ask me why, but the boy's mother was I guess freaked out that I was talking to her son (I'm 29 years old) and almost immediately after takeoff she asked him to switch seats with her. So on those cramped 3 seats there was now me, she with a baby on her arms in the middle and her daughter on the aisle – while on the other side 2 kids aged 14 and 7 had 3 seats for themselves.

What? That's really bad. That would have really annoyed me.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): At first I wanted to say something to her (about her twisted mind that if I am paying attention to a teenager I am probably planning to harm him) but decided to not to embarrass her in front of her children.

Sometimes it's better not to discuss with strange people.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Legroom was less then KLM on long haul flight, and simply unacceptable on the short haul flight.

I once "enjoyed" a very tight legroom on KL's A332 - I doubt that AF can be worse. Never found it so bad on AF.


PH

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): I once "enjoyed" a very tight legroom on KL's A332 - I doubt that AF can be worse. Never found it so bad on AF.

I've always found seat pitch on Airbus narrowbodies to be very adequate, even for someone as big bodied like me. And that regardless of airlines, having flown all of them (except the A319) on BA, LH and MX.

A really enjoyable read & great pictures of LA & Paris. I just returned SIN-CDG on AF A380 so some nice memories for me !! Cheers

Quoting mats (Reply 2): Thank you for your report, and for your fantastic photos of Paris.

You welcome, thank you for your reply. Paris always looks good.

Quoting mats (Reply 2): Oooh. The A320 from Paris to Tel Aviv does not look comfortable in business or economy!

Exactly. I have no idea how they fill 3 flights a day with those cramped seats.

Quoting Ytraveller (Reply 3): Loved your report! I also visited Los Angeles recently and visited many of the same places you did.

Thank you mate, that was my first time in LA since 2002.

Quoting Ytraveller (Reply 3): And you saved the best for last, the famous In-n-Out! Even though I live in LAS and visit Los Angeles several times each year, I've never been to that spot until a few months ago. It was Thanksgiving so no one was there, and just as we arrived I saw an EK A380 approaching...    But you caught 2 A380s! Lucky...

Actually it was 3 A380s.... I didn't take photos of the Air France one.

Quoting Ytraveller (Reply 3): Y on the upper deck...great! But I agree, the food looks quite greasy, and didn't the pasta and breakfast look so similar?

Funny, didn't think about it. The UD YCL is a great advantage for economy class passengers like me, going up and still paying for YCL.

Quoting 767747 (Reply 4): Nice report on your travels with AF. Great photos of being around Los Angeles and in Paris! My brother used to live in Venice, and it was always fun to visit him and do lots of fun things around there. Great place!

Thank you Matt, I love Venice too, too bad I didn't have much time there this time.

Quoting 767747 (Reply 4): Sorry to hear the food was so poor. AF catering always in the past has looked pretty good, but the meal you took a picture of does look pretty meager and not great for a long-haul flight like this. Presentation seems a bit sloppy too; in the past their trays always have looked much more full of stuff?

I can't really compare as it was my first AF flight, but I never really heard good things about them from Israelis flying with them.

Quoting lychemsa (Reply 5): The meals on long haul seem to have been cut since 5 years ago. They were bigger and very good. I had a sandwich to Geneva from Paris also about 5 years ago. Thank God I opened it. Half of the ham was white fat.

That doesn't sound good. I must say that I wasn't hungry when we landed in Paris, so I guess portions were in OK size even for a bigger person like me.

Quoting agrflyer (Reply 6): Ouch! That seating arrangement on the flight to TLV looks cramped. Last week on my flight to TLV on LX they still operated an A340-300 on the ZRH-TLV route but I think they will (or have changed it already) rather soon because on my upcoming flights to TLV of early February it is nothing than a A320 or A321 scheduled for the route. It was a pleasure reading your reports!

Hey, thank you for your kind words. Regarding swiss - I think I saw your plane landing! Was it on the afternoon flight? I was on my way to work in Tel Aviv and I saw the A343 from the bus. Swiss usually operate in the morning narrow body and wide body in the afternoon, but on the winter both flights can be narrow body.

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): Thanks for the good read. AF performing as expected here but not good to see such a bad legroom on what looks like an older configed A320. A full flight of course doesn’t help in this aspect  Good to see you liked the A380 - it is a really monstrous plane and very quiet inside.

Hey Nils, you are very welcome. I really loved the A380, shame we don't get at least one regular to TLV.

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): You shouldn’t go to the USA for culinary delights

Depends where, but yes in-N-out is not the place to find the best food. But the view, oh man....

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): Yes, the upper deck is the place to be. Not every airline has a Y cabin there though.

Air France advantage!

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): Yuck! Some people have no respect...

Not to mention the american woman behind me who thought that the side bin is a place to put her ugly feet. She got an "accidental" hit from my elbow.

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): How long ago since I was in Paris? Don’t really know but a long long time. Heck, I should book a Thalys ticket and go there again with the kids as they would love to see the Eiffel tower. It’s just a 1h20m train ride away from Brussels!

No way man! you have to go there, at least for a day trip.

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): Ouch

  

Quoting sultanils (Reply 7): If it wasn’t for the AF logo I would say you were in a VY plane

I wouldn't mind that, but the air fare was not VY.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): very nice last part of your series! Good to hear you enjoyed the A380 experience - I guess I will never get tired of that bird. Too bad AF's catering disappointed you - usually it's one of its strengths.

Hey Udo, I am more then willing for another A380 ride. Regarding air france, my aunt and uncle flew last year YYZ-CDG-TLV and they said the food was disgusting, so I guess my flight wasn't an exceptional case.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): LA's great, will always be among my favorites.

I am not a fan of the city, but it was the gateway home.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): One of the coolest places aviation enthusiasts can find on this planet - and btw. it can get busy on other days, too.

Man I can live there. I will make more time next time i'm there.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): You didn't like it? Those are really authentic burgers, always freshly made. Much better than the generic stuff you get in the other burger chains.

Not really, had butter burgers in the US.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): Horribly outdated!

But looks comfy. Not all passengers like the EK/SQ closed cabin seats.

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): But it's a nice change from the common omelettes.

I agree, even though most airlines also offer fruits (mainly for vegans I assume).

Quoting PlaneHunter (Reply 8): What? That's really bad. That would have really annoyed me.

It did, but I didn't feel like opening an argument, I just wanted the flight to end.

Quoting THEOBCMAN (Reply 10): A really enjoyable read & great pictures of LA & Paris. I just returned SIN-CDG on AF A380 so some nice memories for me !! Cheers

Thank you mate, SIN is also on my list, hope to try SQ.

Great trip report
The A380 looks really comfortable- shame on AF for the catering though. It looks like they chose the cheapest option available? The champagne was a nice touch though.

I'm surprised they use a short haul configured A320 to TLV. The Business cabin looks like a joke for the duration of the flight and the economy looks tight. No IFE either. I think they send 77W to BEY and CAI. Wonder why the 320 to TLV?

Thanks for sharing, Los Angeles looks like it's worth a visit. I've been to San Francisco a lot but never ventured south!

Hi. Nice report. The 380 looks amazing. I still have to catch one sooner or later. Interesting to see both flights with healthy loads although I never managed to understand why AF never sends wide-body planes to TLV. After all, Israel is still a huge market to and from France.
On a side note, I never had issues buying tickets at the vending machine with my non-french credit card. Maybe some US cards do have security restrictions but I've seen dozens of foreigners purchasing without much trouble from the self-service machine. I do agree though the railway vending options at CDG are sub-par to say the least.
Nice picture of the two cities. Thanks for sharing!

Quoting EL-AL (Reply 11): Hey, thank you for your kind words. Regarding swiss - I think I saw your plane landing! Was it on the afternoon flight? I was on my way to work in Tel Aviv and I saw the A343 from the bus. Swiss usually operate in the morning narrow body and wide body in the afternoon, but on the winter both flights can be narrow body.

Well I was flying in on 11 January 2015 travelling on the afternoon flight. I am always astonished how sharp and low the turn final onto one of the runways in TLV. I wonder how this feeling is when coming back on 9 February 2015 on a LX A321

Great report, especially with the use of public transit on the ground. Los Angeles and Paris by bus and foot. Nice

Glad you got on the A380. That must have been quite a shock from the whale to the A320. Never heard of two seats assigned on one boarding pass

Fantastic report and nice pictures along with the story.

The A380 sure is a fantastic plane to fly one, but the food looks a bit icky... and wow, that flight to TLV on the A320 must have been torture!

The pictures of some areas of LA reminds me of Grand Theft Auto V lol.

Thanks for sharing.

MIAspotter

Quoting raffik (Reply 12): Great trip report

Thank you Raffik.

Quoting raffik (Reply 12): The A380 looks really comfortable- shame on AF for the catering though. It looks like they chose the cheapest option available? The champagne was a nice touch though.

It is. I do not know if its the cheapest, maybe just bad catering company in Los Angeles. Champagne was indeed nice touch.

Quoting raffik (Reply 12): I'm surprised they use a short haul configured A320 to TLV. The Business cabin looks like a joke for the duration of the flight and the economy looks tight. No IFE either. I think they send 77W to BEY and CAI. Wonder why the 320 to TLV?

Air France never invested in the TLV route. Always narrow jets, I do not know why as El Al do send wide bodies to CDG all the time.

Quoting raffik (Reply 12): Thanks for sharing, Los Angeles looks like it's worth a visit. I've been to San Francisco a lot but never ventured south!

2 very different cities, hard to believe both in the same state.

Quoting okapi (Reply 13): Hi. Nice report. The 380 looks amazing. I still have to catch one sooner or later.

Thx okapi, the A388 is indeed amazing.

Quoting okapi (Reply 13): Interesting to see both flights with healthy loads although I never managed to understand why AF never sends wide-body planes to TLV. After all, Israel is still a huge market to and from France.

Me too, yet I need to say it was always like that, its like Air France doesn't want to make money here.

Quoting okapi (Reply 13): On a side note, I never had issues buying tickets at the vending machine with my non-French credit card. Maybe some US cards do have security restrictions but I've seen dozens of foreigners purchasing without much trouble from the self-service machine. I do agree though the railway vending options at CDG are sub-par to say the least.

I do not know what the reason was, but non-French weren't able to buy tickets, that's why I took the photo of the long line waiting for the RER cashiers. My card was issued in Israel and I paid with in abroad with no problem.

Quoting okapi (Reply 13): Nice picture of the two cities. Thanks for sharing!

You welcome mate.

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 15): Great report, especially with the use of public transit on the ground. Los Angeles and Paris by bus and foot. Nice

Thank you, I am a fan of public transport, probably the only tourist in the world who didn't rent a car in LA.

Quoting flightsimboy (Reply 15): Glad you got on the A380. That must have been quite a shock from the whale to the A320. Never heard of two seats assigned on one boarding pass

Yes the A320 was disappointment. First time I saw such boarding pass too.

Quoting MIAspotter (Reply 16): Fantastic report and nice pictures along with the story.

Thx MIA.

Quoting MIAspotter (Reply 16): The A380 sure is a fantastic plane to fly one, but the food looks a bit icky... and wow, that flight to TLV on the A320 must have been torture!

That is exactly what it was, couldn't wait the flight to end already.

Quoting MIAspotter (Reply 16): The pictures of some areas of LA reminds me of Grand Theft Auto V lol.

Ha ha i was addicted to the first GTA when I was 14 years old, but lost my passion ever since.

Quoting MIAspotter (Reply 16): Thanks for sharing.

You welcome friend.

Thank you for the write-up! I am booked on the AF A380 LAX-CDG (and back) in a few weeks in Premium Economy, and that cabin looks nice! And there was a $7000 difference between Premium Economy and Business Class, and I'm sorry, but that price difference does NOT look like a good value! That business class cabin looks very cramped!

Seat pitch on major ailrines is being cut-back on short flights within Europe.

BA, for example, offers only 30 ins of seat pitch in both business and economy class.

Quoting travelin man (Reply 18): Thank you for the write-up!

You welcome.

Quoting travelin man (Reply 18): And there was a $7000 difference between Premium Economy and Business Class, and I'm sorry, but that price difference does NOT look like a good value!

I agree with you, $7000 is not something I am willing to pay for any business class.

Quoting travelin man (Reply 18): That business class cabin looks very cramped!

It does, I the seats may be comfortable, I can't say as I didn't try them myself.

Quoting LondonCity (Reply 19): Seat pitch on major ailrines is being cut-back on short flights within Europe. BA, for example, offers only 30 ins of seat pitch in both business and economy class.

The only problem is that Israel is not in Europe.

Hi EL-AL!


Nice report, first of all.
Service of AF looks ok, but not too good. In general, I don't really like AF, as on all the flights I did on them, the FAs have been unfriendly.
The meals you got look fine, but a bit small.
The seats of the A380 are quite good IMO, flew on an AF 380 some years ago.

Nice you could visit Paris! Is one of my favourite cities, and great pics of it!



greetings
emek96/Elias

Meal service look disgraceful cant believe this is on a prestige route on one of the top world carriers.

I have found funny your adventures to get in and out of Paris.

I didn't know the train machines did not accept foreign cards (I never had that problem) but I am not surprised that happens.

The RER to CDG (and ORY) has frequents break-downs (perfect for an airport!), it is usually dirty as hell, and from Paris to CDG (at least the ones stopping everywhere) it goes through some sketchy areas. Whenever I take it, there are usually tourists quite shocked like they have arrived to a 3rd world country.

Next time flying to the US you should try IB. They are starting one daily MAD-TLV with the new A333 this summer, the T4 is a much nicer experience than T2 at CDG and the metro and train to the downtown are clean and have no breakdowns  

Great report. I really enjoyed it! Great photos by the way. I can't believe that guy just put his feet up like that. Unreal.


Thanks again for sharing.

Regards

Vio

Nice report, although you didn't really sell the experience! Food looks very meh, and the A320 to TLV looks awful for such a flight. I guess with the crew in the aisle the whole flight, pax couldn't even get to the bathrooms?

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Now that was one crappy flight. I was stuck in my tiny seat, the baby next to me wasn't crying but kept touching me and pulling my shirt while her mother holding her was asleep.

Oh, that wuld have really annoyed me. If she was so worried about you touching her son, you should have made sure that her baby wasn't touching you! Why didn't she put 3 kids one side, and then sat on the aisle with the baby, and you by the window? Odd and annoying

Hi ELAL,

thanks for this report. Nice to read!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): TN A343 and you got a great view of big birds to watch at. Very rare airline for me:

After reading your conclusion, why didn't you try to fly that TN A343 to CDG? It does operate on LAX-CDG v.v.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): About in hour into the flight service began. Snack and drinks – I was offered champagne without even asking. We are on French territory after all

Usually, champagne is only served as aperitif prior dinner service in YCL on AF. Cognac can be ordered as digestif. AF stands out with this service in YCL actually and makes a nice change.

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): you can see the FA who was in charge for out area, who gave us fantastic service, kind and professional,

I can only praise AF staff. So far all my encounters with them on the ground and in the air have been great!

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Boarding – one guy really like me photographing as it seems:

I would never take a picture from forward with all the peoples faces. I can understand the comment of the purser on your A380 flight regarding this  

Quoting EL-AL (Thread starter): Legroom was terrible. I know that AF's A320 usually fly 1.5-2 hours flights out of Paris, but on 4 hours ride to TLV it was simply below the unacceptable level. With not much place to walk around in an A320, seating in this seat was torture, and not something I expected from a premium airline like Air France

Not unusual for YCL? KLM, LH, AZ, IB, would offer similar seating on the Europe-TLV flights. I'm sorry that you have to endure a longer flighttime to Europe, but airlines cannot keep cabins in the fleet for destinations like TLV (and CAI, AMM etc if that matters). You make a word about flying HV, EZY etc for a cheaper price, but then there is less service: no catering, no good care on the ground (if needed), no interline transfer/bag transfer, sometimes inconvenient schedules etc.
I mean, good to see there is something to choose for everybody   And you wrote your opinion in a honest way, positive and negative. Well done   

Eric

Quoting emek96 (Reply 21): Nice report, first of all.

Thank you.

Quoting emek96 (Reply 21): Service of AF looks ok, but not too good. In general, I don't really like AF, as on all the flights I did on them, the FAs have been unfriendly.

Service was indeed nothing wrong on both flights, LAX-CDG better than CDG-TLV tough.

Quoting emek96 (Reply 21): The meals you got look fine, but a bit small.

Wasn't tasty eater, KLM catering way better in my opinion.

Quoting emek96 (Reply 21): The seats of the A380 are quite good IMO, flew on an AF 380 some years ago.

Legroom wasn't very generous, but nothing wrong with the seat itself.

Quoting emek96 (Reply 21): Nice you could visit Paris! Is one of my favourite cities, and great pics of it!

Thank you, the transit in CDG did have a major advantage by allowing me to make a quick visit to Paris.

Quoting 777way (Reply 22): Meal service look disgraceful cant believe this is on a prestige route on one of the top world carriers.

Well, American Airlines or United can be considered "top world carrier" and all have bad food in Y, so AF isn't the only one. Alitalia and Iberia not too good ether.

Quoting SCQ83 (Reply 23): I have found funny your adventures to get in and out of Paris. I didn't know the train machines did not accept foreign cards (I never had that problem) but I am not surprised that happens. The RER to CDG (and ORY) has frequents break-downs (perfect for an airport!), it is usually dirty as hell, and from Paris to CDG (at least the ones stopping everywhere) it goes through some sketchy areas. Whenever I take it, there are usually tourists quite shocked like they have arrived to a 3rd world country.

Hey SCQ thx for commenting. It wasn't very funny at the time, I was sure at some point that I am going to miss my flight. The RER is indeed nothing to write home about, maybe I will try the bus next time I am in Paris. Yet, it is not a 3rd world country, those places can only dream about such a link to the city center. Landing in 3rd world country usually involves arguments with greedy taxi drives trying to rip you off after landing, with no one giving any reliable information. Land in SGN and see what I am talking about.

Quoting SCQ83 (Reply 23): Next time flying to the US you should try IB. They are starting one daily MAD-TLV with the new A333 this summer, the T4 is a much nicer experience than T2 at CDG and the metro and train to the downtown are clean and have no breakdowns

No thank you. IB is flying on TLV-MAD horribly crowded A319s, for a flight that takes no less then 5 hours. Every one I know flying them to Spain says that he will never do that again.

Quoting vio (Reply 24): Great report. I really enjoyed it! Great photos by the way. I can't believe that guy just put his feet up like that. Unreal.

Thank you vio, I like your reports too! Regarding this guy - unfortunately he is not the only one doing so. I was wondering why the FAs did nothing about it.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 25): Nice report, although you didn't really sell the experience! Food looks very meh, and the A320 to TLV looks awful for such a flight. I guess with the crew in the aisle the whole flight, pax couldn't even get to the bathrooms?

Hey Gabriel, thank you for commenting. Regarding the crew, indeed they worked in the aisle for most of the flight, making it very difficult to move around.

Quoting gabrielchew (Reply 25): Oh, that wuld have really annoyed me. If she was so worried about you touching her son, you should have made sure that her baby wasn't touching you! Why didn't she put 3 kids one side, and then sat on the aisle with the baby, and you by the window? Odd and annoying

Absolutely. I have no idea where she got her phobias from, and whatever was the reason A law-abiding person like me should not have paid the price for it.

Quoting airbuseric (Reply 26): thanks for this report. Nice to read!

Thank you ab.

Quoting airbuseric (Reply 26): After reading your conclusion, why didn't you try to fly that TN A343 to CDG? It does operate on LAX-CDG v.v.

I booked AF to try the A380 for the first time, maybe next time i'm in LA.

Quoting airbuseric (Reply 26): I can only praise AF staff. So far all my encounters with them on the ground and in the air have been great!

There are mixed opinions on AF service around here.

Quoting airbuseric (Reply 26): Not unusual for YCL? KLM, LH, AZ, IB, would offer similar seating on the Europe-TLV flights. I'm sorry that you have to endure a longer flighttime to Europe, but airlines cannot keep cabins in the fleet for destinations like TLV (and CAI, AMM etc if that matters). You make a word about flying HV, EZY etc for a cheaper price, but then there is less service: no catering, no good care on the ground (if needed), no interline transfer/bag transfer, sometimes inconvenient schedules etc. I mean, good to see there is something to choose for everybody   And you wrote your opinion in a honest way, positive and negative. Well done

It was, without a doubt, unusually crowded. I flew most major European airlines to or from TLV, and all had more legroom in Y, including KLM on the first flight of the trip, from TLV to AMS. Maybe EZY is as crowded as AF, but they are way cheaper.