Domestic Business Class at Air France, good or bad idea?

Last week, Air France announced the return of a business class on domestic flights. Suppressed in the 90s, it had, at that time, little success. In any case, it only existed from Paris Charles-de-Gaulle

A strong comeback on the entire short-haul network

The announcement made by Air France last week goes beyond what was rumored: the Business Class is back on the entire domestic network, departing from Paris Charles-de-Gaulle of course, but also from Orly and provincial cities, including most regional aircraftwith the exception of flights to/from Corsica and flights operated by ATR and Embraer 145.

The cabin of the domestic Airbus at Air France. Copyright Air France

The hard product will be roughly equivalent to that offered on medium-haul destinations, except for the infamous seats installed by Air France on domestic aircraft at Orly (otherwise known as ironing boards), which are incredibly uncomfortable. Otherwise, everything else is there:

Settling in the front row,
Middle seat blocked,
SkyPriority ground course,
Access to the lounge when available,
Luggage allowance of 2x32kg

An in-flight experience similar to that of medium-haul flights

The domestic A321s and CRJ700s will be fitted with mobile curtains during 2020.

Improved service but not aligned with medium-haul

In addition to the hard product, the soft product on board will also be increased in domestic Business, with champagne served to all passengers.

Let’s hope it’s the same champagne as on medium-haul flights

As for the tray served, it is a surprise: it will not be aligned with what is offered on medium-haul flights, but it will be a “salty or sweet snack”. The visuals proposed by the airline are rather disappointing:

Strange to make such a distinction, especially since having a single hub for domestic and medium-haul flights seems to be the way to economies of scale and a consistent service protocol… Did they try to save a few pennies?

A rather salty point-to-point pricing?

In order to check, I tried to book a round trip on a weekend in Toulouse in Business. The return trip is offered in semi-flexible for a little over 400 €.