British Airways Club Europe, London Heathrow - Paris Charles-de-Gaulle, Airbus A320: No surprise

After a good hour in the Concorde Room, I left the lounge at the theoretical boarding time for gate A5, from which my flight to Paris Charles-de-Gaulle departed.

Boarding

Upon arrival at the gate, I found myself in a somewhat chaotic situation, with the priority boarding line completely full, and a documentary concordance check carried out before entering the line… I was therefore directed to the non-priority line, which is ridiculous when you are in zone 1 and GGL. I still have trouble understanding how it works so well in the US and so badly in Europe.

Nevertheless, the wait was quick and I was able to use one of the available boarding kiosks.

Cabin and welcome

The welcome was courteous, and I quickly made my way to my seat, 02F.

The traditional medium-haul BA cabin was deployed, with, for Club Europe, the middle seat neutralized by a practical tray table.

The pitch, on the other hand, was tiny – what a difference from the American Domestic First!

As usual on European medium-haul flights, no welcome drink was offered.

Service and catering

Service began dispassionately a few moments after the seat belt sign went off.

A choice between shrimp salad and squash salad was offered, and I took the shrimp.

They were perfectly cooked, a very good snack. The panna cotta served for dessert was very good.

For beverages, a Champagne Castelnau Blancs de Blancs 2007 was served, strange to see a vintage bottle on a medium-haul flight.

Arrival and disembarkation

The rest of the flight was uneventful, and we arrived at Paris Charles-de-Gaulle almost on time.

Bottom Line

An uneventful flight with an unmotivated BA crew. But I can’t say I was surprised.

Itinerary

As a reminder, here is the itinerary followed:

#	Type	Post
1	Diary	Short week-end in France
2	Lounge	American Airlines Admirals Club, Boston Logan (unreported)
3	Flight	American Airlines Domestic First, Boston Logan – New-York JFK, Embraer 175 (unreported)
4	Lounge	American Airlines & British Airways Chelsea Lounge, New-York JFK T8 (unreported)
5	Flight	British Airways First Suite, New-York JFK – London Heathrow, Boeing 777-300ER
6	Lounge	British Airways Concorde Room, London Heathrow T5
7	Flight	British Airways Club Europe, London Heathrow – Paris Charles-de-Gaulle, Airbus A320
8	Hotel	Intercontinental Paris Le Grand
9	Lounge	Grand Voyageur Lounge, Paris Est
10	Train	TGV InOui First Class, Paris Est – Nancy
11	Restaurant	L’impromptu, Nancy
12	Train	TGV InOui Second Class, Nancy – Paris Est
13	Train	SNCF TER Nomad First Class, Paris Saint-Lazare – Caen
14	Hotel	Ivan Vautier, Caen
15	Flight	Air France Economy (operated by HOP), Caen Carpiquet – Lyon Saint-Exupéry, Embraer E170
16	Lounge	Confluence lounge, Lyon Saint-Exupéry
17	Flight	Air France Business, Lyon Saint-Exupéry – Paris Charles-de-Gaulle, Airbus A321
18	Hotel	Holiday Inn Express, Paris Charles-de-Gaulle Roissypôle
19	Lounge	Extime Lounge, Paris Charles-de-Gaulle 2BD
20	Flight	British Airways Club Europe, Paris Charles-de-Gaulle – London Heathrow, Airbus A320
21	Lounge	British Airways Concorde Room, London Heathrow
22	Flight	British Airways Club World Suite, London Heathrow – New-York JFK, Boeing 777-300ER
23	Lounge	American Airlines & British Airways Chelsea Lounge, New-York JFK T8 (unreported)
24	Flight	American Airlines Domestic First, New-York JFK – Boston Logan, Embraer 175 (not reported)