Air France Business, Lyon Saint-Exupéry - Paris Charles-de-Gaulle, Airbus A321: Solid in flight but very mediocre on the ground

Last leg of this journey from Caen to Paris.

Boarding

During my stay at the Confluence lounge, I received a TripIt notification indicating a 30-minute delay to departure, and therefore to boarding.

I therefore left the lounge at the rescheduled boarding time. When I arrived at the gate, the feeder flight was still disembarking and I took the opportunity to hit the bathroom.

A few moments after my return to the gate, the boarding announcement was made and Group 1 passengers were called to board. And there were a lot of them on this flight.

Cabin and welcome

The welcome at the gate was shy, and the cabin is the Smart & Beyond version, configured as a medium-haul aircraft, with leather seats and a curtain dividing Business from Economy.

There was no welcome drink nor oshibori offered by the crew.

I did not have a neighbor for this short flight to Paris.

Service and catering

The service started a few minutes after take-off.

The purser brought me a savory and a sweet snack and took my drink order.

I took a glass of champagne, which was promptly brought to me.

I was offered a second glass, which I accepted.

Too bad it was served in plastic glasses.

Arrival and disembarkation

We arrived at the gate 30 minutes late… After 15 minutes of wait, my suitcase didn’t make it onto the baggage carousel!

So I went to a kiosk to declare my missing baggage.

Bottom line

An uneventful domestic flight, but the upgrade was pointless. And the loss of my baggage on such a basic itinerary is unacceptable.

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)