Review of Air France flight from New York to Paris in Premium Eco

Hello everyone and welcome to the final chapter of my trip to the United States!

But first, Happy New Year 2025! May this year be filled with exciting flights and new travel experiences! ✈️🎉

To give you some context, I arrived the previous evening from Miami and had 24 hours in the city. I had noticed that the premium economy fare was only €100 more than the total price of my multi-destination ticket, so I decided to try this cabin that I hadn’t experienced yet.

Originally, I had booked the AF11 flight on a 772, which was scheduled to depart just before 1 a.m. Unfortunately, this flight was canceled 4 months before our departure (after checking FR24, I see that this flight was suspended from January to the end of May). I could rebook on any AF or Delta flight, and for a while, I was tempted by Delta’s daytime flight departing at 8 a.m. and arriving at 10 p.m. (which by the way doesn’t exist anymore), but after factoring in the cost of an extra night in Manhattan, I decided to go for AF9, which also departs late and was the flight I took on my first trip to New York. By the way, we also got a ride on a 773 to accommodate the stranded passengers from AF11 :)

Here’s the routing reminder: 

My return journey begins in a rather stressful way: wanting to enjoy every last second of Big Apple, I ended up stuck two subway stops away from my hotel, which was a 30-minute walk away, where my suitcase was waiting for me. So, I rushed out, far later than I had planned for my departure to JFK, and made my way very quickly to Penn Station to catch the LIRR. I didn’t even have time to buy a ticket on-site, barely managing to hop onto a train heading to Jamaica as it was leaving — another train wouldn’t depart for another 30 minutes! Thankfully, I was able to purchase a digital LIRR ticket via the MTA app, even at a reduced fare since it was after 8 p.m.!

So, my journey started off in a bit of a chaotic rush… and with a fair amount of anxiety, as I had planned to arrive at JFK much earlier. Would this delay be a problem? You’ll find out in a few lines. Here I am, finally on board the LIRR, catching my breath :) :

This short 30-minute ride allowed me to recover from the rush. Here I am at Jamaica, ready to take the AirTrain to JFK. It’s 8:30 p.m. at this point:

It’s not as economical as traveling to LGA from Manhattan (and quite expensive, even with the evening discount on the LIRR), but it’s just as convenient, especially with the option to pay contactless using OMNY, the new system set to replace the MetroCard:

The signage is very clear:

When I arrive at JFK, I still have 2 hours and 25 minutes before takeoff, but I’m quickly reassured when I see the situation at customs: there is absolutely no one there!

The same goes for the Air France counters: I even have Sky Priority for my return flight (thanks to the outbound flight in Business?), but it’s completely unnecessary since there are only two other people at the counters. To be fair, the lack of a crowd could be because I was probably one of the last passengers to check in for the AF flight ^^:

The same cannot be said for the Korean Air counters, which were experiencing their peak rush hour:

A priority lane is available to me for customs, but it will be of no use since I will be absolutely alone at that time. For the third time in a row (!) I’ll be flagged for an anomaly at the body scanner and subjected to a near-body search, which I’m now quite used to ^^

It's 9:15 p.m. when I go airside, barely more than an hour and a bit after my hasty departure from Manhattan. I’m so early that the AF7 flight is still on last call when I arrive!

I take the opportunity to do what I enjoyed during my last visit to JFK: capturing photos of airlines from the far corners of the world:

A Turkish lounge with a not-so-discreet entrance is very close to the Air New Zealand gate:

I head to my boarding gate, not without greeting Uncle Sam, who hasn't moved in five years:

On my way, I cross paths with a group of Orthodox Jews heading to Vienna with Austrian:

I come across a first AF 777 thinking it's mine, but it's actually the one for flight AF7:

The Queen of the Skies, aka the Korean 747-8i:

EVA Air's 777 heading to Taiwan:

Between gates 8 and 9, there's the entrance to the Primeclass Lounge accessible to Priority Pass holders:

Boarding starts on time; I wait a bit since I'm not in the first Sky Priority group:

Tonight, we're flying on F-GSQV, which is over 17 years old and has no baptismal name:

I'll only be walking through the business class cabin this time, with some regrets ^^

But it's my first time in Premium Economy (or simply "Premium" as AF now calls it), featuring the old cabin. For window seat fans like me, beware that the first row near the emergency exits on this side has no window:

The small P.E cabin is full; I'm in the fourth and last row. A footrest is available:

Unfortunately, I'm on the wrong direction of the route to test the chef's dishes:

A small amenities kit is provided:

Its contents are less generous than those in business class (which isn't particularly lavish itself), but let's say it's still a nice extra compared to economy:

6h20 of flight tonight, and we're not parked next to just anyone:

Safety instructions are played as we push back just ten minutes late compared to our scheduled departure:

Unfortunately, the 777's cameras seem to be inoperative tonight :(

As when I took this flight five years ago, taxiing is short at this time of night. We pass this Volaris plane:

Takeoff follows shortly after, and the crew immediately asks for window shades to be closed. Even though I didn’t miss much with clouds quickly appearing, I, like F-OITN in his FR, regret being forced to close everything so fast!

A refreshing towel is served:

The headphones seem to be of good quality:

Less than an hour after departure, the meal service begins. I compared it with the economy offering: aside from the presence of a glass and metal cutlery, I noticed no real difference. In fact, the glass seen in the following picture, which I had for champagne on the outbound business flight, is not very practical for drinking since it's quite narrow:

Apparently, the camera issues will last the entire flight, so I will forget about them for landing later on :(

I finish my meal with the pear liqueur that I enjoy on AF. Afterward, I rely on melatonin to help me grab a few precious moments of sleep during this short overnight flight:

I am awakened a few hours later by the breakfast service. Regarding my short night, I couldn't find a comfortable position in this premium economy seat, which indeed lives up to its poor reputation. To be honest, I even slept better in economy on my previous AF9 flight.

Still groggy, I open the contents of my breakfast bag, finding its new color rather strange… and its contents even more so!

I must have been really out of it because I only realized while writing this FR that the breakfast I was served actually belonged to the passenger in seat 25B, who had ordered a gluten-free meal:

I took advantage of a passing crew member to request my "regular" breakfast, which looked like this — at least I got to see what a special meal looks like ^^:

Here again, I didn't notice any difference compared to the economy breakfast bag contents:

Some time later, we reach the southwestern coast of the UK, with clear skies once again :)

Just over an hour later, we enter France near the Manche department:

Flying over western Paris:

And arrival on CDG's southern pair of runways on 08R:

The taxi to Terminal 2E/M is very (very) short, with a bonus of a 40-minute early arrival:

Walking through business class, where I would have probably had a better night's sleep ;-)

The exit provides a chance to see the nose of our plane, which had remained discreet back at JFK:

And an overview of this 777, which never fails to impress me:

Goodbye Hall M, I hope to see you again soon!

A fellow 777-200 that arrived from French Guiana earlier this morning and will depart for Costa Rica. Note that F-GSPM has stopped flying since last July, likely scrapped by now:

Despite the blurred view, I can still spot this beautiful A350:

A full journey on LISA is required to get back home:

I used the Priority Lane, but it turned out to be useless since there were just as many, if not more, people there compared to the regular queue:

Our belt neighbors were Irish and Lebanese flights:

My priority tag allowed my suitcase to arrive relatively quickly, although it wasn’t among the very first:

The journey home is twice as short by car (and twice as pleasant :)) compared to taking the RER B on this extended weekend, so I opted for the ride-hailing service route:

Unlike Orly, the signage here is quite clear for the ride-hailing service:

I easily found my Uber at this parking area:

The FR24 flight path, which followed a rather southern route:

Thanks for reading!