Welcome to my trip report on Air France Part 1!
This is Air France's Airbus A220-300 photographed by Dn280.
Introduction
Since I decided to do a one-way trip to London with Air China and the exciting about this is I get to choose which airline to fly back from London. Initially I was tempted to do LHR-SIN with Singapore Airlines as I found a very good airfare for this one way trip but when I did more scouting, I found an even better deal with Singapore Airlines, flying out of Barcelona with a brief stopover at Milan so once that was settled, I had to decide how to get to Barcelona from London. Initially I was looking at Vueling but I found a good offer with Air France to fly from London Heathrow to Barcelona with a stopover at Paris. The first aircraft that came into my mind was the A318, however I couldn't find any flights operated by this type and the alternative option was to fly on the airline's A220-300 and I decided to do both legs operated by this aircraft model but that requires me to stay overnight at CDG Airport. The other flight options was operated by A320 and A321 and I am not so excited about flying these aircraft and besides the airfare were more expensive.
So once that is decided, I went with Air France and the A220-300 and this would be my 2nd and 3rd time flying on this beautiful aircraft.
Booking by the mobile app/website
I am impressed with the mobile app, the user interface is certainly top notch and everything I need or information I am looking for can be found easily. This app is easily one of my favourites out there, well done Air France!
I went with the Economy Class Standard as I had a luggage to check in.
The airline offers ancillary service which you can add on to your ticket confirmation and that includes lounge access, business class upgrade and conciergerie service.
I really like the interface of this app as you can see the advantages and disadvantages of booking the lower tiers class tickets.
The app also includes a checklist which is very useful.
Online check-in
I am happy to know that we can select our seats for free (only the standard seats) during the check-in process.
Fortunately there are window seats available on this flight (LHR-CDG) so I picked 17A.
I was able to check in for the connecting flight.
With such an user-friendly app, I didn't have to switch over to the website to check or manage my flight. My rating: 5/5
During my stay in London
This is Tower Bridge.
Kew Garden
Beautiful sunset at Kew Garden.
A typical British Marketplace.
I encountered a chess master.`
My accommodation at the Premium Inn hotel near M4 expressway - I booked this by mistake instead of the hotel at Terminal 4.
The room is cozy and comfortable so no complaints here.
I won't recommend this hotel at this location unless you are driving. You can grab a bus from the bus station at London Heathrow but it takes a while to get there from the bus stop or you can catch either a cab or Uber to the hotel but that may cost quite a bit.
Once I reached the airport, I had to take the train over terminal 4. For terminal transfers, it is complimentary but your card must have positive value in it in order for you to take advantage of the free shuttle service.
Welcome to LHR Terminal 4!
It was a beautiful day.
Welcome to Terminal 4!
This is the Air France's check-in desks.
This is the first time I had a boarding pass consisting of two flights.
I did a check on my flight, F-HZUS gets the honour to fly me to Paris.
I took advantage of the good offer at WH Smith and got myself a sandwich value meal.
This is the departure hall (airside).
Just like the other terminals at Heathrow, it was packed in the evening.
The last time I departed from this terminal was many years ago.
There are a lot of shops and cafes to check out.
I was able to do some planespotting at this terminal.
This is Qatar Airways Airbus A350-1000, I will be flying this airline in July 2025, stay tuned for the trip report.
Malaysia Airlines Airbus A350-900
Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER
You can see how crowded the London Heathrow traffic is. (Below)
It seems this cafe is quite popular with the travellers.
Plenty of seating area but usb charging ports are few.
Terminal 4 Observation Deck
It is quite small but you get a good view of the tarmac.
This is Etihad's Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner
The observation deck does looks nice at night.
The turbine of a jet engine
The departure gate of my flight.
My flight has codeshares with a few other airlines from the Skyteam alliance.
For flights out of London Heathrow, it's important for all passengers to board early as any late comers may cause the airline to lose the take-off slot and that means delay.
Welcome on board!
My ride: F-HZUS (Photo: Teemu Pesonen)
Airbus A220-300 (CS300)
Name: Chinon W
Configuration: CY148
Delivered in January 2023
Engines: 2 X PW1521G
Age: 2+ Years Old (May 2025)
Built in Montreal Mirabel (YMX)
Flight route: LHR-CDG
Miles: 216
My seat: 17A (Photo: Aerolopa.com)
Date of departure: 3rd March 2025
Airline: Air France
Flight: AF1181
Route: LHR-CDG (2nd time flying on this route)
Aircraft: Airbus A220-300
Registration: F-HZUS
Seat: 17A
Terminal: 4
Gate: 20
Load in Y Class: 80%
Schedule Departure: 1935
Boarding: 1859
Push Back: 1923
Take Off: 1941
Flight Time: 40 mins
Actual Flight Time: 44 mins
Schedule Arrival: 2155
Actual Arrival: 2125
Departure Runway: 27L
Departure Runway: Clear
Arrival Runway: 08R
Arrival Weather: Clear
My Flight Experience
We boarded according to class and all of us were on board after the announcement was made and that allowed us to depart ahead of schedule. Just like ITA's A220 cabin, the leather seats are quite comfortable but the legroom space is slightly better on this aircraft. The cabin crew announced to us to seat at our allocated seat which I assumed that this is needed for balancing issue for this aircraft.
For this flight, the first officer made the welcome speech announcement and informed us to expect a 40 minutes smooth ride over to Paris CDG airport. We took off about 6 minutes after departure time and that is amazing as you all know how congested this airport is and usually one runway is used for departure and the other is used for arrival, sometimes it may take half an hour or forty-five minutes after the schedule departure time to depart from the airport.
Even though the flight duration was short, we were given an inflight snack and beverage. For the inflight service, it was normal, I find the crew to be alright. Online streaming was available and only messaging was complimentary while the wifi is chargable. Do note that the website does not include online entertainment. For the rest of the flight, it was a smooth experience until our touchdown at CDG airport, we hit quite hard on the runway surface, why? I have no idea, we hardly had any cross wind during our landing. Whatever it is, it was an enjoyable 40 minutes on this A220-300 aircraft and I was looking forward to my next flight which would take place 11 hours later.
Business and Economy Class cabin
There are 5 rows of 2-3 seating configuration on this flight. Just like any other Euro business class cabin, some of the seats remain vacant to allow the passengers to enjoy more legroom space. For this business class cabin, seat C and E remain vacant. The curtain you see below can be adjusted forward or backwards in accordance to the demand in Business Class.
These seats along with the Economy Class are fitted with the Collins Aerospace Meridian leather upholstered slimline seats that comes with a 4-way adjustable headrest. No IFE system is installed on these seats and instead, a retractable device holder is installed on every back of each seat together with a retractable cup holder.
For these seats, each has a seat width of 18 inches, standard seat pitch of 30 inches except the emergency row (row 14) with a better legroom space and all seats except the seat in front of the emergency row (row 12) can recline up to 3 inches.
Basically the aisle seat (2-seater) and the middle seat (3-seater) in the designated business class will remain vacant.
The spacious cabin of the Airbus A220.
The first 2 rows of the business class cabin
There will be a divider and curtain to separate the different cabins.
Although the middle seat is not sold in business class, your seatmate can sit there but what is important is one of the seats will remain vacant.
I supposed with this arrangement, the airline can reconfigure the cabin according to demand rather than operating the cabin with the standard business class recliner or lie-flat bed seats.
3-seater
2-seater
The last row of the business class cabin.
In this section, all seats are sold.
The black leather seats give out a more luxurious feeling in my opinion.
Legroom space is at 30 inches which is slightly uncomfortable for me.
I am glad all the seats have the adjustable headrest.
More photos of the seat
The 2-seater seat is where I like to sit in this cabin configuration.
A typical economy class seat of today.
Legroom space is bearable on short flights.
The front view of the Collins Aerospace Meridian seat
USB charging ports containing both type A and C.
Instructions to remind us to fasten our seatbelt and the placement of the life jacket below our seat.
This slimseat is actually not too bad in terms of comfort.
The large window
Overhead panel consists of the reading lights, aircon ducts and WiFi & seatbelt sign.
Retractable cup holder
Retractable tray table
I suppose this black thing (below) is to prevent any items such as pillow from falling.
The recline button
A few photos of my seat photographed after arrival at CDG airport.
You can see the passengers on my flight walking through the aerobridge as disembarkment was going on.
The mood lighting was used during the flight.
This lighting was used during approach and landing.
What's provided for each passenger in Y class?
Disposal Bag
Safety Card
A choice of beverage and a sandwich
Inflight Entertainment (Wifi Connection)
This aircraft is equipped with Intelsat 2Ku Wifi system and a fee is required for internet surfing and streaming.
Only the message pass option is complimentary.
There are a few options to choose from.
Message Pass
Surf Pass
Stream Pass
Information of each pass is clearly stated.
I was able to use the airline's mobile app to check my next flight.
Thanks to Flighty for this information.
Window view photos (Take off to Landing) (Sorry for the poor quality)
Getting ready for departure at LHR Terminal 4.
We started our taxi.
At this point, we started our take off roll.
Off we go, I will be back in London in July.
After a few turns, we headed towards the direction of France.
The lights of the city being reflected off by the wings of our aircraft.
The 40 minutes flight went past very quickly and we started our descent soon in this good weather.
We were on final approach.
Here we are at the gate of CDG airport. Not knowing for me at that time, this same aircraft would fly me to Barcelona the following morning.
My flight summary
Welcome to Paris CDG Airport!
Thanks for the ride, F-HZUS!
I am certainly a big fan of the A220.
Now let's make our way to the transit hotel.
It was certainly a good form of exercise as it took quite a while to reach the main concourse.
To be continued...
My ratings
Airline Website/Mobile App: 5/5
Airport Experience (LHR Terminal 4): 4/5
Inflight Service: 3/5
Seat Comfort: 4/5
Inflight Entertainment: 3/5 (Complimentary messaging only)
Cabin Ambiance: 5/5
Condition of the aircraft : 5/5
Cleanliness: 5/5
InFlight Meal/Beverage: 4/5
Punctuality: 5/5
Overall Rating: 43/50
Percentage: 86%
Conclusion
I find the airline's A220-300 cabin quite stylish and comfortable on this 40 minutes flight and although I was disappointed with the Inflight Entertainment options on the website (the lack of movies and audio contents), I enjoyed the inflight snack and beverages which was offered on this short flight and also the early arrival at CDG airport which is greatly appreciated. This Airbus A220-300 is a replacement aircraft for the airline's A318 and A319 and I wished I flew with this airline earlier to fly on the exotic A318 aircraft. The airline is currently operating a few A318 but they are due for retirement in the later part of this year (2025). So if you have a chance to fly on the A318, do that first before they are gone. The A220-300 will be around for many years to come.
Thanks for reading!
Charles
For my previous trip report (ITA Airways A220-100 LIN-LCY), click here.
For my next trip report (Part 2: CDG-BCN), click here.
(If you are happy with my work, feel free to contribute by donating any amount over here. Greatly appreciated!)
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