Air France AF1981 LHR CDG A380 F-HPJC

Aug 17, 2010 by AirlinesAngel

A few months ago Air France announced that on selected dates over the summer months they would operate the A380 on the Paris – Heathrow route, the reasons for this:

• Opportunity for staff (ground and air crew) to become more familiar with the aircraft
• Opportunity for those to fly on it, who don’t fly long haul
• The aircraft would normally be parked up at CDG from 0605 (arrival time from JNB) to 2320 (departure time to JNB)

So by the time Air France had announced this to the time @PlansAirports arrived home, our seats were held for the 14th/15th August and the hotel was picked.

30 Hours before departure

I received an email informing me Checkin is now open, however, when I try it tells me it doesn’t recognise my details, so I decided to wait, an hour later I get another email saying Your Air France Boarding Pass.  Air France automatically check in passengers travelling in Voyageur, however they do allow you to change your seats if required.  So Boarding passes printed, I was ready for the off, although I just had to wait for @PlansAirports to arrive home from Miami.

3 Hours before departure

We made our way from the Renaissance Hotel (which I have got to say is my favourite at Heathrow for the view) to Terminal 4.  The last time I was in T4 was over 5 years ago, and there have been a lot of changes since then, airlines have moved terminals and T4 has had a face lift.  The queue for security moved at a steady pace and soon we were airside, time for some shopping.  After a while we decided to head towards our gate and as we got close to our gate I could see many cameras pointed out the window, normally you get to spot a celebrity at Heathrow this time it was for the Air France A380:

Although I am no stranger to seeing the A380 I am always amazed by it’s size and (IMHO) beauty.  It was interesting looking at the people gathered in the gate area, many like myself and @plansairports were there for the experience, others, well they had been brought along by their husbands and the only reason they are there is for a night or two in Paris.  Soon the plane was on stand and the operation to disembark the passenger and other ground operations swung into action.

Boarding

With all the passengers off and the aircraft cleaned we were ready for boarding.  This was well organised and soon we were on the air-bridge about to set foot on board.  The crew were extremely welcoming and the cabin was bright, I certainly was not under the impression I was on an aircraft that can accommodate 538 passengers over 3 classes, La Premiere (First Class) 9 seats, Affaires (Business Class) 80 seats and Voyageurs (Economy Class) 449 seats (via SeatGuru.com).  I had seat 18 L which allowed me to have a look at the front of the magnificent wing.  The seat was very comfortable and at 5’6 I had plenty of room, even @plansairports at 6’4 had ample room.

Pre-departure

We were soon all on board and ready for the off, however the Captain made an announcement that they had to complete further technical checks on the rear cargo door and he would keep us updated.  At this stage the camera located on the tail had been switched on (there is also one on the nose and beneath the aircraft) so we could see the ground staff working at the door area.  Soon the checks were complete, then ATC were holding us at the gate, to be honest, for the majority of the passengers I don’t think they minded, as it allowed us to have more time to experience the aircraft and the ambience on board.

Take off

We slowly made our way to runway 27R all the other aircraft looked so small in comparison with the A380, the Captain announced “Prêts au décollage”, we were next for departure and as we lined up the whole cabin went quiet, everyone wanted to hear the aircraft on take off.  The engines started to power up, breaks released and we were off.  Wheels up and we were all in agreement, it’s very quiet, and as a regular flyer on other aircraft, you expect the noise, however with this aircraft the only noise you will hear is the hydraulics as the enormous flaps on the wing are retracted.

The flight

The flight time from Heathrow to Paris was 40 minutes, soon we were over Brighton and the Channel and making our way to Paris.  Now here comes my only issue with the flight, the call bells and announcements.  Yes as the noise from the engines are so quiet Air France really need to adjust the volume level on the cabin call bells etc as they did start to frustrate us.  Also the captain was very safety orientated and every time we approached a bank of cloud his voice would boom over the cabin “Prêts pour les turbulences” at least five times and all we had was a little bump, however safety is the airlines number one priority.  The crew had sprung into action, serving drinks and snacks to the passengers, however as they reached row 17, the captain announced “Prêts pour l’atterrissage” and the trolleys were stowed away, however one crew member then got some snacks and water and served the remaining passengers.

Descending towards Paris CDG

The aircraft gracefully approached Paris and again the silence was broken by the sound of the flaps extending in preparation for arrival, with the tail camera on we could all see the runway in slight.  The landing was as smooth and the A380 gracefully slowed up and we made our way toward our stand.  With us on stand the ground operation came to life and in no time we were in the terminal 2E (after we spent a moment or two in La Premiere seats).  Like most of the passengers we couldn’t help but stop to admire and take more pictures of the aircraft.

Overall

This has been a very clever move by Air France and it has worked, the flight was full in Economy, and it has created a unique opportunity for those who wouldn’t normally get the chance to fly on an aircraft of this size to experience it.  I really enjoyed my experience, I must admit the silence on take off was slightly nerving as you are normally used to the roar of the engines, however you soon get adjusted to it.

AirlinesAngel gives this flight 8 wings out of 10

Now I’m off to my hotel with a view Sheraton Paris Airport Hotel

Until the return flight tomorrow happy flying.

AirlinesAngel

PS: I’m still sorting out my Photos from the trip and should have them on Flickr soon

PS: Merci to @Avtips for correcting my French..

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About the author  AirlinesAngel has over 10 years experience within the aviation industry. Recently completed a MA in Airline and Airport Management and is now returning to work.

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