It’s just gone seven in the morning as I step off the mighty Boeing B 777-300ER which carried me over the Atlantic from Montreal back to Paris. We’re just over an hour early, which means I have plenty of time to make my connection to Frankfurt. The flight from Montreal ends at the satellite hall M of Terminal 2F. My onward connection will be from 2G.

Transfer in Paris CDG2

Paris Charles de Gaulle airport is huge, in terms of capacity but also in terms of the overall surface area it covers. It’s a very generously laid out airport. Fortunately, everything is perfectly signposted, which makes for an easy and convenient transfer. From the satellite I follow the signs to 2G connections, which eventually leads me to the automated shuttle train that connects the satellite to Terminal 2F’s main building.

The security check and immigration take place as I exit Terminal 2E. From there I keep on walking, following the signs to 2G, which eventually brings me up a flight of stairs and a footbridge to cross over into the Schengen Terminal 2F. From there it’s back down one floor to ground level, to catch a shuttle bus to 2G.

Le Salon Air France at CDG Terminal 2G

The lounge is packed when I arrive. The only place left to sit is right next to the lounge reception and is reserved for passengers with disability who may need assistance. I approach the reception desk and ask them if it’s okay for me to take a seat in the area that is cordoned off at the back of the lounge – and which is currently empty – for FlyingBlue Ultimate members. The staff tell me it’s okay if there’s nowhere else to sit. One of the guys at reception even comes along to remove the signs marking it as a reserved area, which I think is very considerate and proactive of them. I don’t take any pictures in the lounge because it’s too busy.

Boarding

At 09h20, the flight shows up as boarding for our 09h50 departure. I make my way down the passageway that connects the two piers to the main terminal building, happily taking photos of my ride to Frankfurt as I go. I’m seated on 1A anyway, so there’s not much point in being there before boarding even begins.

The Cabin & Seat

Well, hello…! This aircraft has obviously been refurbished recently and already features the new cabin and seats that Air France is gradually introducing across its Embraer 190 fleet. This seat is much nicer and makes a lot more sense ergonomically, if you ask me. It certainly feels more comfortable. It has an adjustable head rest and there are USB and USB C ports for each seat. The pitch is perhaps not quite as generous as it is in the old configuration, but it’s still comfortable. There’s no row 1 on the starboard side, as that is where the crew’s large storage compartment is located – which means that 1A is rather private. On today’s flight the Business Class cabin reaches back to row five. However, the flight is not completely full, with only six of the nine available seats occupied.

The Service & Crew

There are three cabin crew on this flight. The forward cabin is served by the purser, who is a friendly, competent young woman. I like her. She shows presence of mind in the way she interacts with passengers and anticipates what they may want. Already at my seats as I step aboard is a bottle of still water, which confirms my suspicion that the guy on the flight from Frankfurt to Paris a while back simply couldn’t be bothered or just forgot. Our flight time is seventy minutes.

The Meal – Brunch

The meal service starts fairly quickly once we’re airborne. The purser brings me a tray and offers me a croissant and a bread roll from the breadbasket. They’re nice and warm, still a bit hot actually, so I make sure to eat them first, slathered in butter and strawberry jam. The main course is lovely and very tasty. The sharpness of the apples goes exceptionally well with the creamy avocado and highlights the smoky flavour of the fish. The blinis serves no purpose, really, but I think it adds a nice kink to the main course. There’s also a bowl of plain yoghurt, which is a staple with Air France on flights departing before noon.

Arrival in Frankfurt

We land in Frankfurt on time, where the weather is even worse than what we left behind in Paris. It’s overcast and raining. We taxi to our remote stand facing Terminal 2. As we disembark, there are three policemen standing at the bottom of the stairs requesting to see disembarking passengers’ passports. And then the mess begins…

Oh lord…, it’s going to be another one of those Frankfurt sagas. I can feel it. The display is showing that the bags coming off the Air France flight from Paris will be delivered on the same belt as the Tunis Air flight from Tunis, which is already on stand when we land in Frankfurt, having obviously arrived ahead of us. The luggage belt has been designed to stop to prevent suitcases being dropped onto the carousel if a suitcase happens to be passing in front of the conveyor belt, which I guess makes sense in theory. In practice, though, it looks as though the Tunis Air passengers are being held up at immigration, which means they’re not collecting their bags off the carousel. Which of course also means that the delivery of the bags from the Air France flight is eventually delayed by forty minutes to wait for the Tunis Air passengers to trickle in and claim their bags off the carousel. At some point passengers of the Air France flight start stacking suitcases to make more space.

At some point while we wait, the tannoy crackles to like and a German voice makes the most obnoxious announcement I’ve ever heard: “this is an announcement for KLM passengers from Amsterdam. If you can hear this announcement it means that – congratulations – you’re in the wrong hall. You should have gone the other way. It’s not that difficult and was clearly signposted. Too bad for you. You’re going to have to go through customs and then contact the information desk to let you back in”. This is exactly the thing I dislike about Germany these days that really has me wondering where they went wrong. Nobody could care less about anything anymore. Worse still, the carelessness is something they pride themselves with as though it were a badge of honour.

Conclusion

This short flight with Air France was much better than the outbound. The crew were more engaging and the service was more akin to what I’m used to from Air France. The transfer in Paris was hassle free and surprisingly quick, given the size of the place. Even more so if you compare it to the absolute hovel they call Frankfurt Airport.