Air France opens Washington lounge, axes A380
The Air France refurbished lounge as Washington-Dulles Airport is now fully open, with a more elegant and modern setting. The lounge is used by both Air France and KLM for their evening flights.
The Air France lounge has a retro-inspired sleek, elegant feel and is a move firmly away from the older Modern Minimalist lounges, in red white and blue.
The core of the lounge is the dining option, particularly for those on the evening flights, with 'Night Service' pre-flight dining on offer.
The same meal as would have been offered on board is available in the airport lounge, including waiter service, with starter, hot dish, cheese, dessert with wine and Champagne.
There is also a buffet counter, around the large circular dining room, and there is a second smaller buffet area on the first floor.
Above the dining area, is a relaxation space with floor to ceiling windows, and light screens mimicking sunlight and the colour of the sky, around which you can sit in chaises lounges.
The lounge also has a small VIP area with a more private atmosphere, dedicated to customers travelling in the La Premiere cabin.
The new lounge also has a small business centre and wifi, a newspaper rack with French papers, and showers.
The Washington Air France lounge spans 615 square meters across two levels can accommodate up to 155 customers
However, the French flag carrier also announced that it will retire all ten of its A380s from its fleet by 2022.
Having four engines, the A380 consumes 20 to 25 per cent more fuel per seat than new generation long-haul aircraft, and also has a relatively old cabin, over ten years old, which are due for refurbishment.
The airline instead plans to buy 60 A220-300s, formerly Bombardier's C Series aircraft, designed for short-haul with a 2+2 seat layout.
Air France will also now have 12 new business class menus, which will have alternating Michelin-starred chefs creating menus for business and First (La Premier) class passengers, on board long-haul flights departing Paris.
The new business class menu forms part of Air France's wider 2019 in-flight dining programme, which means Air France is also revamping it's premium economy and economy class menu, adding a new meal option described as 'healthy', which can be pre-booked for long-haul flights, at a cost of 21 euro for flights departing from Paris.
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