Want to get a good night’s sleep (or as close as possible) on the redeye to Europe but don’t want to give up the “luxury dining” business class offers? That means dining on the ground pre-flight and going to bed once the wheels are up. Air France joined the small collection of airlines offering such service this week, announcing “Night Service” for its 9:45p and 11:25p departures from JFK to Paris. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic offer similar services while American Airlines has announced it will also offer similar for business class travelers at some point next year; it already offers food in its Flagship lounge for First Class travelers.
Unlike those airlines Air France is offering “the same meal in the airport lounge as the one served on board” (with an exclusion of special meals); for Virgin Atlantic and British Airways it is more of a buffet dining experience. Prior booking is not required and passengers will enjoy dining at a private table in a dedicated section of the lounge.
I love the idea of dining on the ground pre-flight and then maximizing sleep time on board. I think it is a great way to approach the relatively short trans-Atlantic crossings. But I’m disappointed that it is only on the two late flights. For those flights (especially the 11:25p departure) there’s a pretty good chance I’ve already eaten dinner even before getting to the airport. Where the true value would be (to me) is in offering such on the earlier departures (this Summer Air France has three other flights with departures at 4:20p, 6:20p and 7:20p). Getting a proper meal in the lounge on those flights would be much more valuable to me than for the later departures.
Even though it is not an ideal arrangement for my personal travel preferences I definitely see value in the upgraded service and increased options.
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