Air France renews first-class suite in battle for high-rollers

Air France on Tuesday unveiled a new first-class suite as it expands efforts to lure wealthy travellers from business jets and lend a 'French touch' to the tussle for premium revenue. The CEO of parent Air France-KLM , Ben Smith, told Reuters the unspecified investment aimed to place Air France at the top of the European league in airline luxury, signalling a battle with British Airways and Lufthansa. "A large percentage of the customers are flying for business reasons ... Many of them have the choice of a private jet or flying in first class," Smith said in an interview. "What is new for us over the last few years is a marked increase in the number of luxury customers that are flying for leisure purposes." The air travel industry is locked in a battle for high fare-paying customers as it recovers from the pandemic but is split over the value of investing in first class, with many carriers focusing on steady improvements in business-class seating. Air France's latest first-class cabin, laid out in four pairs of grey, red-accented beds and seats on select planes, follows a years-long effort to re-invent a once loss-making product since Smith joined the national carrier in 2018. The Canadian executive has long been a champion of first class even as many rivals retrench to business class. But he said only a handful of airlines had the depth of demand or ability to tap into assets like France as a destination. "A lot of people like to experience France. When they get on the airplane outside France, they want to start their journey from San Francisco, Tokyo or Sao Paulo already in France through the environment on the airplane," he said.<br/>