For a magazine so focused on the passenger experience, it has been fabulous to see first class flourishing after a time when many said it had become outdated in today’s market. The latest investment to be announced is Air France’s all-new La Première suite for the Boeing 777-300ER, an elegant design that has been developed over the past three years. The suite has been styled by the Design Investment studio in Geneva, with input from the SGK Brandimage brand experience agency in Paris, and it is manufactured in France by Stelia Aerospace as part of its first-class bespoke service.
The new suite, launching on select B777-300ERs this spring, retains the open feel of the current suite. No high suite walls here: the aisle sides in the 1-2-1 cabin are fully open for TTL, but draw the floor-to-ceiling curtain across and they become among the most private first-class suites in the sky. Privacy between the centre suites is provided at the touch of a button by a full-height, electric sliding partition.
The suite is also a little more spacious. The cabin stays at four seats, but, to use an informal measurement, is now five windows-long, rather than four. In more formal terms, the footprint of the new suite is nearly 3.5 square meters – 25% more space than the current B777 suites. Indeed the airline says the new first class is ‘another step forward in its move upmarket’.
This space has enabled the previous shallow buddy sofa / large ottoman to be upgraded to a chaise longue no less, to create more options for changing position and relaxing. The gap between the seat and a chaise longue can then be bridged to create a fully flat bed measuring 2m long and 75cm wide – very similar to the current dimensions.
There are no overhead stowage compartments in the La Première cabin, which adds to the open feel. Storage needs are met using floor-level storage, with a large sliding drawer that can accommodate up to two carry-on suitcases, and a second drawer under the chaise longue that can hold footwear. Smaller items can be stowed in individual wardrobe plus a personal compartment in the side console.
Creating an ambience
Those five windows allow a little more natural brightness to enter the space provide, which passengers can control using the options of electric translucent or blackout shades. They can also adjust the lighting in the suite using two lamps, one wall-mounted behind the side console of the main seat (as before), the other a new lamp on a table beside the chaise longue, and both fitted with shades featuring Air France’s signature winged seahorse motif.
The lighting and window shades adjustments in the suite can be controlled via a wireless touchscreen tablet, as can the seat, chaise longue and bed options.
The tablet can also be used to access inflight entertainment options. A big change with regard to IFE is that the suite now features two 32-inch 4K displays, rather than a single 24-inch monitor, opening up viewing options from the seat, bed and chaise longue. Noise-cancelling headphones are provided to guests, though they can also connect their own personal headphones via Bluetooth if they prefer.
Other tech features in the suite include 110V/220V electrical outlets, USB-A and USB-C ports, wireless charging stations, and device holders. Free inflight wi-fi will be available throughout the journey, and in summer 2025 Air France intends to introduce a new Starlink LEO ultra-high-speed connectivity service across its fleet, replacing the current offering.
You can see a video of the new La Premiere experience HERE.
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Want to try out the new La Première?
The new La Première cabins will be progressively introduced on a select Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in the Air France fleet. The first aircraft to feature the new La Première cabin, named Épernay (F-GZNQ), will take off in the spring beginning with the Paris CDG to New York JFK route. Other destinations, including Los Angeles, Singapore, and Tokyo-Haneda, will be added during the summer 2025 season.
La Première is currently available from Paris-Charles de Gaulle to Abidjan, Dubai, Los Angeles, Miami, New York-JFK, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo-Haneda and Washington DC.
