air france or klm

DeclanF

Hi All

I heading of to tokyo in six weeks with work. Just wondering which airline to book with. The only 2 options i have is air france or klm.
Was thinking air france myself.

any info welcome

TravelJunkie

I'd say Air France, but probably really depends on the airplane. I had bad KLM experience was very tight for longhaul, but I'd check what planes they both use.

olaola

We flew Air France to Singapore last year. Never again - it wasn't the staff or service. The planes were old and the seats were too small for long haul. I'm only 5'6" and I couldn't sit straight in my seat - I had to poke my knees out the side! Try and find out what planes will be flying on each route before you book.

http://www.airlinequality.com/Forum/af.htm

http://www.airlinequality.com/Forum/klm.htm

killbillvol2

Definitely KLM. I've just been to Tokyo. Flew out with KLM and back with Air France.

There's no major difference service wise tbh but the food's better on KLM.

Two things swing it. Firstly Schipol is a much easier airport to get through. The real clincher is flight time though. KLM fly over Siberia so it's about 10h 30m, all in daylight. AF flight time is over 12 hours (12h 40m for me coming back). Add in the difference in times to Amsterdam and Paris and it's a no brainer.

I'm going back in April and flying both ways with KLM.

Ponster

Air France and KLM are the same company these days but I don't know if that makes any difference or not.

robinph

They are the same company now so regardless of who you book with you might still end up in a blue or a white plane.

killbillvol2

They're technically the same company but still fly their own routes. If you book a flight to Tokyo via Amsterdam with KLM you won't be sent through Paris with Air France

BuffyBot

Service differs too, even though they are the same company.

Really it boils down to on the day. Both airlines have older planes that don't have personal TV screens etc which you may or may not end up on depending on how they are scheduled. Air France has generally better food. Crews - like all airlines - will vary on who you get on any particular day.

mikedragon32

killbillvol2 wrote: »

Definitely KLM. I've just been to Tokyo. Flew out with KLM and back with Air France.

There's no major difference service wise tbh but the food's better on KLM.

Two things swing it. Firstly Schipol is a much easier airport to get through. The real clincher is flight time though. KLM fly over Siberia so it's about 10h 30m, all in daylight. AF flight time is over 12 hours (12h 40m for me coming back). Add in the difference in times to Amsterdam and Paris and it's a no brainer.

I'm going back in April and flying both ways with KLM.

You're not really comparing like with like though. Flight times can vary for a number of reasons (prevailing winds make travel eastwards faster - planes don't travel fast enough to enjoy the benefit of the rotation of the earth) and flight plans are determined by many factors too meaning that even if the return flight was with the same airline, it may well have taken over twelve hours too.

athtrasna

Front of the plane Air France, back of the plane KLM!!

Something else to bear in mind is CDG can be a nightmare to transfer in whereas Schipol is designed for transitting passengers and is a more pleasant experience entirely.

How Strange

I'm flying long haul with KLM in a few months and I've heard from friends who flew long haul with them that it depends on their planes but tbh this is the case with most airlines, you can be lucky or unlucky on the day.

Schipol is a great airport for transiting, very pleasant as airports go. I've never transited through CDG so can't comment.

jells bells

I've had good experiences on each for long haul flights, but would prefer KLM. Flew them last year RT to Nairobi and it was likely the best long haul flight I've taken--great food, service, personal video screens with an extensive movie library.

And I echo others' opinions re: transferring in Schipol versus CDG...I usually end up having to run through CDG and have to go through immigration between flights--and that's flying from Dusseldorf to Dublin via CDG.