France’s Unconventional Budget Airline Only Offers Business Class – Round-Trip Paris–New York for Just $50,000

▲ France’s emerging airline La Compagnie. (Photo / fromLa Compagnie’s official Facebook page)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Budget airlines are popular worldwide, but a new French airlineLa Compagniethat launched in July this year is doing the opposite by offering exclusively business-class services onboard. More importantly, ticket prices are only half of what you’d normally pay for business class, and currently, the flights mainly operate between Paris and New York.

According to the UK’sDaily Mail,La Compagnie, which operates on the philosophy of “providing passengers with exclusive business-class services at an affordable price,” uses Boeing 757-200 aircraft. The cabin has only 19 rows and 74 seats. Since it offers only business class, all services—from in-flight service to seats and meals—are on par with other airlines’ business-class offerings.

In addition to being spacious and comfortable, each seat comes with a massage function. If you want to take a nap, the seats can recline into a single bed, providing passengers with a comfortable resting space. Moreover,La Compagnie has also enlisted renowned French Michelin-starred chef Christophe Langree to curate the in-flight meals. The aircraft is also equipped with Wi-Fi, and each passenger is provided with a Samsung tablet to choose from music, movies, or e-books to pass the time during long flights.

▲ %a Compagnie’s seats and in-flight entertainment are nearly on par with those offered in business class by regular airlines, and it has even hired a famous Michelin chef to create the meals. (Photo / from La Compagnie’s official Facebook page, screenshot from the UK Daily Mail)

In terms of airport services, passengers can use the VIP lounges at both Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport in the U.S., and they also enjoy expedited customs clearance. For such a premium flight experience, round-trip tickets are available for just €1,200 (approximately NT$47,000), which is over NT$80,000 cheaper than a typical Air France flight. As a result, it has been very popular among business travelers since its launch.

La Compagnie currently operates about 4–5 flights per week between Paris and New York. It also plans to introduce a second aircraft in December, and future routes will expand along with the arrival of the new plane.