Over the past year, Air France has been modernizing its fleet with the addition of more Airbus A350-900s and the introduction of the Airbus A220-300. These are the newest aircraft in the fleet. But what are Air France's oldest active aircraft? Let's take a look.

The oldest narrowbodies

The oldest narrowbody aircraft operated by Air France are a handful of Airbus A321-100s. These jets were first delivered to Air Inter in the mid-1990s, before operating under Air Inter Europe, and finally Air France from 1997.

The oldest of these - and the oldest of all Air France jets - is the Airbus A321-100 registered F-GMZA. With MSN 498, this aircraft is now roughly 28 and a half years old and was delivered to Air Inter June 1994. Initially, this aircraft was configured with 207​​​ seats in an all-economy configuration. In April of 1997, this aircraft (and others in the same batch) were reconfigured to 212 economy seats (with Euro business) as it moved to the mainline fleet of Air France.

Interestingly, F-GMZA doesn't appear to have a nickname of its own, unlike many other Air France aircraft. Conversely, others in same batch do have names, which include Nancy, Toulon, and Rouen. While Nancy can be a name for a person, it's also the name of a city in France. Any aircraft that do have nicknames are named after geographical areas in France.

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The oldest widebodies

The oldest widebody aircraft flying for Air France are a handful of Boeing 777-200ERs. All of these were delivered directly to Air France in the late 1990s.

The oldest of these was delivered in March of 1997 and is registered F-GSPA (MSN 29002/Line Number 129), which is nearly 25 years old. Powered by a pair of GE90 engines, this aircraft had an early configuration of 35 seats in business class, 24 in premium economy, and 250 in standard economy. However, from November 2016 the aircraft was reconfigured to seat 28 in business, 24 in premium economy, and 260 in economy class. Some note that it had an initial configuration with first class, business, and economy. However, the exact information on this layout could not be found.

Like the oldest narrowbody, F-GSPA​​ also lacks a nickname. Most of the 777-200ERs in the same group lack a nickname. All except for one: F-GSPF, which has the name "Compiègne."

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No clear replacement for the Airbus A321-100

While the incoming Airbus A350-900s are a suitable direct replacement for the aging Boeing 777-200ERs, there doesn't yet seem to be a chosen replacement for the old A321s.

Indeed, while it's clear that the carrier's A220-300s are great replacements for the Airbus A318 and A319, Air France has yet to place an order that will modernize its fleets of A320 and A321ceo aircraft. Yes, the Air France-KLM Group has placed orders for A320neo family jets - but these are slated to fly with other group members KLM and Transavia.

Of course, if we were to guess and speculate, then the A320neo family of aircraft would be the clear choice for the airline - mainly due to an identical type rating with existing A320 family aircraft.

Have you flown on any of Air France's old aircraft recently? Share your experiences by leaving a comment.

Sources: Planespotters.net, ch-aviation.com

• 

  Air France

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  AF/AFR

  Airline Type:

  Full Service Carrier

  Hub(s):

  Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport

  Year Founded:

  1933

  Alliance:

  SkyTeam

  Airline Group:

  Air France-KLM

  CEO:

  Anne Rigail

  Country:

  France