If you gad a choice of using British airways or AirFrance which would you go with. Does one operate smoother, more comfortable planes? Better on-board amenities - meals?

Flown both and don't think there is that much difference in amenities.
Both have upgraded us and BA was more comfortable in business class
I'd choose AirFrance simply because I'd rather avoid going through Heathrow.

Depends on where you are flying from if you have to go thru Heathrow on BA..Orlando flights land at gatwick. In coach BA 'seems" to have a bit more room than Delta or American.And we've often been offered upgrades to WTPlus or business for a cash fee.

What do you mean, "smoother"? You are in the sky, there is air around you.

Go with price and schedule and connections. I prefer AF, but cetainly you don't choose a few hour flight because of amenities, do you? Do not look to an airline for fine dining, either, it's just food and a few hours of your time.

I always choose AF because they have nonstop flights from where I live. I hate BA anyway, but if BA had a nonstop to where I wanted to go, and not AF, I would choose BA. I always choose based on the schedule and price.

"I'd choose AirFrance simply because I'd rather avoid going through Heathrow."

As opposed to going through CDG!!!

LOL alanRow....I'm with you. I would take Heathrow over CDG any day!!!!

Tracy

As opposed to going through CDG!!!

I know what you're saying but when you have to choose your poison...:->

When we've landed at Heathrow we've had to wait and then get into fully packed bus to reach to our connection terminal.At CDG we've simply walked to it. Much less hassle for us.

by "smoother" i mean a better run company - less hassle at counters, planes on time.
Ok you're all freaking me out now. What, dare I ask, is so horrible about Heathrow. If I did the BA itinerary, on my return, i would have to fly Marseille to gatwick, travel to heathrow and then fly home. If i did AF, I would have to go marseille to orly, swith to CDG and then fly home.
suggestions?

I don't understand the question.

Cmrey is American. There's no airport in the world that gets ex-US direct flights from both BA and AF. So Cmrey must be talking about a trip involving transfers.

Since the overall difference between the two airlines is far less than the random fluctuations with any single airline's performance, the only criterion worth a damn is ease of connection.

If you're taking a flight between California and the Continent (other than Paris or Amsterdam) BA wins hands down, since the single-terminal change BA offers at LHR is infinitely less painful than CDG. Ditto a flight between the rest of the US and Paris or Amsterdam, where again BA's single terminal transfer is better than CDG.

Otherwise, as a general rule, changing terminals at Heathrow is a bit worse than changing within Aerogare 2 at CDG.

If OTOH you're asking about a simple one-way flight between CDG and LHR, and the prices are the same, toss a coin and take whichever.

Thus freeing up your mind for things it's worth worrying about. Where to eat. Which book to buy. Why people take the Da Vinci code seriously.

Stuff like that.

If i did AF, I would have to go marseille to orly, swith to CDG and then fly home.

Sorry, we've always gotten our flights out of Marseille straight to CDG not Orly. Are you sure you can't do that?

Both Heathrow and CDG can be a real hassle to navigate when they're busy, especially in the summer months. So just pick the airline/fare that works best for you, and keep your fingers crossed. Getting there is NOT half the fun anymore.

Both BA and Air France are considered four star airlines. The U.S. airlines are three star. Free alcohol in coach is the norm on BA and Air France, but check schedules for best times. BA flies out of more cities in the United States and many flights go into Gatwick, avoiding Heathrow. But coach is tight in both and all airlines. BA does have economy plus.

AF are known in the travel industry as Air Chance - u really take a chance whether you will see your luggage again.

Instead of flying out of Marseille and connecting either Orly-CDG or Gatwick-Heathrow, could you fly out of Nice and then home ?

I've had to make the Gatwick -Heathrow trek and if there is any time pressure AT ALL, it is extremely stressful to possibly miss a fly home to US. I would avoid that connection more than worrying about BA vs AF

i am actually flying into nice to start my vac. On the return , i want to fly out of mrs because the last city i will be staying in in aix-en-provence. The short shuttle bus between aix and mrs will be convenient on the day of the flight as opposed to trying to get back to nice for the return.
The BA itinerary gives me like 6 hours between connections to make the LGW to LHR so i think i'll have enough time according to everyone's suggestions. I'll check again but i believe that by flying out of MRS, I could only find flight that would necessitate an airport trandfer to catch the connection ex. MRS to Orly , transfer to CDG, then CDG to Philadelphia.

AF flies MRS-CDG pretty frequently. At least three flights in the morning 6:35a, 8:00a, and 10:50a. No need to go to ORY.

We've flown Philadelphia to Marseille on AF and back several times and never had to go to Orly.
PHL-CDG-MRS
MRS-CDG-PHL

I consider the two airlines nearly identical in quality, so I would make my choice based on the best fare and convenience only.
And you absolutely do not have to fly to Orly from Marseille. All of the major French cities have flights on AF to both ORY and CDG.
If you have any fear of strikes, BA has had more major strikes recently than AF -- this should mean that AF is coming up for a strike soon, to even things out.

thanks for all the help. i've realized why i wasn't seeing the AF itinerary with mrs to cdg. the 10:50 am flight gets into cdg at 12:20 and the connecting flight for me would be at 1:15. I don't like to cut connections that close. I think i must have seen it and then wrote it off as not an option. There is a 8:00 am flight from mrs to cdg. Initially i thought it was too early, with hotl check out and all but now, i'm leaning toward it if it will save changing airports.