1966, Festival in the sky

For a long time, the idea seemed unlikely, as the first cabins weren't really suited to cinema. They were too narrow to accommodate a projector, they were noisy and subject to turbulence. Everything changed after World War II.

Inflight movies take off

On long flights, some as long as twenty hours, entertainment became necessary and cinema made sense, as it was more popular than ever. In 1966 the first film was shown on board. Innovation became more widespread, with twenty Boeing 707 fitted out with projectors hidden in the ceiling and retractable screens in the cabin. Thanks to individual headphones – for a fee in Economy class - passengers could choose their soundtrack, in English or French. Two films were shown on long flights such as Paris-Tokyo. Viva Maria by Louis Malle launched the inflight movie service in May 1966 between Paris and New York. Besides cinema, a wide range of inflight entertainment was then proposed, ranging from symphonic music in stereo to news bulletins, with the wide variety on offer justifying the name "Festival in the sky".

From a shared screen to an individual screen

In the late 90s, the large shared screens which took up too much space in the front of each cabin were gradually replaced by video on individual screens. Every month, a renewed offer of around one hundred films and series is available throughout the flight. With over 38,000 seats equipped on long-haul flights and up to 1,200 hours of programmes available each month, Air France is now one of the largest movie theaters in the world!