Do not trust Air France with your holiday plans

We have had an incredibly disappointing experience with Air France. Nearly two months ago, we booked our tickets well in advance, paying a significant premium to travel over the Easter weekend. While the standard return fare with Air France is approximately ZAR 16,700, we paid ZAR 23,000 to secure our preferred flight. We deliberately chose a direct flight despite the availability of cheaper connecting flights. Check-in for the flight opened 30 hours before departure, and we ensured that we checked in immediately. During the process, we successfully reserved a window and aisle seat. However, last night at 20:30—22 hours before takeoff—we received a message stating: "For operational reasons impacting your flight AF995 on April 20, 2025, from JNB to CDG, we must limit the number of passengers onboard. As a result, we have cancelled your original booking and rebooked you accordingly. Please visit our website to view your new itinerary and updated flight schedule." To our dismay, not only has our flight changed from Air France to KLM, but it now departs five hours later. Even more unacceptable is that the flight is no longer direct but includes a stopover in Amsterdam. No explanation has been provided, nor has any compensation been offered for the substantial additional cost we incurred when booking our tickets. To further compound the inconvenience, our seats have been arbitrarily reassigned by the airline, and we are now seated in the middle seats of a four-seat row. This experience has been utterly frustrating, and the lack of accountability from Air France is truly unacceptable.