After some lousy experiences flying in France (I don't speak French at all, so radio work was English), I vowed to never fly there again!
Hm. Hm hm hhhmmmmmm. Curious to learn how "lousy" these experiences actually were. Can't help wondering you were perhaps too lazy and/or too stupid to learn even the basics of a language you could easily have known would be required, and are pushing the blame as far away as you can.
Ever imagined how lousy the experience would be for a French-only speaker venturing into merry old England? Not to mention MJ country, of course.
Of course there are exceptions everywhere, but generally no European country has less welcome for non-local-speakers than the UK. (Or you should consider Russia to be European.) So don't be hard on the French, they are learning fast. Even if I must admit they had a long way to go, they have by now made better progress than the Brits. Again, this is speaking on a general note, and there will be exceptions everywhere.