I distinctly remember when AF still had the 'compromise' of the Clean Air cabin, in which a section near the loos was cordoned off with curtains so that the desperate smokers could indulge in their cancer sticks. However, the problem remained that smoke would inevitably seep out into the main cabin, annoying the poor souls nearest to said section.
Thankfully that practice soon went out the window. I hate to think how bad a smoking section in a plane must've been before the no-smoking policies were in place (back then I didn't gallivant around the world - then I was a desk-bound lackey).
S.