I was there on Sunday, the first "proper" day. Jacques Chirac had opened the show on Saturday, "preview" day which was when F-BTSD flew in. On Sunday she was sitting in the middle of the static park, easily attracting more attention than everything else around her put together. But no visits inside her - all you can do is grockle from the outside and shed a quiet tear.
It was a very hot day. The exhibition halls were steaming hot - almost unbearable by 11.30 am. The TV reporters and crews who were trying to lug stuff around to put stories together were just dripping and soaked. Being a public day, the high number of visitors was inevitably balanced by a very low number of exhibitors - and some of the stands obviously either hadn't been built yet or hadn't been occupied. I haven't been to a public day at either Farnborough or Paris for many years but it seemed to be busier than I've ever seen an air show. Maybe it's something to do with the fact that it cost virtually nothing to get in (€10), and virtually nothing to get there, compared to Farnborough.
I also found the flying display a bit flat - probably due to there being no American aircraft and no Russian military aircraft flying, for different reasons. Of what I saw, the Tiger and the C-27 were perhaps the most impressive. Interestingly, the air force display team (the Patrouille de France) did its stuff half way through the display, immediately after which the public started leaving in droves. Having been fed on a UK diet of Red Arrows, the display seemed very tame to me.
The big Boeing display is next to the 773. When I got there at about 1.30 to have a look, there was a sign saying closed from 1 to 4. When I went back at 4.45, there was a sign saying closed. So much for that. Maybe the beer's too good.
It was a very long day for me - 0620 flight from LHR and 2155 back from CDG (no chance of getting on anything earlier because, apparently, the Eurostar wasn't running and every flight was packed to the gunwales). I don't regret going, but I can't say that it was a particularly special trip. I think I might stick to trade days in future.