CDG to JFK

No matter which airline you use, for a flight across the Atlantic from CDG it is wise to be at the airport a full three hours before your scheduled departure time.

Arrange to be at airport 3 hours in advance, if you want to play roulette you can try for 2.5 , but only if you have no VAT to attend to.. if you do wish to deal with VAT then I personally would allow 3.5 hours. Keep in mind this is the last weekend before Xmas , the airports will be busy with many folks travelling to visit family etc, so its the check in for security that can be time consuming.

We flew out of CDG on the 10th (Dec) and getting checked in and going through security was quick but we were flying business class (Envoy on US Airways) and had no luggage to check. Basically they did a quick check of our documents, gave us a priority pass for security and pointed us to the Star Alliance lounge (which is prior to going through security). Our flight was 11am and we were at the airport early (830iah) and had tons of time to kill. When we left the lounge and went through security it only took about 10-15 minutes and most of that was due to a couple of clueless flight attendants (the female FA didn't want to listen to the security person and kept ignoring requests to remove liquids, take off metal items, etc.). The non-priority security lines didn't seem bad. I had heard the 3 hr time as well but based on a limited one time experience it seemed way too long. I would point out that the airport overall is pretty confusing so if you are trying to arrive by the RER, etc. you might need to allow for time getting lost. BTW we spent the last night at the airport hotel (sheraton) and would definitely recommend that if you have a morning flight out of CDG. Very quiet and much less stressful making your way to the airport.

Went through CDG to Lax this past October and it was very fast! Big difference
going through Heathrow, wow. However,always plan for the worst! 3.5 hours is best! Happy Travels!