MEL - LHR Return on QF in Business

[willjd]

Hi All

Just thought i would share my recent travel experience flying Qantas Business Class from on QF9 Melbourne - Heathrow Return. (upgrade with points so no chauffeur service). I will premise the review by saying i have not experienced any other airlines Business class


Having flown through Dubai before and knowing the connections times we opted to switch to the Sydney flight (QF1) in Dubai giving us more time to relax on the ground and not arriving in London so early.

Check in
Was quick and painless, no waiting around in the economy queue, we were given our express card through security although these weren't really needed as the express queue was just as long as the normal queue, and straight through to the Qantas Business Lounge.

International Business Lounge
As a Qantas club member have been in here a number of times so no longer wowed by the lounge (as i know what to expect) however my parents recently experienced it for the first time and were very impressed. Food options were a little limited - normal salad offerings plus a Beef stew and cous cous.
I did notice that they don't come around with the little offerings like a cone of chips (french fries) or the fish and chips which were a nice touch in the past.
Normal options of drinks available (all free) and the addition of a ice cream stand which went down very nicely after the 35 degree we drove to the airport in.
Once the plane was ready to board (2 hours late - long story...) we we called on the tannoy and walked through the lounge to the plane (rather than going through the gate with the other passengers)

Boarding
As we were in Business we boarded on the upper deck ramp and were quickly and painlessly in our seats, with ample overhead bin space (pretty much 1 per person)

Business seat
We were sat on the last row of Business Class seats and the middle, the position of these seats i original thought weren't great but to be honest it made no difference whatsoever, they were very comfortable in the sitting position and the ability to lay flat in a 'bed' was fantastic. The roll out mattress makes a big difference. The pillow and blanket were both very comfortable and warm, and the PJs they hand out also helped relax.

Food
To be honest the food was lovely, however my only gripe was that being Business class there weren't that many simple food options (wife is pregnant) but a small gripe overall.

Flight Melbourne - Dubai
Our flight was delayed 2 hours leaving Melbourne due to a aircraft issue which time to resolve, however the flight itself was smooth, we were served a two course meal within an hour of leaving and settled into a few movies and then my 7 hour sleep, leaving me time to freshen up before a dinner service shortly before landing in Dubai

Dubai Airport / Lounge
From reading these forums i was initially very worried what it was going to be like (i even remember telling myself on getting off plane not to hold the wife's hand etc and no body contact etc) but there was nothing to worry about. Dubai airport is spacious and clean, the customs processes were a little annoying in that we had our bags scanned etc straight after we got off the plane, but took no more than 10 minutes to get through, and follow the signs to the Business Lounge. Wow. The Business lounge is Melbourne is nice but this is another planet. It stretches the length of the terminal with lifts along each length which lead directly to the departure gates. There are food places along the length which serve a variety of western and middle eastern food options and drink (all free), there are shower 'blocks' within the lounge too which are really mini bathrooms offering a hot shower with clean towels, toothbrushes, combs etc to freshen up.

Flight Dubai - London
Switching to the Sydney flight was supposed to give more time in the lounge to relax but as it was we just had time to have a shower and get to the gate to get the lift down to the plane. On getting to our seats, we were now a window and aisle seat and these were just as good (maybe slightly better with storage bins next to window), we filled out our breakfast order and handed to the Flight Attendant. The flight was pretty uneventful, we were served a very light supper (it was around 2am Dubai time) and were served our pre-ordered breakfast shortly before landing in London

Heathrow Airport
Heathrow was the same as it always is in that we seemed to be parked the furthest away from the terminal as usual however passport control was quick and our bags were there on the luggage belt when we arrived.

Reverse Journey

Flight London - Dubai
As we left London at 10pm we were ready for bed as the plane left however as the journey time was only 5hr 50 to Dubai (we had a tail wind) we only slept for maybe 2 hours, which meant being very tired when we arrived in Dubai

Flight Dubai - Melbourne
Flight again was uneventful in that we were served lunch when we left Dubai and then breakfast (after filling out the order form) before landing in Melbourne. One negative on this leg would be that as i was still on London time i was hungry half way through the flight but the only snack options they had were nuts and crisps. I would have thought a sandwich of some sort would / should have been available?

Arrival back in Melbourne
All good except that our Business tagged bags were amongst the last to arrive on the luggage belt? If Heathrow can manage it surely Melbourne can??


All in all the Business class product is fantastically comfortable and makes the 20hr+ journey to London appear quick and painless. I could not afford to pay outright for Business however i can see why people would.

 

[Melburnian1]

Could you fill us in on what the 'aircraft issue' was that resulted in a two hour late departure from MEL on the forward trip?

It is a matter of public record that QF is not doing well on the MEL (particularly) or SYD - DXB - LHR routes with one or two recent comments in the media stating this. How many were on each of the four legs in each class if you managed to observe or ask?

The media comments may relate more to the total yields (passenger plus freight revenue) rather than always to raw passenger numbers, as whether the plane is full may bear no relation to whether it is a profitable flight for the airline after fixed and variable costs are deducted.

 

[mannej]

Could you fill us in on what the 'aircraft issue' was that resulted in a two hour late departure from MEL on the forward trip?

It is a matter of public record that QF is not doing well on the MEL (particularly) or SYD - DXB - LHR routes with one or two recent comments in the media stating this. How many were on each of the four legs in each class if you managed to observe or ask?

What does it matter? What more info do you need after the OP stated it was a 2 hr delay due to an aircraft issue?

Are you going to comment on the NZ delay last night due to the engine issues?

 

[Rebekkap]

Could you fill us in on what the 'aircraft issue' was that resulted in a two hour late departure from MEL on the forward trip?

It is a matter of public record that QF is not doing well on the MEL (particularly) or SYD - DXB - LHR routes with one or two recent comments in the media stating this. How many were on each of the four legs in each class if you managed to observe or ask?

The media comments may relate more to the total yields (passenger plus freight revenue) rather than always to raw passenger numbers, as whether the plane is full may bear no relation to whether it is a profitable flight for the airline after fixed and variable costs are deducted.

Willjd, wondering if you flew to London on 18 December? We flew on QF 9 that day and it was around that lateness. For the curious, this was due to the fuel according to the computer not matching the fuel according to the paperwork. They needed to add extra fuel to fix the issue, and it took a while to get the refuel.

 

[Melburnian1]

Rebekkap, I wonder if the redoubtable jb747 was pilot in command that afternoon? Thank you for your very kind, constructive and informative reply.

This afternoon's QF9 was 46 minutes late away, while Tuesday 7 January's was just over half an hour late departing. Not as bad as a two hour delay.

In another thread, AFFer Ansett had this suggestion for those who complain about particular threads:

Simple Solution to your issue Dont Read the Posts LOL and perhaps unsubscribe

 

[JessicaTam]

Rebekkap, I wonder if the redoubtable jb747 was pilot in command that afternoon? Thank you for your very kind, constructive and informative reply.

This afternoon's QF9 was 46 minutes late away, while Tuesday 7 January's was just over half an hour late departing. Not as bad as a two hour delay.

In another thread, AFFer Ansett had this suggestion for those who complain about particular threads:

Simple Solution to your issue Dont Read the Posts LOL and perhaps unsubscribe

But then you might miss out on the gems amongst the chaff.

 

[willjd]

Willjd, wondering if you flew to London on 18 December? We flew on QF 9 that day and it was around that lateness. For the curious, this was due to the fuel according to the computer not matching the fuel according to the paperwork. They needed to add extra fuel to fix the issue, and it took a while to get the refuel.

Hi there, nope was 20th dec. apparently there was a fluid leak and they were flying a part in from Sydney. In the end they fixed it without needing the part. As annoying as the delay was qantas did keep us all informed with updates roughly every 20 minutes.

as for the loads, it was full in every class, never been on a qf9/10 when it hasn't - roughly 2 or 3 trips a year

 

[bryanjones]

Willjd, wondering if you flew to London on 18 December? We flew on QF 9 that day and it was around that lateness. For the curious, this was due to the fuel according to the computer not matching the fuel according to the paperwork. They needed to add extra fuel to fix the issue, and it took a while to get the refuel.

and if i was on that flight i would be glad they checked!

 

[markis10]

It is a matter of public record that QF is not doing well on the MEL (particularly) or SYD - DXB - LHR routes with one or two recent comments in the media stating this. How many were on each of the four legs in each class if you managed to observe or ask.

Public record would mean its been made by the company as a stated fact, "journalist" speculation is nothing more than speculation.If you believe what you read in the press then your world is very unrealistic.

 

[Melburnian1]

Public record would mean its been made by the company as a stated fact, "journalist" speculation is nothing more than speculation.If you believe what you read in the press then your world is very unrealistic.

markis10, like many other readers of the print media, viewers of Internet or television or radio listeners, I 'filter' information and say 'on the basis of what I have read before from journalist X, he or she is likely (unlikely) to be factual on this occasion.'

An unethical journalist could make something up, but depending on the severity of the (alleged to be false) claim, a company such as QF could contact the reporter concerned and seek a published correction, complain direct to the editor, producer or manager as the case may be and seek same, or in a really bad case seek damages by civil action.

If you dismiss everything you read in the press (or refuse to read the print or online mainstream media at all), you would miss out on much that is happening in Australia) and the world.

The more experienced jounalists can talk to AJ, JB or other QF or VA representatives reasonably often. I daresay some of the journalists are well informed because the best ones develop a good understanding of the subject matter and have a large number of 'contacts.'

In September 2013, QF flights were 93 per cent full in one direction (in or south bound) on the SYD and MEL - DXB - LHR routes (at least for those passengers ex or to Australia and 86.5 per cent full in the other direction to the more northerly destinations:

http://www.bitre.gov.au/publications/ongoing/files/International_airline_activity_1309.pdf

By itself, that does not tell us if QF is doing well, because it may have had to deeply discount a lot of seats, or alternatively had a terrific month and made a good profit overall. For that latter detail, we must rely on either occasional stockmarket updates or our friends the journalists probing the company concerned. To my knowledge, QF has not refuted the claims about it not doing particularly well on the LHR routes so unless it enjoys being 'beaten up' in the media for no good reason, a fair hypothesis is that there's a bit more than a grain of truth in the media's suggestions.

My previous suggestion that many Australians dislike travelling via the Middle East and want to stick with the far more culturally similar Asian intermediate stops may be at least partly vindicated by QF's troubles, although as always there are lots of factors involved: pricing and fares versus competitors', the timetable - good or bad for business or leisure travellers and passenger perceptions of the many airlines trying to carve a slice of the Oz - Europe routes are three.

 

[markis10]

My previous suggestion that many Australians dislike travelling via the Middle East and want to stick with the far more culturally similar Asian intermediate stops may be at least partly vindicated by QF's troubles, although as always there are lots of factors involved: pricing and fares versus competitors', the timetable - good or bad for business or leisure travellers and passenger perceptions of the many airlines trying to carve a slice of the Oz - Europe routes are three.

Your previous suggestion that Australians dislike travelling via the Middle East is pure rubbish, not borne out by facts at all, since April 1 QF has grown traffic to Europe monthly on a year VS year basis, via EK has gone from 2 to 10% of the AU market share in ten years, I would suggest you need some new filters, ones based on data not speculation.

 

[Melburnian1]

markis10, in 2003-04 according to BITRE, QF had an overall market share of Australian international passenger arrivals and departures of 30.5 per cent. That was worldwide.

By 2012-13 that percentage had declined to 17.2. This latter figure does not include the orange cancer's market share. So there may be a degree of 'cannibalisation' by EK of QF passengers.

The overall market has dramatically expanded in the last nine or ten years, so one might expect most airlines to carry more passengers each year, although economic events such as the difficulties of 2009 can put a temporary halt to the usual growth

 

[markis10]

markis10, in 2003-04 according to BITRE, QF had an overall market share of Australian international passenger arrivals and departures of 30.5 per cent. That was worldwide.

By 2012-13 that percentage had declined to 17.2. This latter figure does not include the orange cancer's market share. So there may be a degree of 'cannibalisation' by EK of QF passengers.

The overall market has dramatically expanded in the last nine or ten years, so one might expect most airlines to carry more passengers each year, although economic events such as the difficulties of 2009 can put a temporary halt to the usual growth

If Australians dont want to travel to the middle east you would think EK, EY and QR would struggle, they are not evidently, funny that.

 

[Isochronous]

But does QF's 17.2 figure or whatever include travellers on EK who bought on the QF code?

 

[Melburnian1]

But does QF's 17.2 figure or whatever include travellers on EK who bought on the QF code?

Yes, it does. BITRE explains it thus:

http://www.bitre.gov.au/publications/ongoing/files/International_airline_activity_1309.pdf

15. Airline data – Reporting of code share services:

Reporting of traffic split by airline code for code share arrangements was discontinued
as of June 2000. For July 2000 and onwards, ALL traffic carried is reported under the
operating airline regardless of code share arrangements.

 

[willjd]

Appears I have been hijacked somewhat after what (I thought) was a simple review of the qantas service I received.
Hope it has been of use to others who were thinking of flying qantas business.

 

[opusman]

Appears I have been hijacked somewhat

Welcome to the internet

 

[boomy]

Arrival back in Melbourne
All good except that our Business tagged bags were amongst the last to arrive on the luggage belt? If Heathrow can manage it surely Melbourne can??

Welcome to MEL airport...where priority tags mean nothing.

 

[defurax]

Reverse Journey

Flight Dubai - Melbourne
Flight again was uneventful in that we were served lunch when we left Dubai and then breakfast (after filling out the order form) before landing in Melbourne. One negative on this leg would be that as i was still on London time i was hungry half way through the flight but the only snack options they had were nuts and crisps. I would have thought a sandwich of some sort would / should have been available?

I find that particularly troubling on a long haul flight... maybe I've been lucky, but in the past I've always managed to get a real snack on QF J long haul (e.g schnitzel sandwich)

 

[opusman]

Welcome to MEL airport...where priority tags mean nothing.

Yes they do - they mean send it out last!