Qantas Boeing 787-9 premium economy seat

[DavidFlynn]

Also has anybody noticed if the centre arm can be lifted up.

It cannot.

 

[oz_mark]

It cannot.

I may be wrong, but I think I saw a picture showing it where the tables were stored. Also has the little coughtail table thing at the front.

 

[DavidFlynn]

That's correct - the tables stow into the centre arm – but the arm module itself does not move (which I think is the question being asked?).

 

[MEL_Traveller]

The press release said the aisle armrests can be lowered to facilitate access to the aisle.

 

[DavidFlynn]

Aisle armrest, yes, but not the centre ones between seats.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

Personally, I find the QF Y seat more comfortable than the current QF PE because of the odd positioning of the surfaces.

Footrests like this are useless for tall people. It's all about the angle of your quads which quals available knee room at the height which is most comfortable.

For example, next time you fly try this: put the heel of your foot (shoes off) on the edge of your seat, so you're almost in a squatting position. Wrap the seat belt around your legs and buckle. Tall-ish people will find this position very comfortable... at least for a few minutes until the belt cuts off the blood.

That looks really tight. 38" isn't revolutionary or class leading. I think QF missed an opportunity here.

The bull**** which comes out of QF PR isn't even worth the time of day. I don't even read their press releases anymore.
QF PR throws around words like innovation, best in class, game changing, revolutionary etc like they're standard adjectives.

What was the last innovative or truly game changing product they released?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

What was the last innovative or truly game changing product they released?

Business class in 1979?

 

[Happy Trails]

What was the last innovative or truly game changing product they released?

Increasing pax and removing toilets from the A380s?

 

[oz_mark]

That's correct - the tables stow into the centre arm – but the arm module itself does not move (which I think is the question being asked?).

Indeed, but I assume the reason they can't move is because that's where the tables are stowed.

 

[Pierre_a]

I have exactly the same issue - nothing "Premium" about having the Ent. Screen 10"'s from your face.

Well that depends on how far away the screen is in the alternative offering! If its 5"s, I'd say you're ahead.

 

[jpk]

What was the last innovative or truly game changing product they released?

Simpler & Fairer?
Sorry, I'll get my coat...

 

[Digger11]

Well that depends on how far away the screen is in the alternative offering! If its 5"s, I'd say you're ahead.

Fair point Pierre ! It all depends where you start from.

cheers.

 

[mannej]

Out of interest, if we were to see Angled Lay flat's for this cabin, would the more appropriate name be "Business Light"?

 

[trippin_the_rift]

Out of interest, if we were to see Angled Lay flat's for this cabin, would the more appropriate name be "Business Light"?

I believe the internal name might be 'Profit Killer'.

 

[Pierre_a]

Regardless of price differentials between QF products, I am mystified how QF arrives at the pricing of the their PE product in wider market and who is buying it.

For the peak season dates next Dec - Jan for MEL - LHR I am looking at, the cheapest QF PE fare in the market is averaging over $6k (based on 2 adult 1 child).

This compares with SQ fares in the same class of just under $3.8k. When you're buying 3 tickets as I am the difference is getting on for 7k, enough for an extra person!

That's bad enough, but when you start pricing up J fares you can see CX availability for $5.9k, BA for $6.2k, QR for $6.6k. So not only is the QF PE fare in peak period noncompetitive in its market, its noncompetitive in the premium segment above.

In my simple head I generally assume the consumer is rational so I am left wondering - who is buying these fares? Surely it can't all be corporate accounts or true blue Aussies determined to fly their national carrier...can it?

Bringing the subject round to this thread, regardless of the value proposition offered by the 787 product in PE, angled flat or otherwise there is no way I could consider flying it when the price premium is so large other 1st tier airlines undercut it with their J fares - and don't make me stop in Perth.

EDIT: Accepting I am only looking at a very narrow and specific set of circumstances.

 

[sudoer]

For the peak season dates next Dec - Jan for MEL - LHR I am looking at, the cheapest QF PE fare in the market is averaging over $6k (based on 2 adult 1 child).

Qantas international pricing often baffles me - especially when booking in advance, there can be hugely illogical pricing structures and QF seemingly pay little attention to what their competitors are charging on the same routes. I think this was a big driver behind simpler & fairer. By cutting your competitor's SC earn rates, you boost your own competitive edge for QFF members without having to improve your offering!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

In my simple head I generally assume the consumer is rational so I am left wondering - who is buying these fares? Surely it can't all be corporate accounts or true blue Aussies determined to fly their national carrier...can it?

The flaw might be the assumption that the passenger is 'rational'.

Some fares will be corporate - where policies don't permit business class travel. QF bumps up the fare so they don't lose out on that revenue.

Others have qantas club membership... and the lure of the lounge blinds them to other options.

Others like the 'feel at home' and safety they get from QF. Again, blinded to cheaper options available.

For $3.8k you could even get a mixed economy/business class all the way to europe.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

Qantas international pricing often baffles me - especially when booking in advance, there can be hugely illogical pricing structures and QF seemingly pay little attention to what their competitors are charging on the same routes. I think this was a big driver behind simpler & fairer. By cutting your competitor's SC earn rates, you boost your own competitive edge for QFF members without having to improve your offering!

Without going too much off topic: Qantas does pay attention to who they believe are competitors.

Emirates is a legalized collusion partner so forget about them.
So is AA. Kind of.
Once you cut out USA and Europe - there's not a lot left to compete on.

Another argument could be - why does Qantas need to compete on price at all? They're more profitable than most of their competitors. The loyalty program generates more cash per member than any other program, they have a near monopoly in the domestic market, and Qantas has withdrawn capacity from routes which they can't create a competitive edge.

Furthermore, Qantas segmetns the FF audience by propensity to fly and engage. How likely is it your next flight will be on Qantas based on your FF account activity (yes it's possible to predict if you're likely to fly Qantas soon based entirely on your points activity).

On top of all this, the business intelligence team has insights to behavioral and prescriptive analytics which provide data on if you're going to fly another airline anytime soon.

Pricing is dynamic. The only constant is you.
So if you think the price is too high - either Qantas thinks they'll fill the plane, in which case - who gives a **** about you anyway? Or, you're not the type of customer Qantas wants to attract RIGHT NOW.

Premium economy is another layer on top of all the junk. You can bet your first born child that when you go to the Qantas site to look at the new premium economy, that your propensity score on likelihood to buy a PE ticket will change.

The only way to stop the cycle is to stop flying Qantas no matter what your gut feeling tells you to do.

 

[lastrow]

Out of interest, if we were to see Angled Lay flat's for this cabin, would the more appropriate name be "Business Light"?

Probably more appropriate to call it "lights out".

 

[PineappleSkip]

Flew Y+ SYD-HKG today at more than 2 times what the comparable Y sale fare was at the time. But that was still less than 1/2 the price of sale J. QF PE is still a nice product, hard and soft, not incomparable in both regards with Domestic J. I didn't feel at all ripped off. After all a discount domestic J ticket might be 5 times the price a discount Y ticket. J was just over 1/2 full, PE about 80%, although there was a lot of churn in the seat selections in the last 48 hours, presumably as people were upgraded PE to J, and Y to PE.

Cheers skip