Qantas boosts international capacity, wet lease Finnair aircraft

[big_RED]

Did you miss this?
View attachment 367360
Cheers,
Matt

Yep I missed that as well! But it does prove the point it wasn't very visible vs the Qantas website when seems much more transparent.

I was moreso just highlighting I didn't think it was too obvious during the booking process and what my experience onboard was. Purely subjective but thought it might help others if they are taking this flight.

 

[LondonAussie]

Hmm, I note that the press release states (emphasis mine)

customers continuing to receive Qantas’ inflight food and beverage service, amenities, inflight entertainment and baggage allowance

I know both Qantas and Finnair use Panasonic eX3 IFE systems, but I assume by this statement they mean it will have Qantas' user interface and media library. Would they actually be re-programming the IFE system in Singapore every stop to switch between Qantas and Finnair systems?

Was it confirmed if the IFE system on these wetlease planes have the Qantas movies loaded instead of the Finnair ones?

 

[encryptededdy]

Was it confirmed if the IFE system on these wetlease planes have the Qantas movies loaded instead of the Finnair ones?

Yeah, that's what I saw when I flew. Still Finnair UI though.

 

[LondonAussie]

Yeah, that's what I saw when I flew. Still Finnair UI though.

That's not what I wanted to hear! For my upcoming flight, Finnair has some movies that Qantas doesn't.

Thanks for confirming though (and yes I know, very much a "first world problem").

 

[Brucetiki]

I’ve booked on this flight from SIN-SYD later this year.

As an av geek, looking forward to flying on something that wouldn’t normally venture to Australia.

Also seems to be a habit that I pick the wet-leased planes for recent Qantas flights. My last Qantas flights were ADL-BNE return on the E190’s.

 

[Flyfrequently]

Yeah, that's what I saw when I flew.

If you were in J on the A330, may I ask your thoughts on the "no recline" seat @encryptededdy or other AFFer's who have flown Finnair?
Overnight think the lie flat bed would be OK, but as I'm not an upright sitter, am unsure about the seat.
YouTube hasn't convinced me yet.

 

[encryptededdy]

If you were in J on the A330, may I ask your thoughts on the "no recline" seat @encryptededdy or other AFFer's who have flown Finnair?
Overnight think the lie flat bed would be OK, but as I'm not an upright sitter, am unsure about the seat.
YouTube hasn't convinced me yet.

I took an overnight flight and slept the whole time

In general though I think it's fine. Only issue is that Qantas doesn't supply 2x large pillows like Finnair intends (only 1 large and 1 small), so you may find it harder to support your back in unconventional sitting positions.

 

[Lynda2475]

I'm not a fan see my thoughts here Qantas boosts international capacity, wet lease Finnair aircraft

Suggest you read this thread from beginning plenty of differing opinions, some love it. But most agree the sleeping belt being retractable is a negative, then again maybe some don't use it.

 

[Flyfrequently]

Thanks for that thread @Lynda2475

I did read it months ago but was not contemplatingQF291 then.
Now that Thailand is on our radar, am checking out options.

Also @BD1959 appreciated your thoughts on the Seat.
Mmmmm, am still pretty agile but after my shabby ankle from September misstep in Portugal, I think it's a "No" from me.

 

[tdimdad]

If you were in J on the A330, may I ask your thoughts on the "no recline" seat @encryptededdy or other AFFer's who have flown Finnair?
Overnight think the lie flat bed would be OK, but as I'm not an upright sitter, am unsure about the seat.
YouTube hasn't convinced me yet.

There are also more comments about the seat in another thread, mine included over there.

 

[Flyfrequently]

There are also more comments about the seat in another thread, mine included over there.

Thanks for the link @tdimdad , have taken onboard all comments.

 

[#flying]

Just got off my first Finnair wet lease flight in J and as much as I was excited to try the new seat I’m not a fan. When sitting upright, I found it difficult to get comfortable given the slight angle of recline (even with a couple of pillows). When sleeping I also found it difficult to get comfortable due to the weird angle of the footwell (I’m a side sleeper).

Aside from the comfort issues I also found the cabin to feel a bit sterile. Not sure exactly how to describe it but it lacked the warmth and coziness of the QF J cabin.

In any event I’m glad I got to try it out. If nothing else it gave me a renewed appreciation for the QF J seat!

 

[henrus]

In any event I’m glad I got to try it out.

This still seems to be the case, people either love it or hate it with no one in between.

If nothing else it gave me a renewed appreciation for the QF J seat

The current QF J seat is still very competitive relative to the other products flying to/from Australia. Sure it's no QSuite or ANA the room (although the latter doesn't fly to Australia) but when you've got airlines like Emirates still sending 777s with 2-3-2 angled flat J, QF is miles ahead.

 

[SYD]

Just got off my first Finnair wet lease flight in J and as much as I was excited to try the new seat I’m not a fan. When sitting upright, I found it difficult to get comfortable given the slight angle of recline (even with a couple of pillows). When sleeping I also found it difficult to get comfortable due to the weird angle of the footwell (I’m a side sleeper).

Aside from the comfort issues I also found the cabin to feel a bit sterile. Not sure exactly how to describe it but it lacked the warmth and coziness of the QF J cabin.

In any event I’m glad I got to try it out. If nothing else it gave me a renewed appreciation for the QF J seat!

Did you fly to or from Oz? I found the AY o/n service from SIN to be lacking compared to the exceptional service up to SIN on QF1.

 

[#flying]

Did you fly to or from Oz? I found the AY o/n service from SIN to be lacking compared to the exceptional service up to SIN on QF1.

Yes, from Sydney. I think the staff were trying their best but certainly lacked the typical warmth you get from Qantas crew (most of the time anyway)

 

[natenate]

I flew QF291 about a month ago in Y. We were travelling with two young kids and we (overall) had a good experience. We had 3 seats + bassinet. The flight attendants were mindful that we had a child in their own seat and made sure to check in with the parent whenever they provided meals/drinks. We also got gifted a Qantas toy and socks for our child which I thought was nice.

 

[AIRwin]

This still seems to be the case, people either love it or hate it with no one in between.

I submitted the minimum bid for an upgrade which was accepted so I'll get to try it out

 

[AIRwin]

I submitted the minimum bid for an upgrade which was accepted so I'll get to try it out

Well I ended up in a seat where my screen went black in the middle of the AY sAfetY video and my IFE froze a number of times despite multiple attempts to reboot:


So I gave up, wriggled into the seat and went to sleep instead...

 

[#flying]

IFE was also fairly buggy on my recent flight. Mine froze towards the start of the flight and eventually fixed itself. My travel companion experienced numerous freezes including one that lasted for a good 20 minutes after informing the cabin crew.

 

[snabbu]

Just got off my first Finnair wet lease flight in J and as much as I was excited to try the new seat I’m not a fan. When sitting upright, I found it difficult to get comfortable given the slight angle of recline (even with a couple of pillows). When sleeping I also found it difficult to get comfortable due to the weird angle of the footwell (I’m a side sleeper).

Aside from the comfort issues I also found the cabin to feel a bit sterile. Not sure exactly how to describe it but it lacked the warmth and coziness of the QF J cabin.

In any event I’m glad I got to try it out. If nothing else it gave me a renewed appreciation for the QF J seat!

I forgot to review my experience on 291/292 in J shortly after the service started and I would agree with most of the negative comments in this thread. I was super excited to try a product I'd never flown as the reviews were mostly positive however as above I'd take the QF J product every time.