Qantas Trans-Tasman Business Class

[mmchow]

Huevos rancheros this morning from MEL-AKL. The Tabasco adds a little kick (such a tiny bottle).

 

[puppysparkes]

Huevos rancheros this morning from MEL-AKL. The Tabasco adds a little kick (such a tiny bottle). View attachment 73220

I would have that meal on any service, YUM!

 

[kermatu]

I really think they need to add some bacon or parmesan cheese to the pathetic salad dish.

Neil Perry would never allow it. Why depart from a masterpiece?

 

[puppysparkes]

QF 126 AKL-BNE this afternoon.

Another great flight with excellent food and service. The herbed caper relish had anchovy through it which some pax won't like. The fish flaked perfectly and surprisingly was not dry or overcooked.

 

[RichardMEL]

Comment on BNE-AKL menu. You know QCatering has done the job, and it seems some cost cutting there - the soup and pork options were offered on domestic J out of BNE this weekend !

 

[njba]

The meals look so much better when given space on a proper plate rather than pushed into one of those ceramic trays.

 

[kermatu]

The meals look so much better when given space on a proper plate rather than pushed into one of those ceramic trays.

They do look better but I reckon the servings are actually smaller. I'll be testing another menu very soon so will see.

 

[kermatu]

Menu from MEL-AKL 6pm flight early this week. I had both the salads -- very nice.

 

[NZ_Flyer]

As an aside kermatu, do you notice any difference in treatment between WP and WP1 from the Jetconnect crews? Or do they pretty much treat both tiers the same?

 

[kermatu]

As an aside kermatu, do you notice any difference in treatment between WP and WP1 from the Jetconnect crews? Or do they pretty much treat both tiers the same?

I think it's the same. No difference at all in J - I think all pax (other than staff travelling) are treated equally - though of course your CLs P1s and WPs are more likely to be row 1 so get the earlier and slightly more frequent service. May be more likely to get a bottle of wine to take with you, but that hasn't happened to me (and I've seen it happen to travelling staff, so who can tell).

I travelled back in Y the other day. Row 4. The (excellent) CSM Emma came back to greet me and a few others. Given express cards and (the old) noise-cancelling J headsets. They seem to be using the new headsets in J (same type as used on the refurbed A330s). Judging by the way seats filled up on expertflyer my guess is there were only two P1s or CLs amongst the 7 or 8 of us who got this greeting, so the rest would have been WPs. Offer/service was the same, best I could tell.

 

[Simo]

J on a 737 is a bit of a non event... Would rather save my points or cash and use it on a bigger plane with a longer flight duration...

 

[russ]

Especially if there's a perfectly good EK A380 on that route with regular F specials
(Ok, I know QF has more flights, but if EK fits your schedule, it's a great option)

 

[Solid]

Yes but it is a time issue. Unless you can do morning departure EK is out heading to NZ.

 

[kermatu]

Having now flown a few sectors with the new menu - my conclusions:

- menu is better, especially with an extra option, and presentation is great. Shame the salad leaves remain woeful.
- serving sizes are definitely smaller. Not a big issue (for me at least as I usually have time to eat in the SYD or MEL F Lounge, or the EK lounge out of AKL).
- service is painfully slow, and needs to improve.

On the latter point, by way of illustration - 2 scenarios:

First, I flew MEL-AKL at 6pm. A 3 hour 40 minute flight. Served drinks pretty quickly all fine. But it was exactly 1 hour after takeoff before I was served my starter. Then we had a 30 minute break for turbulence when the dinner service was ordered stopped. To this time only seats 1A and 1C had been served. When resumed there was still approx. 2 hours 10 minutes of the flight. But it took a full hour for me to be served my main, by which time the CSM had joined the J cabin. And there was "no time" for ice cream or cheese, nor for tea or coffee. The FA was not lazy she simply ran out of time, because her service was so slow. The third time I've experienced slow service with the new menu and service style.

Second, on return I was in row 4 (economy), but in Y we had:
- cordial offered
- a visit from the CSM for status pax
- lunch served to all of Y
- a substantial break (maybe 30 minutes)
- lunch cleared from all of Y and second drinks offered
- another maybe 20 minute gap
- ice cream served to all of Y
- rubbish started to be collected...
... and only at this point did the pax in seat 3D (business) get served his main meal! About 2hr45min hours into a 4hr10min flight. (roughly)
They did get dessert and tea and coffee, but it took all of the flying time.

Still early days so hopefully will improve. But not great if you want to eat fast and grab some rest (or just want a quiet cabin).

 

[njba]

I think it's the same. No difference at all in J - I think all pax (other than staff travelling) are treated equally - though of course your CLs P1s and WPs are more likely to be row 1 so get the earlier and slightly more frequent service. May be more likely to get a bottle of wine to take with you, but that hasn't happened to me (and I've seen it happen to travelling staff, so who can tell).

I think that goes to how friendly and service focused the Jet Connect crews are: everyone is treated like a near VIP. Which is great for us lower tiers!

 

[Shamrock55]

I nearly always sit in row 4 transtasman and as Gold always have a slightly lower level of welcome then the WPs, Hello, how are you thanks for flying, greet me by name etc. Today will be first flight as WP so expecting a express arrival card and a hug! OK maybe just the card.

Last J flight Syd-Wlg was a few weeks back and I decided there and then that row 4 was actually better then the legroom in J and I wasnt going to bother using points to upgrade again. Service was great, but as above actually slower then Y, and the food options that evening were not so flash. If you're in row 4 and hit the call bell its the J staff that come to top you up anyway...so doesnts feel worth it to blow 20,000 on a wider seat.

 

[Altair]

I nearly always sit in row 4 transtasman and as Gold always have a slightly lower level of welcome then the WPs, Hello, how are you thanks for flying, greet me by name etc. Today will be first flight as WP so expecting a express arrival card and a hug! OK maybe just the card.

Last J flight Syd-Wlg was a few weeks back and I decided there and then that row 4 was actually better then the legroom in J and I wasnt going to bother using points to upgrade again. Service was great, but as above actually slower then Y, and the food options that evening were not so flash. If you're in row 4 and hit the call bell its the J staff that come to top you up anyway...so doesnts feel worth it to blow 20,000 on a wider seat.

Out of SYD, with FLounge access, and no need to chase SC, Row 4 is definitely the best value proposition.
Congratulations on WP, it is very good to have on the TT flights, I sure do miss it.

 

[downgraded]

Not just a TT issue and slightly off topic, My general experience with full meal services on QFi J is that the gap between starter and main is so long that I've more than once asked if I've been forgotten whilst waiting for my main.

 

[kermatu]

Not just a TT issue and slightly off topic, My general experience with full meal services on QFi J is that the gap between starter and main is so long that I've more than once asked if I've been forgotten whilst waiting for my main.

I've noticed very slow service in J on the refurbished A330s (domestic) but not other domestic services nor on QFi J on 747s or A380s (am yet to fly on a refurbed A330 international). Have your experiences been on particular aircraft or routes?

My commentary re slow service in J on the TT routes is mainly a comparison against the former service. Increased choice and better presentation; smaller serves and far too slow.

 

[kermatu]

I nearly always sit in row 4 transtasman and as Gold always have a slightly lower level of welcome then the WPs, Hello, how are you thanks for flying, greet me by name etc. Today will be first flight as WP so expecting a express arrival card and a hug! OK maybe just the card.

Last J flight Syd-Wlg was a few weeks back and I decided there and then that row 4 was actually better then the legroom in J and I wasnt going to bother using points to upgrade again. Service was great, but as above actually slower then Y, and the food options that evening were not so flash. If you're in row 4 and hit the call bell its the J staff that come to top you up anyway...so doesnts feel worth it to blow 20,000 on a wider seat.

Congrats! I have just done a series of domestic and TT flights in J and Y (row 4). Certainly agree the legroom in row 4 is fantastic, and if you can secure an empty seat next to you, it is actually better. I usually get offered the drinks from upfront too. On Jetconnect you get served by the CSM in Y which is a plus.

While a couple of my favourite CSMs and J cabin managers have left recently, I will still fly Jetconnect trans-Tasman. Consistently good, friendly service is key. The hard product can't compete with EK F and J, but for 4 hours it's not a big deal. Flight times are far more convenient for me. That said, I think I will do an EK F return to Oz before too long just for a change!