ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 4 days 7 hours ago) and read 14658 times:
Couple of weeks back, I need to travel to Canberra for 11 days on a working trip. As my company has the policy of "flying with the cheapest full-service carrier" available, I was booked on Qantas for the trip. Over the weekend, I had also booked myself a short trip to Sydney. Overall, I would be flying Qantas on 6 sectors! How exciting can that be... On the bright side, I had booked on 5 different aircraft types, from the prop to the whale (Dash 8-Q400, B734, B738, B744 and A380) and as I had not flown QF internationally before, it would definitely be an experience. This report would be picture extensive, as per my previous reports.
27 November 2011
Qantas
QF 6
Singapore (SIN) - Sydney (SYD)
B747-400
VH-OJA (QF's First B744)
Economy Class
I had done online check-in 24hrs before and had grabbed myself a window seat in the mid-section of the plane. The plane was almost all sold out and on check-in, the middle seat was still vacent. Crossing my fingers it would be remain vacant! True enough (unfortunately), it was 100% full in economy when I enquired with the check-in agent at the baggage drop at Terminal 1. OMG, I am gonna get stuck at the window seat for the 7hrs flight...
Got a proper boarding pass at the bag drop counter. Was also issued with the boarding pass to Canberra. However bags needed to be retrieved at Sydney for customs clearance and re-checked in to Canberra.
Proceeded through immigration to the departure hall. The plane had already arrived from Frankfurt. It would be operated by Qantas's first B747-400! That is a 22 year old plane!
More plane-spotting. It was kinda boring with Jetstars and more Jetstars.
Seeing "stars" by now.
Departing from Gate C15. Boarding has already commenced but there was still a long queue clearing security. Boarding the legendary B747 again!
Welcomed by the crew and directed to the correct aisle. Almost all the crew today were "experienced" guys (only saw 2 ladies). However most were friendly and professional with the exception of 1 or 2 crew who did not really smile much.
Boarding in progress and passengers settling in. It was a horribly full flight! Guess it doesn't help much with the A380 operating the morning departure to Sydney instead. The seats are not re-upholstered in red covers yet. Unlike my previous flight a few yrs back where the seats were in red.
Seat width and pitch are really tight! It was going to be real torture...Thank goodness I can stretch my legs under the seat in front.
At the gate. Slightly delayed due to a no-show pax whose baggage needed to be off-loaded. Flight time was announced to be 7hrs.
On each seat was placed a blanket, large pillow, amenity kit and headset.
Unlike SQ, QF offers toothbrush set and an eyeshade in its amenity kit.
Stuff in seat-pocket. My seat was missing the inflight magazine.
As we were still waiting, the crew distributed menu cards. However no hot towels offered, haha. Interestingly, most of the crew on this flight were bilingual (seen from the national flags on their name-tags), probably due to the many code-shares. The 2 crew members serving my aisle can speak Spanish and French too! All announcements were also made in English and German.
Nice menu card. At least QF has not got rid of this.
Lets look at the menu. There is also an interesting time-line of the services provided during the journey of the flight.
SINGAPORE TO SYDNEY
MENU
Mediterranean Summer Salad
Choice of
Braised Chicken in Tomato and Olive Sauce with
Polenta and Beans or
Kung Po Style Pork Stir Fried with Fragrant Rice
and Greens
Soya Bean Pudding with Lychee
Chocolate
Grinders Coffee Dilmah Tea
Cadbury Hot Chocolate
Peppermint-Tea
Fresh fruit will be served throughout your flight
CAFE BREAKFAST
Orange Juice
Strawberry Yoghurt
Pain au Raisin
Grinders Coffee Dilmah Tea
The beverage menu is eye-boggling!!
Finally we are good to go. Safety demo was done both through video and manual demonstration by the crew. Lights were slightly dimmed (QF does not fully dim cabin lights for takeoff/landing). Had a rather long taxi to Rwy02C for takeoff.
Passing a Cathay B773 at Terminal 1.
And Lufthansa's A380 at Terminal 2!
Took off! Surprisingly no queues for takeoff. No video though as it was very dark. We made a right turn over Tekong and was on our way to Sydney.
After seatbelt signs were turned off, the crew sprang into action. First up, distribution of bottled water to all passengers.
No nuts/bar service though. Dinner was served less than an hour after takeoff. Some crew wore aprons while others changed into the service uniform (mandarin collar black shirt). I chose the pork with rice. Also had a Bundaberg Ginger Beer and a Jacobc Creek Sparkling Wine.
Salad and main course. Boring salad. Pork consisted of only very few minute pieces. Vegetables were overcooked. It was just very average.
Pudding and chocolate. The pudding tasted kinda disgusting! A very under-whelming meal overall...
While the meal trays were cleared. crew offered either peppermint tea or hot chocolate. I had the Cadbury hot chocolate. It was served with a marshmallow! Perfect bedtime drink!
Everything was cleared less than 2hrs after takeoff and lights were dimmed.
Visited the lavatory but no amenities in there other than the necessities, so no photos taken. I watched a movie and tried to get some sleep. But it was quite impossible in the cramped seats and I ended up half-awake most of the time.
Slightly less than 2hrs to landing, lights were turned back on the a light breakfast was served. The raisin pastry was served warm and quite nice. A nice change from SQ's muffin and roll.
The entire flight was relatively smooth. Even when there were slight turbulences (which felt strong enough for SQ pilots to turn on the seatbelt signs), the seatbelt signs were never once turned on. Apparently Qantas pilots are much less "trigger-happy" with the signs.
Dawn
Cabin after breakfast.
Starting our descent into Sydney. Headsets were never collected and we were free to use them from boarding till landing! Entertainment system were also switched on shortly after boarding with announcements that we can start using the IFE till we were parked at the gate on arrival! So what is the "safety issue" here, SQ?
Speedbrakes up. Leaving the coast before making a turn to line up with the runway.
Flaps down.
Rising sun over the sea. Pardon for the badly-scratched window.
My first international flight on Qantas and would I do it again? Probably not long-haul on the B744 as it is really too cramped for me! Coupled with the big recline angle, it was really claustrophobic when the person in front fully reclines. The meals on this sector were probably average (dinner was bad, breakfast was ok) but hot chocolate was great! No complaints regarding the service either. We will see how the return flight on the A380 compares.
Cleared immigration, retrieved my check-in bags and cleared customs and proceeded to the Domestic Transfer counters to drop my bags for the next flight. Took the complimentary Qantas transfer bus to the domestic terminal. The bus went across the tarmac straight to the T3, Qantas's main domestic terminal.
Air Austral B773ER
Qantas B744
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 1, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 4 days 2 hours ago) and read 14164 times:
Passing the Qantas Hangars while on the transfer bus.
QF B744ER with F1 Livery
Another QF B744ER, in Wunala Dreaming Livery
Reaching Qantas Land, aka Terminal 3.
QF B738
FIDS
Saw a Qantas Heritage Museum on the upper level of the Terminal. Being the aviation enthusiast, of course I paid a visit since I still have some time till my next flight. Entry is free but it is opened only during weekdays working hours.
Lots of Qantas models on display.
Old vs New
The various Qantas uniforms through the years.
Interesting exhibits!
I want that bag!
The heritage museum also had a great view of the tarmac and runways! A QF B763 preparing for the next domestic flight.
More QFs and Jetstars.
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 2, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 4 days ago) and read 13919 times:
Air Austral B773ER taking off.
Boarding gates.
The transit in Sydney was 2hrs. Plenty of time to do the transfer between the 2 flights. My flight to Canberra would be departing from Gate 9. At every gate, there were newspaper racks offering the day's publication for free to all Qantas passengers. A very nice gesture! 28 November 2011
Qantas
QF 787
Sydney (SYD) - Canberra (CBR)
B737-400
VH-TJZ
Economy Class
Operating today's short hop to the capital is VH-TJZ, a 15 years old B734. Certainly younger than the B744 I flew in on.
Boarding was announced 15min prior to STD and passengers trooped onboard. Headsets were also available at the gate. Wow, even inflight entertainment is offered for such a short flight! Was welcomed at the door by name and directed down the aisle to my window seat near the aft of the baby boeing. 4 cabin crew would be looking after us on this flight.
At the gate. The B744 beside would be operating to Perth.
Boarding. Most pax were business travellers who frequent this route i guess, making the boarding very swift and fuss-free.
Seat pitch is acceptable for such a short flight.
The middle seat remained empty. Yeah, more room to stretch out!
Inflight magazine and safety card in the seat pocket.
Long time not seen dial-type IFE controls! Radio channels were already playing during boarding.
Doors were closed on time and we pushed back. However there was a slight delay due to morning congestion and a further delay due to a long taxi to the runway. No wonder QF padded their Canberra Cityflyer flights at 55min when the actual flight time is at most 30min. Again safety demo was shown both on video and manually.
The F1 plane out of the hangar.
SQ A380 being towed to the remote stand.
Looong taxi to Rwy34R. For those who knows the layout of SYD, it meant taxiing for almost 5km! Passing a newly painted Virgin Australia B738. LAN A340 just landed in the background.
Rex Beech 340
Jetstar A320. I think I saw more Jetstars in SIN than in SYD!
At this time, seatbelt signs were switched off. Crew immediately started the morning refreshment service. 2 male crew were in charge of economy while the female CSM and another guy were in Business. Morning news was also shown on the overhead CRT monitors. Service was from the front to the rear and was very fast but polite.
Spot SYD!
Sydney city in the distance.
We flew along the coast to Wollongong.
Overflying Wollongong.
For morning snack, we were offered a breakfast bar and a choice of juice or water. I had the juice, which came in a 250ml bottle. More than sufficient for this very short flight! SQ/MI could learn from this on their SIN-KUL flights. There was also a waste bag and a napkin.
Great weather and nice scenery!
Very soon, we were starting our descent into Canberra, barely 15mins after takeoff!
Making some turns.
Flaps down.
Another turn to short finals. See the runway in the distance?
DJ's new ATR72. Expansion works were going on at the terminal.
At the Qantas side of the terminal.
Parked at the gate, beside a B738.
Disembarking.
It was a very pleasant and short flight on Qantas, just barely enough time to serve a snack and drink but the crew made it happen so effortlessly. Guess they are all well-trained on this very short (even shorter than SIN-KUL) sector. Was also impressed at the availability of free newspapers prior to boarding and inflight entertainment! Qantas really do perform well on the short domestic hops!
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
767747 From United States of America, joined Jan 2005, 1748 posts, RR: 26 Reply 3, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 3 days 21 hours ago) and read 13573 times:
Very nice report! I love the shots of the 747 wing - brings back memories, as its been quite a while I've been lucky enough to be able to travel on one!
chepos From Puerto Rico, joined Dec 2000, 5966 posts, RR: 12 Reply 4, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 13102 times:
Thank you for sharing, I had the pleasure of flying on QF back in March on a TrasnPacific hop from the US to OZ and I was impressed. I personally think QF is a top notch carrier, I even liked them more than CX.
zrs70 From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 2872 posts, RR: 10 Reply 7, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 2 days 22 hours ago) and read 12205 times:
Excellent report!
Word of advice.... Remove your FF from the original pic!
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 8, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 2 days 20 hours ago) and read 12122 times:
Over the weekend, I flew up to Sydney as there is only so much that one can see or do in Canberra. As there are no budget airlines plying the SYD-CBR route, airfares are actually quite expensive for such a short flight. My flights on Qantas booked on short notice cost A$129 tax inclusive each way. Virgin Australia was no better, with fares around the same price. I had also booked on the QantasLink operated flight so as to experience the Dash 8-Q400, a new aircraft type for me!
03 December 2011
QantasLink
QF 1468
Canberra (CBR) - Sydney (SYD)
Dash 8-Q400
VH-QOA
Economy Class
Checked in was done using the self-check in counters at Canberra Terminal.
My boarding pass. The flight was operated by QantasLink (aka Eastern Airlines).
Cleared security without much hassle and entered the small terminal building. Most of the arrivals/departures were from Sydney.
Qantas B734 taxiing to the gate.
Nearing the gate.
Boarding in progress for the earlier baby boeing flight to Sydney.
A Q300 and Q400. I would be flying the longer Q400.
Flight would be departing from Gate 14. Again, free newspapers were available at the gate for all Qantas passengers! I wonder if Virgin also provides free newspapers.
VH-QOA would be flying me to Sydney this morning.
Boarding.
QantasLink supports the National Breast Cancer Foundation!
Fuselage view.
Was warmly welcomed at the door by a friendly crew member who greeted me by name. Nice gesture by Qantas again. In fact, out of my 6 sectors, I was only not greeted by name on the first sector SIN-SYD flight. Kind of amazing, I must say. There were 2 female cabin crew looking after us on this flight. Boarding was orderly and plane was quite full. However I still scored an empty seat beside me.
Legroom was very good! Much better than the B744/734 aircraft flown so far. Quite an irony since these props fly the shortest route.
Another view of the seats. The seats cannot be reclined though.
Qantas inflight mag, QantasLink inflight mag and safety card.
At the gate.
Flight time was announced to be 30mins. Quite a standard flight time for the sector, regardless of jet or prop. However departure was delayed for a short while due to, again, a no-show pax whose baggage needed to be offloaded again. The captain apologized for the slight delay though. No worries as the sector time was padded at 50min. Interestingly, the jets have a longer padded time of 55min.
Push-back and we were off! Safety briefing was done manually with a voice recording. No inflight entertainment facilities on the Dash 8.
Crew started the refreshment service. One crew distributed snack boxes while the other served drinks. Hot coffee/tea, juices and water were offered. Not bad!
The lovely snack box.
Contents of the snack box: Pastry, trail mix and mints. Impressive!
The strawberry danish was freezing cold though.
I had a juice. QantasLink serves bigger bottles of juice (350ml) as compared to Qantas mainline which gave 250ml bottles.
The prop had already started its descent when I was served my drink. Trash was rapidly cleared away by the 2 crew who worked non-stop throughout the flight.
Another cabin view during descent. Whole flight was very smooth.
With the great sunny weather and clear skies, I knew I would be in for fantastic scenery during landing. Flying over the southern suburbs of Sydney.
Beautiful!
Gears down...
Final approach with Sydney skyline in view.
Spot the famous Sydney icons!!
It looked like a miniature city from up here! So unreal!
One word, impressive! Really amazing of QantasLink to serve a substantial snack on the short hop and even offer hot drinks! Kudos to them! Lets see if Qantas can outdo its small sister on the return.
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
gabrielchew From United Kingdom, joined Aug 2005, 2512 posts, RR: 13 Reply 12, posted (1 year 5 months 1 week 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 10955 times:
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): crew offered either peppermint tea or hot chocolate. I had the Cadbury hot chocolate. It was served with a marshmallow! Perfect bedtime drink!
Mmm, tasty
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): Was warmly welcomed at the door by a friendly crew member who greeted me by name. Nice gesture by Qantas again.
Very nice to get greeted by name - doesn't cost the airline anything, but is nice for pax
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 13, posted (1 year 5 months 6 days 22 hours ago) and read 10349 times:
A night in Sydney and it was time to return to Canberra. I had booked an the evening flight back to Canberra and it would be operated by a B738, another aircraft type for me in the Qantas fleet. This flight would also proved to be the most impressive of all sectors!
Took the really overpriced train (A$15 for a 10min ride!) to the domestic terminals from Central station. Qantas domestic, which operates from Terminal 3, is linked direct from the train station. Went up to the terminal and printed my boarding pass using self-check in counters.
Qantas's first aircraft, now resting within T3 departure hall.
Qantas Terminal 3.
Wait through security with no fuss and into the gates area. Quite a busy evening today!
Flight would be departing from Gate 8, but the plane had not arrived.
Lets do some spotting then. Qantas B763 preparing for a flight.
Yes, I am in Qantasland.
Spotted a gem! CX Cargo B748F!!!
JQ A320 holding for takeoff.
QFLink Q400 landing.
DJ B738 taxiing for departure.
QF B738 in "Optus" livery!
Another B763 towed to the gate.
The plane operating my flight also being towed to the gate.
MY baby boeing, VH-VXG at the gate. Big brothers A380 and A330 parked behind on the remote stands.
04 December 2011
Qantas
QF 805
Sydney (SYD) - Canberra (CBR)
B737-800
VH-VXG
Economy Class
Boarding started as scheduled and again I was welcomed by name at the door. Headsets were also available at the gate for yours to take.
Business Class seats.
But I was stuck in economy.
Boarding in progress. The flight was almost full, with only a handful of empty seats left, including the seat beside me!
Seat pitch, as usual, is not great but reasonable on this short-haul aircraft.
Inflight magazine, safety card and complimentary headset.
IFE controls on the armrest.
At the gate, with the Optus plane beside.
Boarding was completed as scheduled. However we were slight delayed with the pushback due to evening congestion. There were 5 cabin crew members on this flight and all of them were great, especially one of the senior crew in economy! She was a very approachable and kind motherly figure and while we were waiting for pushback, she distributed activity packs to all the kids onboard and chatted with them, followed by distribution of headsets again to other passengers who required them. Really impressive pre-takeoff service! The pilot then came on and announced that the flight today would be a very short 25min as we would be departing south straight towards Canberra and arriving into CBR from the north.
Finally pushback and safety demo done and we had a very short taxi to Rwy16R. Had to hold for a while for takeoff though as we were No.4 in the queue.
Seatbelt signs were only switched off about 5 minutes after takeoff when we had cleared the cloud layers and service immediately started. No time to waste on this very short flight! With the rather full load, 4 crew were tasked to serve in economy today (2 distributing sandwiches and 2 serving drinks) with the CSM herself serving Business. Short features were shown on the drop-down LCD screens.
The excellent Qantas crew member! She was really full of warmth and smiles when performing the inflight service.
As it was an evening flight, a sandwich was served! Really unexpected for a flight of this length.
The sandwich was tasty and filling!
Just after I received my sandwich, the seatbelt signs came on and we started descending. However, the drinks cart was still making its way down the aisle. When the cart reached my row, I was utterly shocked!! In a good way though! It was total madness that the crew was offering a full bar selection of beer, soft drinks, juice, water or wines (wines at a cost of A$6)! There were even small packets of nibbles on offer, probably with wines/beers!! Total craziness!
I had a juice again.
Even though we were halfway through our descent, the crew still managed to serve the whole cabin effortlessly and cleared up everything prior to landing, all within 20 minutes from takeoff! We passengers were not rushed to finish our food and for those with bottled water or juices, we were advised to hold onto the bottles if we could not finish our drinks. Amazing Qantas crew! I have not been on any other airline which can pull off such a stunt!
Final look at VH-VXG. It would be operating up to Brisbane next.
This flight has totally "wowed" me as I never expected Qantas to have such fantastic inflight service on a short 25min flight. Halfway through the flight, I was still panicking for the cabin crew whether the service could be completed. Kudos to the crew for their flawless "performance"! Qantas really excel in short hops as almost no flight in Asia of such length could match up to this sort of inflight service in economy! Totally impressed!
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (1 year 5 months 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 9937 times:
Another 4 days in Canberra and it was time to return home. The next sector would be another standard CBR-SYD sector with great inflight service, and so I shall let the pictures and videos do most of the talking.
Christmas is near!
Lots of B734s this morning! And a Q400 just arrived.
Another B734 arrived.
DJ ERJ-170(?) landing.
VH-TJR, operating my flight, arrived as QF787 from Sydney.
Gate 13. The inbound flight number is also shown below the outbound flight number.
Again, Qantas offers complimentary newspapers to its passengers! 08 December 2011
Qantas
QF 704
Canberra (CBR) - Sydney
B737-400
VH-TJR
Economy Class
Boarding announced slightly but was completed swiftly as the flight was not full. Headsets were offered by a crew at the entrance of the aerobridge prior to entering the aircraft and was welcomed aboard at the door by name again. Really appreciate the effort by Qantas crew to greet passengers by name when they check our boarding passes.
At the gate. Flight time announced to be 30min.
Boarding almost completed. Just waiting for one last pax.
Another short and enjoyable domestic flight on Qantas this was! The final sector, on the A380, will be coming up. However before that, a bad surprise awaits...
Again, I hopped onto the free transfer bus to transfer to the International Terminal. Enjoyed a tour of the hangars and tarmac again!
Even a B737 looks big at ground level.
B744 in "Wallabies" livery.
A380!
China Southern B772 preparing for takeoff.
Qantas B744.
Now the surprised. Upon arrival at Sydney did I discover my flight back to Singapore was delayed for almost 5hrs! The original 1730hrs departure was rescheduled to 2205hrs, reason given that the aircraft is in maintenance and QF did not have any spare A380s till one arrived back from SIN (QF32) at 2030hrs. However I was surprised I was not informed of the delay in CBR even though my boarding pass had already been printed with the new boarding time (which I did not notice) and my 6hrs transit had now became 11hrs! That is way too long even for an aviation enthusiast at Sydney Airport with an open air viewing gallery! To make things worse, I had only discovered of the delay when I could not find QF31 on the FIDS at the check-in hall and had to approach a QF ground staff for assistance. Only then was I informed and given a A$30 meal voucher.
So nothing much to do in the terminal except for spotting planes at the viewing gallery...
Qantas B744 and A380.
QF A330 landing with the city skyline in the background.
SQ A380 departing to SIN as SQ222.
SQ vs Aussie Airlines!
Lots of departures now! BA B772 departing to SIN too. TG A346 off to BKK.
Jetstar A320 in "Billabong" livery.
Another SIN departure. QF6 to SIN/FRA. We were not offered to be transferred onto this or the earlier BA flight.
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 15, posted (1 year 5 months 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 9396 times:
The final sector of this trip, flying on QF's A380. As I had flown on SQ's A380 a number of times, I would be doing some comparisons on the 2 airline's whalejets. Our delayed flight was now one of the last few flights to depart the airport before the curfew starts.
After immigration at SYD airport. It has gone through a thorough renovation.
08 December 2011
Qantas
QF 31
Sydney (SYD) - Singapore (SIN)
A380-800
VH-OQB
Economy Class
Upon reaching the gate, an announcement was made that we would be expecting another 30min delay due to some technical issues and it would be resolved soon. Groans.... Luckily boarding started soon and we were allowed to board. Finally!! I could see that all passengers were restless and weary by now. Felt sorry for those going up to London. The flight was operated by OQB, Qantas's oldest A380 still flying (OQA is still stuck in SIN after the major engine incident).
Again greeted by name upon boarding and directed to the correct aisle. I was seated in the aft section of the plane. The aft section on QF's A380 has less seats than SQ's due to the installation of the self-service bar at the rear and 4 toilets (SQ has no bar and only 2 toilets at the aft section). Overhead bins are all the A330/340-styled ones rather than the B777-styled bins (which SQ uses on its first few A380s) which are much more difficult to close. Individual air-vents are also available above every seat unlike SQ.
Boarding in progress. The flight was not too full and I had an empty seat beside again.
Towards the rear.
At the gate.
On each seat was placed a blanket, a huge pillow and headset. Lets take a look at the seat itself. Interestingly, the seat belt is an unconventional car-seatbelt type where you push the button to release the buckle.
Seat pitch is not that fantastic (better than QF 744s though) but honestly speaking, the seats are slightly more comfortable than on SQ's A380 as I could stretch out my legs under the seat in front, something which I could not do on SQ's seats even though SQ has an inch pitch more. The seats are also equipped with foot nets in place of foot rests, quite a novel invention I must say and it does not restricts leg-room. However it was missing on my seat. Adjustable head-rests are very sturdy and do work unlike SQ's ones which falls flat whenever you rest your head on it. The PTV screen also has touch-screen capabilities.
Entertainment handset are "hidden" under the armrest, which I much prefer than on the seatback. USB ports are also at the front of the armrest.However there is no personal mirror and lack of small compartments to store personal things.
The stuff in the seat-pocket.
Menus were given out while we were on ground. No amenity kit was distributed though, probably as this flight was not original an "overnight" flight.
Offerings for the flight.
The inflight entertainment started while we were still on ground. Again, we were encouraged to use it all the way till landing at Changi. Personally I find Qantas's entertainment much more user-friendly than SQ's. Movies available may be slightly less but the TV series offered are much more!
As there were no particular movie that I would like to watch, I stuck the Glee Season 2 foe the flight. Qantas has 14 episodes from the season on offer!
The captain came on and apologised for the major delay, explaining that the A380 operating our flight was scheduled for routine maintenance and there was a shortage of A380s as delivery of the latest aircraft was delayed. The past few days have also seen QF31 being substituted by B744s on certain days. Flight time to SIN would be 7hr 30min. We were pushed back at about 2230hrs and safety video/demo was performed.
After seat belt signs were off, service started, with the procedural distribution of drinking water bottles, followed by arrival immigration forms. A few crew were also at the rear stocking up the self-service bar.
I made a visit to the lavatory as well as the bar. The lavatory only has the basic amenities, but the tap is automatically-activated.
Now here is the cool part, the self-service bar! QF has 2 of these in economy class on the A380s, a big one at the rear and a smaller bar at the mid-section of the cabin. The bar was stocked with sweet and savory cookies, soft drinks, ice and cups and a drinking water dispenser. How I wish SQ would have something like this too!
Compartments of cookies. Longer flights would have more substantial snacks I guess.
Selection of chilled soft drinks!
Chocolate chip cookie and savory biscotti from the bar.
Back to my seat and relax with Glee!
Meal service soon started. This set of crew was again friendly and professional.
"Dinner". The meal was much better than the outbound. I had an Appletiser to go along. An interesting drink onboard!
Sun blushed Tomato and Parmesan Salad with Balsamic Dressing. A very simple and healthy salad.
I chose the Chinese-styled pork with rice. It was not bad but the vegetables were tasteless.
My seatmate's roast chicken.
Cheese and crackers.
Great tiramisu dessert! I could have more of this!
Overall, the meal was a vast improvement over the one that was catered out of SIN. After meals were served, crew came around offering coffee or tea.
During tray collection, again Cadbury hot chocolate or peppermint tea was served.
I simply love Qantas's hot chocolate service!
After everything was cleared away, the cabin was dimmed to allow pax to rest. Mood-lighting in action.
About half an hour after lights were dimmed, a crew appeared and offered ice-cream to those who were still awake. Of course I gladly had mine to enjoy with Glee!
It was only a small bar, but pretty enjoyable.
I also managed to nap to 2 hours. The seat was comfortable enough to sleep in. During the flight, there were also instances of turbulence but the pilot never switched on the seat belt signs, which on SQ, would have warranted the signs to be on and crew making loud announcements to wake up the whole plane.
About 1.5hrs prior to landing, a snack was served. It was a hot pizza with a chocolate bar.
This was the only let-down of the whole flight. The pizza sandwich tasted nasty! I had two bites and left it.
Walked around to stretch my legs a bit. The magazine compartment at the rear.
Stairways to "heaven", aka premium economy and business class.
Door.
Cabin view.
Before long, we were starting our descent into Changi. We were allowed to use the IFE till touchdown. 3 minutes to landing and on final approach to Rwy02C.
Other than the 5hrs delay (which Qantas could have better handled/compensated and I have sent a feedback letter regarding), I truly enjoyed the A380 ride. As a comparison to SQ's A380, I prefer Qantas's A380 more, mainly for its seat comfort and the awesome self-serve bar. Of course SQ would have better cabin service and meals, but QF is not too far behind. I would not hesitate to fly on a QF A380 again but probably not on the B744. QF also excels on its domestic shop hops which are pretty impressive when you consider the service on Asian carriers on similar length flights.
Thanks for bearing with me through the loooong report. I sincerely welcome any comments on this report.
Next up, I would be back to budget again in Jan on a trip to Macau/Hong Kong on Jetstar!
ba319-131 From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2001, 8259 posts, RR: 56 Reply 16, posted (1 year 5 months 4 days 3 hours ago) and read 9356 times:
Hi,
A pretty enjoyable QF TR here, thanks for enjoying - some great scenery pictures too, did enjoy, reminded me of my visit down under back in 2007, seems so long ago now!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): it was really claustrophobic when the person in front fully reclines
- I'd be quite happy for these seats to be fixed in Y, I can sleep sitting up, sure beats the seat in front being stuck in your face for many hours.
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): The heritage museum also had a great view of the tarmac and runways! A QF B763 preparing for the next domestic flight
- Looks great, I should have found time before, oh well, next time!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): my 6hrs transit had now became 11hrs! That is way too long even for an aviation enthusiast at Sydney Airport with an open air viewing gallery!
- Oh no, would have been fine for me
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): QF6 to SIN/FRA. We were not offered to be transferred onto this or the earlier BA flight.
- Perhaps they were all full or the fare for your ticket would not allow any changes?
RvXKaz From Singapore, joined Apr 2011, 182 posts, RR: 3 Reply 17, posted (1 year 5 months 3 days 20 hours ago) and read 9175 times:
Hi ycp81,
Thanks for this blockbuster insight into Qantas and your thorough analysis of SQ vs QF. Very detailed and lovely pictures from your destinations as well. Though Australia is a popular tourist destination for Singaporeans, not many can boast that they have been to Australia's capital! Thanks for the nice preview of how Canberra is like!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): As my company has the policy of "flying with the cheapest full-service carrier" available,
Very, very aviation-enthusiast-friendly policy! Beats flying SQ all the time haha
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): Overall, I would be flying Qantas on 6 sectors!
Wow! Hows that for an in-depth insight into Qantas!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): This report would be picture extensive, as per my previous reports.
Lovely!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): However most were friendly and professional with the exception of 1 or 2 crew who did not really smile much.
LoL, I guess you'd always get one or two vultures amongst the chirppy birds!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): As we were still waiting, the crew distributed menu cards.
Menus are always a nice touch.
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): All announcements were also made in English and German.
Very interesting to know! I'd always wondered if thats the case since the flight was from Frankfurt! Thanks for enlightening me!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): There is also an interesting time-line of the services provided during the journey of the flight.
Very unique and great Qantas menu design!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): The pudding tasted kinda disgusting! A very under-whelming meal overall...
Gosh.. Sorry to hear that! It did sound very delicious from the menu but the presentation says it all.
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): Headsets were never collected and we were free to use them from boarding till landing!
Haha! I guess SQ is too rigid with such rules. Even on QR, passengers were free to use their headsets until landing as well!
Quoting ycp81 (Thread starter): Probably not long-haul on the B744 as it is really too cramped for me! Coupled with the big recline angle, it was really claustrophobic when the person in front fully reclines.
Oh, sorry to hear that! I guess the full load may have dampened your experience! The B744 has always been my fav aircraft!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 2): The transit in Sydney was 2hrs. Plenty
Can I ask, do you need to transfer to a domestic terminal in SYD? And how do you go about it if there's a need to?
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 2): Air Austral B773ER taking off.
Very interesting catch! Especially since there is an ongoing discussion that Air Austral is pulling out of SYD
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 2): For morning snack, we were offered a breakfast bar and a choice of juice or water.
Very nice for such a short sector!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 2): Guess they are all well-trained on this very short (even shorter than SIN-KUL) sector. Was also impressed at the availability of free newspapers prior to boarding and inflight entertainment!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 8): Over the weekend, I flew up to Sydney as there is only so much that one can see or do in Canberra.
Excellent decision!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 8): I had also booked on the QantasLink operated flight so as to experience the Dash 8-Q400, a new aircraft type for me!
Excellent decision No. 2! How often can you fly these dainty planes in Asia!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 8): Contents of the snack box: Pastry, trail mix and mints. Impressive!
Really nice touch on such a short flight!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 6): Spot the famous Sydney icons!!
Great view of this world-class city!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 13): Headsets were also available at the gate for yours to take.
Thats an interesting concept! Kewl touch on Qantas.
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 13): As it was an evening flight, a sandwich was served! Really unexpected for a flight of this length.
Yes! I agree but its a really nice touch for such a short flight! If only SQ and MH will offer appropriate meal choices based on the timing of their SIN-KUL shuttles as well instead of standard trays of juices!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 14): Really appreciate the effort by Qantas crew to greet passengers by name when they check our boarding passes.
This is a really nice touch on Qantas.
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 14): Now the surprised. Upon arrival at Sydney did I discover my flight back to Singapore was delayed for almost 5hrs!
Gosh. LoL I'd love to wander around the airport more but NOT that much more either! It seems like QF31 is really quite prone to delays.
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 15): an announcement was made that we would be expecting another 30min delay due to some technical
Technical issues?! Sounds quite scary given the spate of A380 problems on QF!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 15): Interestingly, the seat belt is an unconventional car-seatbelt type where you push the button to release the buckle.
Interesting design! I've never seen it before!
The meal on QF31 looks great, and nice that they offer ice cream on top of the tiramisu dessert as well!
Its really nice to hear that you've had a nice experience with QF, especially on their domestic segments! I love the QF's uniform and it has been an airline I wanted to try for a while now! Thanks very much for sharing your experience so I have a great idea of how QF is like! Till I try QF myself! The QF A380 certainly looks a level better than the B744! Hopefully I'll get to try it some day! Anyway, terrific TR and really nice insight into QF's international and domestic operations! Keep up the excellent work!
RvXKaz
They say that I'm a dreamer. But I'd only Dreamt Skyward.
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 18, posted (1 year 4 months 4 weeks 1 day 22 hours ago) and read 8507 times:
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): not many can boast that they have been to Australia's capital!
I guess not many people would want to go to Canberra for a holiday anyway, lol.
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): Haha! I guess SQ is too rigid with such rules. Even on QR, passengers were free to use their headsets until landing as well!
I think SQ is the only airline with such rule. Correct me if I am wrong.
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): Can I ask, do you need to transfer to a domestic terminal in SYD? And how do you go about it if there's a need to?
If you have a connecting flight on QF/DJ domestic, you can hop onto their respective free inter-terminal transfer shuttle services after clearing immigration and customs. You would still need to claim your bags and clear customs though at the international terminal if arriving into Sydney and drop your bags at the domestic transfer desks. You can check out Qantas/Virgin website for more details. However if you are not flying QF/DJ domestically, you would need to get a cab or train to the domestic terminals, which is not cheap for such a short ride.
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): Excellent decision No. 2! How often can you fly these dainty planes in Asia!
You can fly one on Berjaya Air to Tioman, haha.
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): This is a really nice touch on Qantas.
Yep. SQ crew seldom do this. I can count the number of times I am greeted by name upon boarding on SQ using one hand, but was greeted by name 7 out of 8 times on Qantas, all in economy!
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): Technical issues?! Sounds quite scary given the spate of A380 problems on QF!
It turned out to be a leaking toilet problem, lol.
Quoting RvXKaz (Reply 17): The QF A380 certainly looks a level better than the B744! Hopefully I'll get to try it some day!
You should try QF's A380! The onboard bar in economy is way cool!
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
Ben175 From Australia, joined Jul 2008, 569 posts, RR: 0 Reply 19, posted (1 year 4 months 4 weeks 1 day 20 hours ago) and read 8337 times:
Fantastic TR! Very extensive, typical QF for the delay.
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 18): If you have a connecting flight on QF/DJ domestic, you can hop onto their respective free inter-terminal transfer shuttle services after clearing immigration and customs. You would still need to claim your bags and clear customs though at the international terminal if arriving into Sydney and drop your bags at the domestic transfer desks. You can check out Qantas/Virgin website for more details. However if you are not flying QF/DJ domestically, you would need to get a cab or train to the domestic terminals, which is not cheap for such a short ride.
Actually, you can usually get your luggage checked straight through to your final destination, for example flying HNL-SYD-PER. However as I've discovered, sometimes it depends on the ground staff's mood and if they can be bothered! I was once refused to do this.
Quoting Ben175 (Reply 19): Actually, you can usually get your luggage checked straight through to your final destination, for example flying HNL-SYD-PER.
The luggage is checked through (mine was tagged to SYD and CBR), but would still have to be picked up at the first port of entry in Australia to clear customs. However on the outbound, the luggage need not be picked up and will be sent all the way.
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 21, posted (1 year 4 months 1 week 3 days 22 hours ago) and read 6677 times:
Just a little update to my trip report, Qantas did responded to my feedback regarding the delay with an apology letter and best of all, they sent me a A$300 voucher, valid for use on Qantas or Oneworld operated/marketed flights! Great service recovery!
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
rb211524g From Australia, joined Jun 2011, 5 posts, RR: 0 Reply 22, posted (9 months 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 4336 times:
Great trip report!!!!! My wife & I flew to Germany on VH-OJA about a month later. Have never really liked travelling with Qantas, asI find the service very mediocre, & this flight was no exception. We were delayed out of SYD by 3 hours. On the way back we once again flew on VH-OJA. The service on the flight back was much better. I still check to see if OJA is still running about quite often. Pretty impressive given that it is now 23 years old!!!!!!!!
ycp81 From Singapore, joined Jun 2006, 338 posts, RR: 0 Reply 23, posted (9 months 1 day 3 hours ago) and read 3342 times:
Quoting rb211524g (Reply 22): Great trip report!!!!! My wife & I flew to Germany on VH-OJA about a month later. Have never really liked travelling with Qantas, asI find the service very mediocre, & this flight was no exception. We were delayed out of SYD by 3 hours. On the way back we once again flew on VH-OJA. The service on the flight back was much better. I still check to see if OJA is still running about quite often. Pretty impressive given that it is now 23 years old!!!!!!!!
Looks like VH-OJA is plying the SYD-SIN-FRA pretty often! Though it is a classic B744, I am not really a fan of the cramped seats. I am looking forward to my flights on QF again in late Nov, with 2 out of 3 legs on the A380!! I simply love QF's A380s!!
My past and future travels - http://www.ba97.com/ba97/calendar/report.asp?handle=ycp81
747m8te From Australia, joined Aug 2008, 403 posts, RR: 0 Reply 24, posted (8 months 4 weeks 1 day ago) and read 2631 times:
Quoting Ben175 (Reply 19):
Actually, you can usually get your luggage checked straight through to your final destination, for example flying HNL-SYD-PER. However as I've discovered, sometimes it depends on the ground staff's mood and if they can be bothered! I was once refused to do this.
Clearly you don't know much about australian custom rules...bags have to be cleared at first point of entry into Australia, whether they tag them through or not, you still have to pick them up, thats not the airlines policy...or the attitude of the agent!!! its Australia customs policy (many countries including the USA also have this same policy). Makes little difference if they are tagged through, as that can get done easily at the domestic transfer desk in either situation.
Quoting Ben175 (Reply 19): Fantastic TR! Very extensive, typical QF for the delay.
Why is that typical QF? they have fewer delays then any other airline in this country!
Quoting ycp81 (Reply 21): Just a little update to my trip report, Qantas did responded to my feedback regarding the delay with an apology letter and best of all, they sent me a A$300 voucher, valid for use on Qantas or Oneworld operated/marketed flights! Great service recovery!
Wow thats fantastic!
Fantastic trip report, good coverage of flights with different aircraft types! top stuff
Flown on: DHC8Q200,DHC8Q400,E-170,E-190,A320,A332,A333,A343,MD80,B733,B734,B737,B738,B743,B744,B744ER,B762,B763
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