Qantas' New A321XLR

[PlaneJoeSchmoe]

Does anybody know if the initial 3 A321XLRs in the 20J/180Y configuration will be reconfigured to 20J/177Y down the road?

 

[elanshin]

Does anybody know if the initial 3 A321XLRs in the 20J/180Y configuration will be reconfigured to 20J/177Y down the road?

Yes confirmed, but no timeline.

 

[jakeseven7]

I'm glad they are adding an extra toilet.. but the reality is it's only two more Y rows than a QF 737. Things aren't going to get drastically worse with 7% more Y pax.

Well VA got away with offering 0% of their passengers a toilet recently on VA50 lol

 

[alexczarn]

Agreed. As soon as I see “25 words…” I roll my eyes and move on.

The one use for GPT hahaha.

 

[ANstar]

Wouldn't it make more sense to have the third Y toilet mid-cabin?

Agree - especially given the congestion on JQ's 321's at the rear. Would of made sense to have split queues to ease the congestion.

 

[moa999]

Spoils the view of a long narrow cabin though.

Given the plumbing required any alterations to OGA-OGC likely to be at the rear, and wouldn't be surprised if it's the same for the pre-fitted aircraft.

 

[Saab34]

Agree - especially given the congestion on JQ's 321's at the rear. Would have made sense to have split queues to ease the congestion.

I strongly advise anyone braving a Jetstar Bali flight avoid the back rows. A colleague got stuck on the aisle seat a few rows from the back and said it was people just standing over them the whole time wanting to use the loo, the queue was long the whole flight.

 

[lovestotravel]

I strongly advise anyone braving a Jetstar Bali flight avoid the back rows. A colleague got stuck on the aisle seat a few rows from the back and said it was people just standing over them the whole time wanting to use the loo, the queue was long the whole flight.

Standard - Even the VA 737's to/from Fiji have this issue.

 

[jrfsp]

I strongly advise anyone braving a Jetstar Bali flight avoid the back rows. A colleague got stuck on the aisle seat a few rows from the back and said it was people just standing over them the whole time wanting to use the loo, the queue was long the whole flight.

The QF 737 is even worse, at least on JQ it’s paid drinks which dampens the toilet demand….

 

[Steve994]

Wouldn't it make more sense to have the third Y toilet mid-cabin?

Please no! Some of Air NZ's A321's have a single toilet in the middle of the cabin. Pity the passengers in the seats opposite.

 

[Daver6]

Please no! Some of Air NZ's A321's have a single toilet in the middle of the cabin. Pity the passengers in the seats opposite.

There's pax with seats opposite the 3rd loo at the rear. On the QF 787 there are also pax opposite the doors of the mid-cabin loos. No different really.

 

[MelbFlyer]

Looking at the potential destination maps for the A321XLR, it's capable of going to HKG from MEL - if QF replaces the A330s in the future with the A321XLR on this route, I'm 100% choosing CX.

Tbh I would not want to be on a narrowbody for anything more than >5-6hrs.

Years ago, I flew from EWR to SFO and that was long enough on a 757-200, let alone MEL to HKG on an A321XLR.



Also, Phnom Penh is spelt wrong too.

 

[Saab34]

What worries me is they swap out a widebody if they break down and put you on a long haul XLR. Jetstar did this a lot when they got the 321s and they had the 787s breaking down on Bali.

 

[markis10]

Narrow body long haul is the future, it’s not all bad and we may need to adjust our mindset, it may offer J services where previously a wide body was the only option. Etihad's three class narrow body is a case in point.

 

[elanshin]

Looking at the potential destination maps for the A321XLR, it's capable of going to HKG from MEL - if QF replaces the A330s in the future with the A321XLR on this route, I'm 100% choosing CX.

Tbh I would not want to be on a narrowbody for anything more than >5-6hrs.

Years ago, I flew from EWR to SFO and that was long enough on a 757-200, let alone MEL to HKG on an A321XLR.

View attachment 469716

Also, Phnom Penh is spelt wrong too.

I highly doubt a route like MEL - HKG will ever become a321XLR even if the plane has the range for it. An actual potential realistic route would be ADL - SIN which would feed into QF1 or swapping ADL - AKL.

 

[borez]

Narrow body long haul is the future, it’s not all bad and we may need to adjust our mindset, it may offer J services where previously a wide body was the only option. Etihad's three class narrow body is a case in point.

It's convenient that airlines offer business class even on such planes, but I also have some doubts about comfort on long routes.

 

[ChrisMars]

Can someone explain me the issue with long haul narrobody? As long as the seats are the same, in Y, PE, or J, I don t understand what is the negatif feeling.

 

[elanshin]

Can someone explain me the issue with long haul narrobody? As long as the seats are the same, in Y, PE, or J, I don t understand what is the negatif feeling.

A lot of it is the lack of space when compared with a widebody. When you're in the seat itself it's not that different especially when compared with other 3-3-3 widebodies (b787, a350). But it's the size of the rest of the plane. There's more space here and there to get up and go for a quick walk/stretch on a widebody. You can duck to the other aisle if you see one aisle being blocked. The crew also have significantly more space to work in to do meal services. The 787/350 fleet are also at a much lower cabin altitude pressure as well although that's more specific to those 2 types than widebodies.

Lav ratio is also of importance. Consider the a321XLR thats 177 Pax for 2 Toilets in Y. or 1:88 ratio. Contrast that with the 787 at about 166Y + 28W and 4 Toilets (assuming W Pax don't sneak off into J). That's a 1:48.5 ratio. The rest of QF's widebody fleet all have around 44-48: 1 Pax toilet ratio
Perhaps when QF orders the 321XLR for long hault int'l configuration they'll add another toilet block.

 

[MarkD]

Back in the days of DC8 and 707 There was no compaints. These long haul narrowbodies are larger than the ones in question. And dare I say more comfortable and much quieter (Seats not so much I guess) but everything else is superior to the old narrow bodies. Its knd of a back to the future moment really.

 

[markis10]

The 787/350 fleet are also at a much lower cabin altitude pressure as well although that's more specific to those 2 types than widebodies.

Lower cabin altitude is a feature of the A320 family now, with the A321XLR cabin pressurised to 6000ft at cruise