A332 Config MEL-PER-MEL in October?

[tuapekastar]

I am booked to fly MEL-PER-MEL in J (points upgrade) in October. I am taking flights that are currently operated by a 743, but in October the timetable is indicating a 332 operating these flights (I noticed this when making the orginal booking).

The link from the QF timetable entries for these flights to the seating map currently links to a "skybed" version of the 332. A look on the qflyer site shows several of these in service with 3 more 332s due for delivery in 2008. Two of those due for delivery are shown as having Millennium seating config (but with no active seat map), and with o'head IFE rather than AVOD.

Is it a reasonable asuumption that those millennium configured 332s are destined for routes like MEL-PER, and that this is what I should be expecting to fly on in October?

And just an afterthought, if both configs are the same plane (ie. a 330-203), how do thy plan to fit 68 more seats in one model? Even allowing for inernational vs domestic config it sounds like a big difference.

 

[simongr]

I asked about this yesterday in the 743 Perth West something paper thread - yes our understanding is that the 332 will have the aged millenium seating in J which I find a tad disappointing...

 

[oz_mark]

I am booked to fly MEL-PER-MEL in J (points upgrade) in October. I am taking flights that are currently operated by a 743, but in October the timetable is indicating a 332 operating these flights (I noticed this when making the orginal booking).

The link from the QF timetable entries for these flights to the seating map currently links to a "skybed" version of the 332. A look on the qflyer site shows several of these in service with 3 more 332s due for delivery in 2008. Two of those due for delivery are shown as having Millennium seating config (but with no active seat map), and with o'head IFE rather than AVOD.

Is it a reasonable asuumption that those millennium configured 332s are destined for routes like MEL-PER, and that this is what I should be expecting to fly on in October?

And just an afterthought, if both configs are the same plane (ie. a 330-203), how do thy plan to fit 68 more seats in one model? Even allowing for inernational vs domestic config it sounds like a big difference.

You can reasonably assume that it will be a domestic config plane, and I would assume that the config will be the same as that used by Jetstar now, which was the old Qantas domestic config (although there may have been a it of renumbering).

The skybeds take up a lot of space, so business class on INT extends a lot further back in the cabin than in DOM. Have a look at the A330-300 maps for Jetstar and you will see how.

The first of the dom config ones is due in June, and will take over the PER-MEL sectors from July 1. The second one will take over two of the 743 operated flights PER-SYD from September.

 

[serfty]

Here's a link to a .pdf seatmap of the QF domestically configured 332's ere they were dispatched to JQi:

• QF Domestic 332 Config. 2006

I don't think there will be a huge difference in configuration from this.

 

[tuapekastar]

Thanks for the quick replies, even if the answer wasn't quite what I'd hoped for.

I must have missed that thread/post simongr - I've been a little hit/miss lately as far catching all posts, been a tad busy.

Can't check that seatlink at the moment serfty as work, for whatever odd reason, blocks it. I'll check it at home.

Cheers

 

[Danger]

. . . - yes our understanding is that the 332 will have the aged millenium seating in J which I find a tad disappointing...

Couldn't agree more. Okay, so maybe seeking skybeds on a domestic service (even long flights like PER/SYD and PER/MEL) could be considered over the top but to go from personal TVs to an overhead (again, on such long flights) is a big step backwards, I believe.

 

[serfty]

... yes our understanding is that the 332 will have the aged millenium seating in J which I find a tad disappointing ...

The seating will not be aged - it will be quite new.

Perhaps the philosophy is aged, but in reality that's the way is it!

Methinks it's more a case that, Domestically, Qantas have no pointy-end competition and feel Millennium will suffice.

 

[oz_mark]

I think that having the 743's on the trans-cons with individual screens was just a quirk based on what they had available in the fleet rather than because they particulalry wanted to do this on dom.

As for the seating - seems that millenium seating would be adequate given that it really is not that long a flight in the scheme of things. The 3 seats in the middle would I thought have been more of an issue!

 

[simongr]

The seating will not be aged - it will be quite new.

Methinks it's more a case that, Domestically, Qantas have no pointy-end competition and feel Millennium will suffice.

I appreciate that the seats are unlikely to be recycled from other retiring aircraft But I think given this is a new generation of aircraft the decision to put in an older style seat in J for a reasonably long flight is a little poor.

I compare this to Club Europe which I also find pretty poor - having flown the longest CE flight (LHR-LCA) I would certainly be looking to avoid the millenium equipped flights if at all possible.

You are right though that as a reflection of teh lack of competition for J and high demand, QF can snub their pax in this way. I don't see a competitorentering this market in the near future either...

 

[oz_mark]

I appreciate that the seats are unlikely to be recycled from other retiring aircraft But I think given this is a new generation of aircraft the decision to put in an older style seat in J for a reasonably long flight is a little poor.

What other options do they currently have for seating? While it may be nice to have something else, Qantas don't seem to have something else in their product coughnal at the moment

 

[simongr]

I guess Dreamtime would be the obvious choice but again quite an old seat.

It is a little strange, almost like they didnt think about renewing the domestic fleet. The A380 replaces/supplements the 747 fleet I think. However bringing in a heap of new A380s does not directly replace the domestic fleet other than by allowing a number of 763s to return to the domestic flight arena.

It's almost like QF haven't thought about the domestic fleet other than to tart up the existing fabrics.

 

[serfty]

The first Millennium seats I saw were installed on a 763 (ZX series).

This was in late 2000, so they are not that old.

In reality Qantas have no competition in the pointy end, so (within reason) they can just about do what they wish!

The trouble with Dreamtime J seating is that it takes up more space, being wider than Millennium. (e.g. 25 against 30 seats in the 763's).

Note that "Dreamtime Seating" itself has only been around for about 10 years - it was first introduced late 1997/early 1998.

 

[oz_mark]

I guess Dreamtime would be the obvious choice but again quite an old seat.

It is a little strange, almost like they didnt think about renewing the domestic fleet. The A380 replaces/supplements the 747 fleet I think. However bringing in a heap of new A380s does not directly replace the domestic fleet other than by allowing a number of 763s to return to the domestic flight arena.

Well, they have thought about renewing the domestic fleet. But is tightly linked to the 787. Maybe they will have a think on the seats in that time frame.