A380 or 747??

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neon_crossing

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Hi all you lucky people that fly more frequently than me.

I havent flown Qantas internationally before (Ive only flown on other carriers on 777's) so after a bit of advice because im close to booking flights from ADL - LAX return in Sep/Oct and Qantas are looking a lil cheaper than V Aust (my preffered airline)

Is it worth spending a bit extra on flights to ensure im in the A380 as apposed to the 'ancient' 747s?

I have noticed some of the other flight sectors on the dates I am looking to travel are cheaper when taking non A380 sectors.

Thanks in advance for your feedback let me know if you think im stupid and the 747s are just as good, cheers.
 
What class of service will you be in? That will be a big consideration.

Is it worth spending a bit extra on flights to ensure im in the A380 as apposed to the 'ancient' 747s?

Although given you can't guarantee an A380 yet I am not sure it is worth the risk.
 
I guess a big question is what class?

My personal pref is for a 747, but that's just me.
 
Aircraft substitutions happen, so you could book intending to be on an A380 and find you’re on a B747 on the day, or vice versa. This will change when there are more A380’s in the fleet, but that wont be soon.

I flew Y to LHR recently in an A380 and back in a B747 and found the seats comfier in the A380, but the B747 wasn’t a lot worse. Just… different.

And I guess at the end of the day, an aircraft substitution is better than a cancelled service because they don’t have spare a/c. ;)
 
Qantas generally uses the newer 747-400s in its fleet for the SYD-LAX and MEL-LAX flights. The "ancient" ones tend to be the 2-class configurations and can most commonly be found operating BNE-LAX.

The A380 has significantly better In-Flight Entertainment. I believe the economy seat is more comfortable than the 744. The self-service snack bar can be helpful. But the service/meals etc is basically the same.

The "value" you put on these A380 benefits is personal. Only you can decide if its worth it. But note that of Qantas later substitutes a 744 for the planned A380 you will have no recourse to complain or seek compensation or refund as they are not selling different aircraft services. They are selling an economy ticket to the USA and the aircraft type is independent of the ticket.
 
Although given you can't guarantee an A380 yet I am not sure it is worth the risk.

That is the key point. I would happily fly Qantas to LAX if they guaranteed it was an A380.

I have heard that the A380 are disconcertingly quiet compared to the 747 with either the GE or RR engines. Is that correct?
 
That is the key point. I would happily fly Qantas to LAX if they guaranteed it was an A380.

I have heard that the A380 are disconcertingly quiet compared to the 747 with either the GE or RR engines. Is that correct?
Quieter, yes. Disconcertingly so depends on what concerts you, I guess.
 
I have heard that the A380 are disconcertingly quiet compared to the 747 with either the GE or RR engines. Is that correct?

Not disconcertingly quiet, you still know your on a plane, and you can still hear the engines going...
 
I have heard that the A380 are disconcertingly quiet compared to the 747 with either the GE or RR engines. Is that correct?

I flew the A380 SYD-LAX in Y in June last year with a full cabin and I felt that I was more distracted (and had more sleep disruptions) by crying babies etc than I can remember in full B747 Y cabins because of the reduced engine noise. Perhaps if you can snare a seat in the back part of Y (seat 79 and beyond) it may be quieter there.
OTOH, my colleagues flying in J upstairs on the same flight said it was their best flight ever and they had never slept so much in a plane before. :)
 
Having flown both type on this route this year, I didn't think it was really much of a difference.

Either is fine, although personally I prefer a 747.

Matt
 
I just flew from MEL-SIN on an A380 for the first time yesterday. I'm not sure if this is an A380 only problem, but when I used my own headphones and someone came over the PA system, I think I burst an ear drum over how loud it was.

Is this a common problem that everyone experiences with the A380? I had to have my hands on standby to rip the plugs out of my ears otherwise I thought I was going to go deaf.
 
I have experienced this many time when using my own (or the Airline's) N/C headphones; and not just on 388's.:-|
 
You can buy a sound suppression device that plugs in between your headphones and the onboard system that should help with this I think. It reduces the volume output of the onboard systems.
 
I flew the A380 SYD-LAX in Y in June last year with a full cabin and I felt that I was more distracted (and had more sleep disruptions) by crying babies etc than I can remember in full B747 Y cabins because of the reduced engine noise. Perhaps if you can snare a seat in the back part of Y (seat 79 and beyond) it may be quieter there.
OTOH, my colleagues flying in J upstairs on the same flight said it was their best flight ever and they had never slept so much in a plane before. :)

I agree with Bert with the sleep thing... I prefer J class in 747's over A380 because the noise drowns out snoring people and as there are fewer J seats the service is more timely. The actual flat bed seat offered in the A380 is better however...

I haven't been in the economy seat for the A380 but all reports are that it's better than the 747's right? Personally I can't sleep in economy so if I were you I'd happily take the A380 over the 747 in your senario for the better AVOD.
 
I just flew from MEL-SIN on an A380 for the first time yesterday. I'm not sure if this is an A380 only problem, but when I used my own headphones and someone came over the PA system, I think I burst an ear drum over how loud it was.

Is this a common problem that everyone experiences with the A380? I had to have my hands on standby to rip the plugs out of my ears otherwise I thought I was going to go deaf.

I've changed my NC headpones to in ear ones where there is a volume adjustment on the battery casing. I quickly kill the volume when the PA thing comes up... it's a real pain...

Where do you get the suppression device?
 
You can buy a sound suppression device that plugs in between your headphones and the onboard system that should help with this I think. It reduces the volume output of the onboard systems.
I think the issue was that the PA announcements were a lot louder than the regular programming. What it really needs is a compressor or even a limiter in-line with the headphones. But that is probably asking a little much for an in-line device. I get a little spoilt using digital mixers where compression is easily applied to anything.
 
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