Qantas 738 Refurb: More seats, Q-stream IFE (from 2015)

[TomVexille]

One thing I've always liked with QF's 737's is they don't feel cramped as other airlines 737's.

I just hope whatever changes they make to the 737's that they don't end up feeling like VA's 737's or JQ's A320/321's.

What I find interesting is that QF list their 738's with having a 30in pitch in Y, and VA are claiming 31in. So which one is lying to us?

 

[Melburnian1]

Given the poor flight occupancy rates being experienced by all four main domestic airlines at present as recorded by BITRE, the discussion about extra seats being squeezed in may not affect as many passengers as one might initially think (unless seat pitch in Y is reduced by this QF move).

My last couple of VA flights have had between 30 and 80 spare seats.

 

[straitman]

What I find interesting is that QF list their 738's with having a 30in pitch in Y, and VA are claiming 31in. So which one is lying to us?

That number is also dependent upon the thickness of the seat.

 

[mannej]

What I find interesting is that QF list their 738's with having a 30in pitch in Y, and VA are claiming 31in. So which one is lying to us?

Weren't the VA claims based on the scale drawings available of each airlines seat map of the 737?
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....velocity/seat-diagrams-side-by-side-7313.html

 

[eastwest101]

What I find interesting is that QF list their 738's with having a 30in pitch in Y, and VA are claiming 31in. So which one is lying to us?

Possibly neither as the QF B738s have more J class seats so the J cabin footprint is larger but QF currently have less Y seats than VA. Or putting it another way - by VA having less J seats then that extra room is giving each Y row 1 extra inch. Those may be average seat pitches for Y and obviously exclude the exit rows. Not that it is entirely accurate but seatguru also quotes 31" for VA Y class and 30" for QF Y class on standard B738 configurations.

EDIT: Just saw the linked but old VA claims now - average QF 30.5" and VA 31.5" average

 

[TomVexille]

That number is also dependent upon the thickness of the seat.

Not exactly. Pitch should be the distance from one point on a seat to the exact same point on the corresponding seat in front/behind it. So the thickness of the seats makes an impact on how much room that we end up with, but actually has no bearing on pitch.

 

[RickyT84]

One has to wonder about some of their decisions. Why not add a 'Main Cabin Extra' aka. Domestic "Premium Economy" with the extra space instead of cramming in yet more people. When booking a flight for my holiday at the end of the year on AA the first thing myself and the travelling companion did was pay the extra for the 'Main Cabin Extra' product. Cheaper than business but the extra leg room, without having sampled the product i must admit, would appear to be well worth the extra $$. Such an initiative would seemingly be a way for an airline to be distinguished from cheap and nasty "budget" airlines. If others have done it surely it would suggest the economics of it can be made work.

So little imagination and customer focus in that press release. Might as well just put a star on the tail and be done with it :|

The only problem with a MCE configuration like AA is it would result in a reduction in capacity as AA only has 150 seats in its 73Hs (granted it has a bigger domestic F cabin). This may not be ideal for QF for the short East Coast hops.

Having tried MCE myself (as I can select these seats for free as a QF Gold), there is not much special about the seats apart from the extra legroom and you get off the plane quicker.

 

[BD1959]

Is this just a direct consequence of QF retiring the 767s without a plan to maintain capacity (and revenue)?

Regards

BD

 

[TomVexille]

The only problem with a MCE configuration like AA is it would result in a reduction in capacity as AA only has 150 seats in its 73Hs (granted it has a bigger domestic F cabin). This may not be ideal for QF for the short East Coast hops.

Having tried MCE myself (as I can select these seats for free as a QF Gold), there is not much special about the seats apart from the extra legroom and you get off the plane quicker.

But with 150 seats AA are allowed to reduce the number of FA's from 4 to 3 if they wish. So crew costs are lower.

 

[blackcat20]

I find the leg room on VA to be less generous than QF, so I'm disappointed to see QF plan to reduce what is a bearable amount of space to something that must be endured but not enjoyed.

 

[opusman]

The article does say leg room won't be reduced.

 

[mannej]

The article does say leg room won't be reduced.

Does it not say seat space instead of legroom?

 

[serfty]

Qantas to refresh Boeing 737 Fleet

Qantas will refurbish its fleet of Boeing 737-800 aircraft, providing customers with a greater level of comfort and enhanced inflight entertainment options. Qantas Domestic Chief Executive Officer Lyell Strambi said the multi-million dollar investment in upgrading the interiors of 67 aircraft that operate on the Qantas domestic network would commence in mid-2015 and be completed within 12 months. "We are investing in further improvements to the interiors of our Boeing 737-800 aircraft, to improve the inflight experience for our customers and provide more consistent access to on demand entertainment," Mr Strambi said.

Read more

Improvements to Inflight Entertainment

Qantas has announced a new partnership with Sky and Foxtel as part of improvements to its inflight entertainment. The partnership gives Qantas access to an integrated package of news, sport, entertainment and lifestyle programs as well as the Sky News 24/7 news desk. Sky News will replace the inflight Channel 9 news bulletins from 1 November 2014, with multiple news bulletins provided throughout the day on international and domestic flights. Sky News will also provide its new international Australian news service live to Qantas' network of lounges overseas. Customers travelling back home will be able to watch the latest news, sport and business updates from Australia. We know that inflight entertainment is an important part of the customer journey, especially on long-haul flights. These enhancements will give our customers access to a greater range of on-demand content, and we plan to keep improving over the next 12 months.

 

[boomy]

Looking forward to the new look 737s.
I like the new planes with brown leather seats in J and Panasonic IFE. Just wish they get rid of the uncomfortable bulky seat belts in row 4 and put back the thin ones.

 

[serfty]

... Just wish they get rid of the uncomfortable bulky seat belts in row 4 and put back the thin ones.

that won't happen as recertification would be needed.

Those " bulky seat belts" have airbags within.

 

[boomy]

that won't happen as recertification would be needed.

Those " bulky seat belts" have airbags within.

No problem to install them in J but in the narrow Y seats it's very uncomfortable.

 

[Mattg]

IIRC Lufthansa did something similar with their A321 fleet. They discovered that they could add an extra row of seating by reconfiguring the galleys, with seat pitch unaffected,

 

[vertisol]

It will be nice to be able to wander down the aerobridge and not have that slight sense of disappointment when the glow from the cabin is yellow and not blue.

Sometimes I see the yellow glow and hope I got it wrong only to see the VCR on the right as you step aboard and know there'll be no personal IFE for me... (have quickly forgotten the 737-400 fleet obviously).

 

[boomy]

It will be nice to be able to wander down the aerobridge and not have that slight sense of disappointment when the glow from the cabin is yellow and not blue.

Sometimes I see the yellow glow and hope I got it wrong only to see the VCR on the right as you step aboard and know there'll be no personal IFE for me... (have quickly forgotten the 737-400 fleet obviously).

+1

Totally agree! Every time I see the blue light in the distance I know it's going to be a slightly less boring flight and when sometimes it's a yellow light but refurb plane, even better!