Qantas Economy Plus Launching Feb 2026

[opusman]

Has anyone been able to confirm yet that PS and NB still have to pay for available Y+ seats after check-in? This appears to be the case from what I've seen.

I don't see how it could work any other way, given they're advertising those seats as free for Gold after check-in opens. Kind of implies not free for the lower classes

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Not everyone agrees ...

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$60 for an extra four inches: Qantas’ new Economy Plus fare angers flyers

It’s behind a paywall so I can’t see what the issues are. But they can travel the exact same way as now in a regular seat without charge. So no change.

Gold or above and they potentially get a much nicer ride, for free.

Plus if the flight is full, those that don’t pay may also get a much nicer ride for free.

Where’s the complaint?

 

[MELso]

It’s behind a paywall so I can’t see what the issues are. But they can travel the exact same way as now in a regular seat without charge. So no change.

Gold or above and they potentially get a much nicer ride, for free.

Plus if the flight is full, those that don’t pay may also get a much nicer ride for free.

Where’s the complaint?

The TL;DR is that it's:
1. A whinge about why isn't Qantas doing this for everyone for 'free' as a premium airline?
2. A more interesting observation that the 738 may have too many seats with 48 of them compared to VA (mind you, rows 8ABC and 9 with their windowless window seats may not be prime real estate)
3. A risk that too many people now have priority boarding.

(FWIW, I've given up one of my economy plus seats as I could change my flight to the A321XLR. The extra legroom would've been nice, but I'd rather have a bit more width.)

 

[serfty]

It’s behind a paywall so I can’t see what the issues are. But they can travel the exact same way as now in a regular seat without charge. So no change.

Gold or above and they potentially get a much nicer ride, for free.

Plus if the flight is full, those that don’t pay may also get a much nicer ride for free.

Where’s the complaint?

$60 for an extra four inches: Qantas’ new Economy Plus fare angers flyers

It's a bit of a puff piece, but gives a view from those without airline status.

Qantas has introduced Economy Plus, charging customers for extra leg room on select flights.
The fare, which was announced on February 2, requires flyers to pay at least $60 extra on return flights and offers between 38 and 40 per cent more leg room, priority boarding and priority access to overhead baggage space.

But frequent travellers are saying these benefits should be givens, especially considering Qantas is “premium” airline.

Morphett Vale travel content creator and avid flyer, Ashley Swallow said the move was “not a good sign”.

“I feel like they’re trying to spin it in a way that it’s a good thing but at the end of the day they’re just paying more for things that should be included,” the 33-year-old said. ...

 

[Mr_Orange]

But none of the extra features were previously included. That's like demanding a J seat because QF is a premium airline.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

$60 for an extra four inches: Qantas’ new Economy Plus fare angers flyers

It's a bit of a puff piece, but gives a view from those without airline status.

The analysis by Ms Swallow seems… a bit hard to swallow?

No one is ‘required’ to pay for Y+

 

[serfty]

It’s behind a paywall so I can’t see what the issues are. But they can travel the exact same way as now in a regular seat without charge. So no change.

Gold or above and they potentially get a much nicer ride, for free.

Plus if the flight is full, those that don’t pay may also get a much nicer ride for free.

Where’s the complaint?

It's a bit of a puff piece, but gives a view from those without airline status. I thinks it's because they used to get seats forward of exit rows at no cost.

Qantas has introduced Economy Plus, charging customers for extra leg room on select flights.
The fare, which was announced on February 2, requires flyers to pay at least $60 extra on return flights and offers between 38 and 40 per cent more leg room, priority boarding and priority access to overhead baggage space.

But frequent travellers are saying these benefits should be givens, especially considering Qantas is “premium” airline.

 

[Aussie_flyer]

Any opportunity to attack Qantas and they will.

 

[Aeryn]

It's a bit of a puff piece, but gives a view from those without airline status. I thinks it's because they used to get seats forward of exit rows at no cost.

Maybe on some flights, but golden triangle is pretty status heavy so unless there have been cancellations cannibalizing shadows, IME front few rows have all been all status pax anyway.

Those who seem to whinge loudest in media interviews seem to only fly 1-2 return trips a year, so don't really qualify as frequent flyers.

A balanced article would have also quoted status pax who get a new free benefit.

 

[fletty]

3. A risk that too many people now have priority boarding.

I've thought about this, but I think in reality the difference will be minor. It's likely the majority of Y+ seats will be taken by those who have Group 1 and 2 boarding anyway.
I do wonder if Y+ was taken into account when they decided on the boarding groups, seems like it could've been an opportunity for Y+ to be Group 3, but they'd have to change the 3+ group arrangement to do that now.

 

[Flyingwombat]

As a silver this is not a good thing for me - I used to be able to get row 4 or exit seats for free once checked in; I think this is no longer the case? I always checked in right on 24 hours prior...

The prices are crazy high - $50 for a short flight like HBA-MEL. Used to be $37. I'm glad I had already paid for exit row and row 4 on my economy sectors for HBA-PER and SYD-HBA on my upcoming Premium Y London trip before the changes...