Qatar Airways - disgusting experience

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Clementine

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Has anyone else had the misfortune to fly QA in economy? It might win awards in Business Class, but in economy they give new meaning to the term cattle class. Never have I felt less welcome, never have I been treated with such contempt. Perhaps that's the experience women traveling alone can expect from airline based in the Gulf?
As I exited the aircraft (via the back stairs of course) in Doha, I congratulated the flight attendant at the door for being the only crew member I'd seen smile during the entire flight. When she thanked me, I pointed out it wasn't a compliment.
 
Very surprised to read this. My parents fly then regularly in Y, and rave about them.
 
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really? what is it they find good about the airline? every aspect of it seemed appalling, and i didnt just suffer one flight, but four. maybe it was because i was traveling alone?
 
I was sufficiently appalled by the experience to write to the airline afterward, pointing out some of the more egregious aspects of my trip. I didnt get a reply
 
Don't expect one... Customer service is not a strong point with the middle eastern carriers. Unfortunately, they're all as inconsistent as eachother. Emirates is probably the best of them, but my experiences are probably 50/50, either great or ordinary (including in J).
 
I am very suprised too hear your negative impressions. I have flown on about 8 trips now (all in Y, although did get an upgrade once) and have always found the inflight service to be fantastic, the food very good and entertainment options ok. It is one of the best airlines that I fly.
 
really? what is it they find good about the airline? every aspect of it seemed appalling, and i didnt just suffer one flight, but four. maybe it was because i was traveling alone?

They said that the food was fantastic, it was easy to stay hydrated (water), the staff were very welcoming and kind, and that the quantity of food was very good, too.

My/their biggest problem with them was on check in.. At MEL when checking in they demanded to see the credit card that the booking was made with. Myself and maybe 30 others didn't have the cards. I thought having an "Account Closed" statement would be enough to satisfy them but it wasn't, so I had to go through all my old emails and luckily I was able to find the CC number I booked with. Very, very lucky.
 
So I can understand the issues, where did QR fail against what you were expecting?

Long Haul Economy is not fun at the best of times, so it is good to know where exactly the issues lie with QR to see if it is a once off, or a systematic problem.
 
.....As I exited the aircraft (via the back stairs of course) .....

Clementine, I may be making an incorrect observation, but my interpretation of this phrase, (in the context of your overall post about being a woman on a middle Eastern airline), is that you resented doing this?

Am I mistaken?
 
My clients have always been very happy with QR in Y. Even single women. My experience in J was incredible. Loved it
 
I find very little difference in Y between different full-service airlines (and I've even had better long-haul flights on JQ than QF). Seats, service, IFE, food etc in Y is all very, very similar between each airline. I would notice a difference of 1 inch in pitch far more than whether crew smiled or not.
 
The cabin crew were surly at best, unfriendly and unhelpful, bordering on resentful. The plane was grubby. The food was execrable and every meal consisted of chicken. (there was ostensibly a choice but at every meal there was only chicken available, it was always lukewarm, tasteless and rubbery). The toilets were very dirty. The passengers were literally herded on and off the plane (via the rear stairs, even if seated at the front of the economy cabin) and taken to a separate terminal from the other pax. On reboarding we were left in a closed bus on the tarmac for 15 minutes in the heat of the day waiting to board the aircraft.

There was simply nothing positive about the experience. Sure, long haul in Y is tough on any airline, but it helps a lot if the crew are pleasant and helpful.

I wouldnt bother writing to an airline if it was just 'meh'. This was much worse
 
I have only flown them in Y on short haul and it was always terrible. But i have also flown Kuwait Airways and that was worse. Yes, i can understand your comments.
 
Has anyone else had the misfortune to fly QA in economy? It might win awards in Business Class, but in economy they give new meaning to the term cattle class. Never have I felt less welcome, never have I been treated with such contempt. Perhaps that's the experience women traveling alone can expect from airline based in the Gulf?
As I exited the aircraft (via the back stairs of course) in Doha, I congratulated the flight attendant at the door for being the only crew member I'd seen smile during the entire flight. When she thanked me, I pointed out it wasn't a compliment.

Hi Clementine,

While I don't doubt what your saying about your experiences with QA, what was it exactly that you didn't like?

Was it crew? Was it food? Was it the entertainment system? I'm sorry but I feel I need detail before I can comment.
 
Very interesting observations about QR.

In Europe they get rave reviews, particularly in the UK market & heavily advertise through various media channels, particularly prime time television.

Here in Australia, they only operate from Perth & Melbourne , with not a great deal of marketing or publicity.

In fact I firmly believe they are unheard of as an airline by a large number of Australian based flyers who are casual flyers ( let's say, travel once or twice a year) due to their low foot print in the Australian market at this point in time. EK & EY have good brand awareness in Australia, QR does lack this in a broad sense.

I recently bumped into one of QR's marketing people in Melbourne who was in the midst of buying cartons of shortbread to give to Travel Agents to promote their new route to Edinburgh.

I thought that was a very low key form of publicity to promote a new route to travel agents.... I guess it would win brownie points for any sweet- tooth Travel Agents in Melbourne though!

Putting that aside, I asked about any news on QR operating on the SYD route, for which the answer was " when a suitable slot becomes available".

( hard to read between the lines, but QR have been on the record in saying that the SYD curfew needs to be lifted before contemplating launching a route to SYD)

But I would have to agree, with many of the previous participants in this thread already though, that the level of service in Economy class cabins does not differ greatly by the big names of aviation. ( The exception being some of the North American carriers as who many of us acknowledge are well below par in terms of the quality of their "hard" & " soft" products in Y).
It really is a mixed bag when flying in Y in terms of service these days & can be "hit & miss"..... But I do acknowledge that the role of a FA can be demanding particularly on Red Eye flights such as MEL > DOH on QR.
 
I find very little difference in Y between different full-service airlines (and I've even had better long-haul flights on JQ than QF). Seats, service, IFE, food etc in Y is all very, very similar between each airline. I would notice a difference of 1 inch in pitch far more than whether crew smiled or not.
Not everyone is the same.

I notice everything around me. I dont want to bury myself in gadgets. I will only fly economy on carriers where I know my privacy would be largely respected. I feel comfortable flying QF, BA in economy. To a lesser extent CX, SQ and TG are OK.

Not interested in the rest. Am I missing out? Best if I never have to find out.
 
I find very little difference in Y between different full-service airlines (and I've even had better long-haul flights on JQ than QF). Seats, service, IFE, food etc in Y is all very, very similar between each airline. I would notice a difference of 1 inch in pitch far more than whether crew smiled or not.

Sorry but I have to disagree.
I had some very good experiences flying Y on airlines like QF & SQ and some terrible experiences flying Y on airlines like DL & UA.
 
It's a cheap seat on public transport, with a fairly unethical Middle Eastern airline, what did you expect? You paid for the cheap seats so you don't get the premium terminal (does that even exist anymore at the new airport).
If forced via the Middle East my preference is Emirates, Etihad, Oman Air and then the rest.

i agree with above comments that economy is pretty much economy on any airline. Choose timings, stopover airports and price.

But the OP does have to be more specific with their comments to be taken seriously, and the rude/unnecessary comment when disembarking, well that says a lot about the OP, very childish.
 
I'd like to know exactly what the issue was. I can't getting a whiff of flew economy and expected business class service.

QR is 9 abreast in economy (vs 10 on EK) and 6 abreast in business (vs 7 on EK).

If you are looking for a chatty/friendly economy class flight attendant like there are in business it can be hard work. Firstly they are so busy serving all 400 passengers so they don't have that "be nice to the passenger" time. Also, economy passengers can be very demanding.

My view: if they got you from A to B on time and didn't lose your luggage that's what matters.

Also, fact that you were bused separately to the business class passengers is part of the deal. I'm not sure when you flew as in the last 4 weeks the buses have stopped and it's all in one terminal.

Could you please provide:

(1) date of service; and
(2) exactly what issues were that caused flight to be below what is expected of a full service airline economy class flight?
 
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