In May 2022,Qantas placed an orderfor 12 Airbus A350-1000s, which will mark an exciting new chapter for the airline. These planes will be used for Project Sunrise flights, whereby Qantas intends to fly nonstop from Sydney and Melbourne to New York and London starting in late 2025.
Continue reading: Details: Qantas A350 First & Business Class, Free Wi-Fi
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
My QFFF points are always used on alternate carriers as they want too many award points for travel on their metal - definitely access through other programmes and “good luck “ new product look great
Not specific to Qantas but I wonder how they test the comfort of these new seats? Do staff in the factory get paid to sit in them for 19 hours?
I don't see the need to have USB-A and even AC power anymore as pretty much all PEDs from mobile phones and tablets to even laptops nowadays use the USB-C standard. I'm also curious to see if QF, JAL and other potential carriers who plan to have the same or similar layout follow Emirates' lead on having virtual windows in the middle seats in F.
The way Australia is going the only people that can afford this will be Labor, Greens and their corporate sycophants.
speak for yourself... even today a bunch of tech still (unfortunately) requires USB-A and AC sockets
I'm continued to be baffled by your cynicism for the wellness zone. Are you that out of touch? How do you not realize that the wellness zone is an insane luxury in economy class? There are rarely, if ever, spaces on an aircraft for economy passengers to be able to stand around and move a little in open space. In addition, there are rarely, if ever, options for snacks and beverages like the wellness zone will provide for economy passengers. It's an incredible benefit for economy passengers, I don't see why you think it isn't.
FWIW I've seen a bunch of people posting on social media videos of the actual seat, looks like there may have been a media event in NYC. Looks really good, very nice design that shouldn't get outdated too soon!
Echoing Ken's message about the wellness zone. Unsure if it's because you've been lucky 😉 enough to avoid long haul in economy, but as someone who does the cross-pacific jaunt to Aus a couple times a year, there are always folks gathering to stretch and move around, typically near galleys and exit rows. Id be using this space multiple times per trip.
I was also thinking this. I am fortunate enough that my company pays for business class travel on long-haul flights and red-eyes But when it comes to personal travel, either because there's a lack of award availability, I don't have enough miles or I am simply not willing to drop $$$$ for what is essentially a service for a few hours, I end up booking on an economy exit row. I cannot count the number of times I have had to deal with careless people stepping on my feet or making constant physical contact because they were having a conversation at the exit row. On the one hand I try to be understanding, knowing that we are all in a confined space with little to no free room, but admittedly it is very annoying. Something like the wellness zone helps alleviate the congestion in aisles, exit rows and galleys and makes the journey overall much more pleasant to both economy passengers and FAs.
Along the lines of what Nathan said... feel lucky that you don't have to deal with long-haul economy and don't diminish the value of amenities at the back of the plane.
@Ben the well-being zone will be for exclusive use of economy and premium economy passengers.
First and business won’t have access to it, as they can stretch in the own suites.
This was my thought as well. I think it's just as much for the flight crew and having passengers out of their way, rather than stretching in a galley or by their jump seats and having to move around them.
*meant to add, which Ben does point out. It looks like a slightly nicer space to stretch out, but yeah at the end of the day, "wellness zone" is a marketing term.
I'm surprised they opted to have economy class for this flight. Singapore Airlines flies JFK-SIN in either all-business or business class & premium economy (but no economy) which I think is a better idea. Sometimes I wonder if the Qantas execs have ever sat in ultra longhaul middle seat in economy class.
Isn't 2-4-2 a little tight for P.E. on an A350? That's what 777s use, and 787s use 2-3-2. The A350 is in the middle, but they've opted to squeeze the extra seat in. On a such a long flight where weight is at a premium, this is a strange choice.
It is very doubtful if the USB C chargers on a plane will deliver power enough to charge laptops. While laptops may have gone USB C, they are far more power hungry than phones and tablets.
No AC outlet in Y and PY is incredibly cheap by QF. But I guess they need to cut costs somewhere
If I remember correctly, QF's own A380 have (or had) a snack bar for economy cabin. Area near the snack bar was the de-facto the "wellness zone" - a place to stretch without the fancy marketing name.
To me, A380 is still the most comfortable (albeit the ugliest) plane, especially for long flights.
This is surprising to me to.
Premium economy: 2-4-4
Economy: 3-3-3
The premium economy seats must not be that much wider than the economy seats with that sort of layout
Ignoring for a moment the obvious that Qantas needs to make money and there's plenty of suckers willing to pay extra for a single hop even in a mediocre Y seat as we observed with QF9/10.
I'd be more willing to heap praise if this were a regular long haul spec plane; but for flights that will go past 20 hours? Oof.
As others have mentioned, SQ opted to remove Y entirely for [still shorter] extra long haul journeys, and JAL's regular 777/787 have bigger seats in the back for much shorter flights.
Exactly. In Singapore Premium Economy 777s are a lot more comfy than their A350 counterparts. Same 2-4-2 configuration.
Yes, 2-4-2 is tight for PE on an A350. 2-3-2 is quite okay, 2-4-2 is poor. All the more on such incredibly long flights.
Testing out seats on the ground wouldn't be sufficient: those vibrations during flight and the reduced air pressure quite change (and worsen) the experience.
Surprised they do not replace economy with premium economy and premium economy with something similar to premium select on long haul Delta flights. The premium select is similar to the old business class from many years ago. The wellness center is a waste of space. Why not come up with something more practical.
I’m not fond of their decision to have only USB-C outlets in economy and not even USB-A. I guess I won’t be able to use my phone or laptop for very long on those super long flights. Many long haul airlines have AC power outlets in all classes. It’s basically standard for any newer generation plane on any good airline. Is Qantas expecting USB-A outlets to be obsolete by the time they launch these flights?
Both the First Class Suites and Business Class are Beautiful. Premium Economy is completely wrong.
My QFFF points are always used on alternate carriers as they want too many award points for travel on their metal - definitely access through other programmes and “good luck “ new product look great
Not specific to Qantas but I wonder how they test the comfort of these new seats? Do staff in the factory get paid to sit in them for 19 hours?
I'm pretty sure that JAL's upcoming A35K would have a better cabin.
Looks nice. LH group should have used this layout for their new F products.
I don't see the need to have USB-A and even AC power anymore as pretty much all PEDs from mobile phones and tablets to even laptops nowadays use the USB-C standard. I'm also curious to see if QF, JAL and other potential carriers who plan to have the same or similar layout follow Emirates' lead on having virtual windows in the middle seats in F.
speak for yourself... even today a bunch of tech still (unfortunately) requires USB-A and AC sockets
It is very doubtful if the USB C chargers on a plane will deliver power enough to charge laptops. While laptops may have gone USB C, they are far more power hungry than phones and tablets.
No AC outlet in Y and PY is incredibly cheap by QF. But I guess they need to cut costs somewhere
The way Australia is going the only people that can afford this will be Labor, Greens and their corporate sycophants.
I'm continued to be baffled by your cynicism for the wellness zone. Are you that out of touch? How do you not realize that the wellness zone is an insane luxury in economy class? There are rarely, if ever, spaces on an aircraft for economy passengers to be able to stand around and move a little in open space. In addition, there are rarely, if ever, options for snacks and beverages like the wellness zone will provide for economy passengers. It's an incredible benefit for economy passengers, I don't see why you think it isn't.
If I remember correctly, QF's own A380 have (or had) a snack bar for economy cabin. Area near the snack bar was the de-facto the "wellness zone" - a place to stretch without the fancy marketing name.
To me, A380 is still the most comfortable (albeit the ugliest) plane, especially for long flights.
FWIW I've seen a bunch of people posting on social media videos of the actual seat, looks like there may have been a media event in NYC. Looks really good, very nice design that shouldn't get outdated too soon!
Echoing Ken's message about the wellness zone. Unsure if it's because you've been lucky 😉 enough to avoid long haul in economy, but as someone who does the cross-pacific jaunt to Aus a couple times a year, there are always folks gathering to stretch and move around, typically near galleys and exit rows. Id be using this space multiple times per trip.
I was also thinking this. I am fortunate enough that my company pays for business class travel on long-haul flights and red-eyes But when it comes to personal travel, either because there's a lack of award availability, I don't have enough miles or I am simply not willing to drop $$$$ for what is essentially a service for a few hours, I end up booking on an economy exit row. I cannot count the number of times I have had to deal with careless people stepping on my feet or making constant physical contact because they were having a conversation at the exit row. On the one hand I try to be understanding, knowing that we are all in a confined space with little to no free room, but admittedly it is very annoying. Something like the wellness zone helps alleviate the congestion in aisles, exit rows and galleys and makes the journey overall much more pleasant to both economy passengers and FAs.
Along the lines of what Nathan said... feel lucky that you don't have to deal with long-haul economy and don't diminish the value of amenities at the back of the plane.
This was my thought as well. I think it's just as much for the flight crew and having passengers out of their way, rather than stretching in a galley or by their jump seats and having to move around them.
*meant to add, which Ben does point out. It looks like a slightly nicer space to stretch out, but yeah at the end of the day, "wellness zone" is a marketing term.
@Ben the well-being zone will be for exclusive use of economy and premium economy passengers.
First and business won’t have access to it, as they can stretch in the own suites.
I'm surprised they opted to have economy class for this flight. Singapore Airlines flies JFK-SIN in either all-business or business class & premium economy (but no economy) which I think is a better idea. Sometimes I wonder if the Qantas execs have ever sat in ultra longhaul middle seat in economy class.
Isn't 2-4-2 a little tight for P.E. on an A350? That's what 777s use, and 787s use 2-3-2. The A350 is in the middle, but they've opted to squeeze the extra seat in. On a such a long flight where weight is at a premium, this is a strange choice.
This is surprising to me to.
Premium economy: 2-4-4
Economy: 3-3-3
The premium economy seats must not be that much wider than the economy seats with that sort of layout
Exactly. In Singapore Premium Economy 777s are a lot more comfy than their A350 counterparts. Same 2-4-2 configuration.
Ignoring for a moment the obvious that Qantas needs to make money and there's plenty of suckers willing to pay extra for a single hop even in a mediocre Y seat as we observed with QF9/10.
I'd be more willing to heap praise if this were a regular long haul spec plane; but for flights that will go past 20 hours? Oof.
As others have mentioned, SQ opted to remove Y entirely for [still shorter] extra long haul journeys, and JAL's regular 777/787 have bigger seats in the back for much shorter flights.