An easy decision for the airline bean counters. Despite the nay-sayers alluding to 'no business', there is an acknowledged high backlog of travel demand which even Alan Joyce admits. This is in competition with QSuites, SQ fugly but okay "lar" seats, EK pastel but at least bed is comfortable All this dark coloring is not seen in good light by Asian customers who, if Qantas wakes up, is actually their biggest customers. By breakfast time on Monday, the superjumbo was up in the air again. Log in below. Well send you an email containing the activation link. In fact they actually become as in Express Airlines. Products with rewards and frequent flyer points on offer can be compared using our helpful comparison tables. And I'll be mothballing my QFF card, and firing up the Emirates Skywards instead (or whoever keeps flying the A380). Suggesting I and L are marked as the probably next to be upgraded. Currently, Qantas has been operating its A380 fleet on services between Sydney and Los Angeles, offering only Business, Premium Economy and Economy cabins. . Compare travel credit cards with Executive Traveller. An A380, thats fully or nearly fully written down, if it generates cash, will absolutely work. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7c0aa9882e88e847 However, CEO Alan Joyce has said today that he fully expects to bring back every A380 to the fleet, and can reactivate them as quickly as three to six months if needed. generally at least as good as Emirates and Etihad. Additional troubleshooting resources. Along with booth seating and a large flat screen TV, comes the all important self-serve mini bar. The decision to reactivate the Qantas A380s with VH-OQB and VH-OQD is a slightly odd one. I really think the designers were friggin lazy. Can confirm my booking 1 July 2022 SYD-LAX (booked 2 weeks ago) x 2Pax business class, our seats have already been changed today from a 787-9 to a refurbished A380. It operated QF1 from Sydney to Heathrow, departing Sunday, September 30, 2019, and arriving into Heathrow the next day. Qantas plans to fly the Airbus A380 3x weekly between Sydney (SYD) and Los Angeles (LAX) as of January 11, 2022. Your email address will not be published. Busiest Easter long weekend for air travel since before the pandemic. The thrice-weekly service departs Sydney as flight . If they give these seats an extra couple of inches then I reckon you'd find the seats are very good expect for that cradle legrest. Resend one to yourself here. The refurbishment will fit the cabin out with a compelling business class and a large premium economy cabin. Qantas has announced it will return five of its 12 Airbus A380s to service ahead of schedule, as it prepares for international borders to re-open in December. The airline notes that it expects to have a further two of the remaining 11 unrefurbished aircraft done and flying by the end of 2019. Whats the chances of VH-OQA being donated to a worthy Australian Air Museum? This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. Looks like QF will scrap PER as a port, whilst its Premier wants to segregate his state from the rest of our Country. Qantas loyalty bonus: should you choose points or status? There are two maintenance facilities being used for refurbishments, including one in Abu Dhabi. Absolutely idea. On a long red-eye flight, I had to wake my aisle neighbour twice during the night. Etihad Airways has also said it will likely never fly the A380 again, while Singapore Airlines will retire seven of its A380s. And we do believe that it will generate cash. Until that time arrives, Qantas' fleet of 12 Airbus A380's are currently sitting in long-term storage in the Mojave desert where they are likely to remain until 2024 when Joyce hopes travel demand will have returned to pre-pandemic levels. More bums on seats equal more dollars in Qantas pockets. 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Over the weekend, VH-OQD Fergus McMaster made the journey from storage in California to Sydney, landing back home on Monday morning local time. Both were instead grounded at Qantas purpose-built A380 hangar at LAX. Two more A380 aircraft are expected to undergo refurbishment before . The only aircraft for me for Melbourne to London.Superior in every way . Back in October, Australian airline Qantas announced it would undertake a massive project to refit its fleet of 12 Airbus A380 jumbo jets with new interiors. Further, whilst Australians have been compliant in lockdown for the past 3 months, I doubt strongly that those same people will sit back and accept no international service from QF for the next 12 months when competitors are to be flying from October / November this year. The next two oldest A380s are Hudson Fysh and VH-OQC Paul McGinness, both of which landed at Qantas in December 2008. On Saturday and Sunday, VH-OQB operated ten flights around Sydney. Click OK to continue. I concur that I will always choose Emirates over Qantas if they have the A380 in service and Qantas does not(of course on QF paper). It's scheduled to fly tonight from London to Singapore, and the seatmap reflects that (here's the business class seatmap, showing the new 1-2-1 configuration, compared to the old 2-2-2 configuration). It's completely free and we'll never pass your information on to However, you might assume the two would come from the half dozen older yet-to-be refurbished planes. It was the last A380 Qantas received. all rights reserved, China issues report that Boeing sees as key to restart 737 MAX deliveries, ANA sells tickets up to 20 times cheaper due to an error in its website, Avolon completes delivery of 15 Airbus A320neo to Vistara, Boeing says 11 Chinese airlines have resumed operating 737 MAX. Give me the A380 anytime over 787 when in economy though. Will fly ex DRW instead, which is better for eastern cities anyway to get to, will upgrade the QF pax facilities at terminal. Maybe operating QF2 out of Heathrow that evening? Didnt receive an activation email? Can confirm my booking 1 July 2022 SYD-LAX (booked 2 weeks ago) x 2Pax business class, our seats have already been changed today from a 787-9 to a refurbished A380. On Tuesday, October 2, 2019, it flew from Heathrow to Dresden as QF6005. "The aircraftare being put into the Mojave Desert, where the environment protects the aircraft (because) we have the intention at the right time to restart them, but that is a considerable amount of time away.". View the Airbus A380 seat map (PDF) 14 First, 70 Business, 60 Premium Economy and 341 Economy seats. It's all about survival for Qantas but the A380 is/was simply unsurpassed experience wise. The flights typically comprise a loop out southwest towards the Wingecarribee area before turning back towards Sydney, running out over the Royal National Park, and going out to sea before heading back into the airport. It comes as the airline posted a statutory loss before tax of $1.83 billion, largely driven by sudden and ongoing border closures in the second half of the financial year. 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Qantas doesn't fly at all between Melbourne and Dallas. Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. I guess the A380s are not very suitable for freight-only operations. Didnt receive an activation email? You will be redirected to update payment method page. It operated QF1 from Sydney to Heathrow, departing Sunday, September 30, 2019, and arriving into Heathrow the next day. Hi Guest, join in the discussion on I thought they were only using the ones that had the makeover? Even Qatar if they bring theirs back. Give your Qantas hate a spell mate. Meanwhile, Qantas has pushed back its planned return to higher-risk destinations, such as Bali, Bangkok, Manila, and Johannesburg, until April 2022. What will happen to the first lounges I wonder. So you don't like the 'Australian-ishness' of the branding but the cabin crew uniforms from Ansett and Jetstar are OK because they 'fully embued (sic) Australia' and 'come off as so much more Australian and classier'? The only criticism I've heard is that they're squashed together although I suspect this will be dependent on the specific aircraft and, considering how much criticism QF have received, they'll probably spread them out a little. If the seats are too close together in PE then how does the window seat person get out? Putting in the new seats took too long, are still not on all. Which is the best Star Alliance lounge at Sydney Airport? Absolutely. Scuttlebutt several days ago was that it would be VH-OQL, named. News. I can see myself waiting until I can travel on the A380 again (preferrably Qantas but, if not, Emirates, Qatar or Etihad). From a passenger's point of view, it's a lucky dip as to what plane you get. The planned refresh includes touch-ups to both first and economy classes, overhauled business and premium-economy products and mechanical maintenance good for 10 more years of service for the airline's superjumbos. As a result Qantas is bringing back a sixth refurbished A380 superjumbo into operation from the middle of this month, providing more operational resilience over the busy Christmas holidays. Qantas will ground its entire flagship Airbus A380 fleet until at least the middle of 2023 as the airline comes to grips with what's expected to be a prolonged downturn in international travel. Im not sure what sort of tourism you think operates under those conditions. At the time, the airline didnt think they would be needed again before around 2023 to 2024. If you have not received the activation email, simply enter your email address below, then click 'Submit'. Until that time arrives, Qantas fleet of 12 Airbus A380s are currently sitting in long-term storage in the Mojave desert where they are likely to remain until 2024 when Joyce hopes travel demand will have returned to pre-pandemic levels. Enjoy your QF flights, Robert R, the A380 is a joy to fly on! A Qantas A380, VH-OQA, departs from Melbourne Airport. Cos they seriously never got the uniform right cos they never bothered to tailor it. oqh, oqj and oqk sorry. Well send you an email to re-activate your account and enter a new password. Performance & security by Cloudflare. A380 Business was crap, droopy seats, 2-2-2 on most aircraft. And its all going to be about cash when we start up international [flights].. Cloudflare monitors for these errors and automatically investigates the cause. For the first time since then, VH-OQB took to the skies at 1:54pm on 19 August as flight QF6013, and took the 11-hour journey to Dresden Airport in Germany. I don't understand why Jetstar branding and uniform comes off as so much more Australian and classier. aircraft dubbed 'Queen of the Skies' by its fans, and which for decades was the backbone of Qantas' international fleet. The changes include replacing the older Skybed business class seats with the airline's newer Business Suites, which allow all business class passengers direct access to the aisle. Get unlimited news articles and more by creating a free account, Passwords must have at least 10 characters, one number, one lower and third Speaking at todays CAPA Live event, CEO of Qantas Alan Joyce said that he fully expects to bring all the A380s back into service. Its been 10 months since Qantas sent its A380s to the Mojave Desert for long-term storage. Old unrefurbished A380, last minute schedule changes (a friends LA-SYD was retime to 0930!!) When Qantas began ferrying its 12 A380s to the Mojave Desert for storage last June, many thought it would be the last time wed see the type fly for the Australian airline. And the B787-9 provides much better cargo economics as it can fit up to 36 LD3 sized containers in the belly, whilst the A380 takes 38 containers, but at a much higher operating cost. The problem, and this has been identified by AusBT and pretty much every Boeing 787 passenger, is that the seats are too close together, which means really cramped conditions without a lot of legroom. Seat cushions will be replaced to be more comfortable and video screens will be swapped for a larger display. The summer school holidays are in full swing and the. For those interested, the 'running order' will see VH-OQK as the first A380 headed for refurb at the start of July, so it might even be in the air by late August. Andrew is based in Sydney. Qantas has been planning this refurbishment for a couple of years. Meanwhile Jetstar will begin flights with three new A321 neo aircraft in the coming weeks, initially on domestic services and its routes between Australia and Bali. The A380 is far more spacious and comfortable to fly in than the squeezy Boeing 787 nightmare plane, but it's the now-departed Boeing 747, yes, Queen of the Sky, that had most comfort. The last of Qantas A380s flew to the desert last September after completing a multi-million-dollar retrofit in Dresden, Germany. It's completely free and we'll never pass your information on to Eagle-eyed planespotters were anticipating the return to service of the second Qantas A380. The Airbus A380 has failed to win the confidence of many other operators, including Air France, which brought forward the aircrafts retirement early because of the pandemic. This post has been updated with new information. Joyce said, If demand comes back earlier, we can reactivate the A380s within three to six months. The airline has already refurbished six; VH-OQD, VH-OQG, VH-OQH, VH-OQI, VH-OQJ, and QH-OQK. 14 First, 64 Business, 35 Premium Economy and 371 Economy seats. The airline is also winding up its Boeing 747 fleet, marking a fanfare-free end for theaircraft dubbed 'Queen of the Skies' by its fans, and which for decades was the backbone of Qantas' international fleet. Signing up with Executive Traveller only takes a second and lets you Well send you an email containing the activation link. That, together with being able to enjoy the usual service levels both in the lounges and on board, I think will mean that I will be looking at domestic only until late 2022 or early 2023. What Alan Joyce needs to be aware of is a bill making passage through the US Congress which sets out specific and enforceable issues for safe distancing within aircraft flying into, throough and out of US air space. interact with our community. It's especially noticeable around the knees actually. First Look And Flight Photos Of The Qantas A380 New Interiors - Forbes On Wednesday, Australian Aviation revealed that one of Qantas A380s was flown from storage at LAX to a facility in Dresden, Germany, for maintenance ahead of its planned refurbishment. The airline has already refurbished six; VH-OQD, VH-OQG, VH-OQH, VH-OQI, VH-OQJ, and QH-OQK. It's completely free and we'll never pass your information on to Which is the best Star Alliance lounge at Sydney Airport? TPG's JT Genter reviewed Qantas' 787-9 business class last year and gave the product high marks. After all, with the DFW-SYD A380 service pre-COVID19, it was de-rigeur to block >100 seats during much of the year due to weather. Cathay Pacific reopens Hong Kongs The Wing Business lounge, Land up to 20% bonus points in Velocitys new transfer promo. Qantas international flights: Airbus A380 superjumbos to return to Those seats are 11A, 11E, 11F, 11K, 16A, 16K, 17E and 17F. Almost 3500 additional operational employees employed since Easter 2022 to support increased travel. Is Qantas just gonna standardize its widebody fleet to 787s? My problem is that Qantas seriously tries too hard to be Australian when it comes off as unauthentic. Qantas have already confirmed the PE seats on A380 won't have more pitch than on the 787. The new design, with cafe-style seating and tables, appears better suited for conversation and collaboration than the current single row of benches offered on A380 flights. My god Levinn there doesn't seem to be much about Qantas that you like? To be frank, I should have saved the points. We'll see Qantas' final eight A380s re-enter the fleet by the end of 2020. Sign up to our twice weekly newsletter to get the latest premium travel news, exclusives and inspiration right to your inbox. During conference, Joyce confirmed that Qantas still plans to resume international flights beyond New Zealand from October, despite delays of Australias vaccination rollout which is seen as key to easing travel restrictions. However, CEO Alan Joyce has said today that he fully expects to bring back every A380 to the fleet, and can reactivate them as quickly as three to six months if needed. What's wrong with the new seats? Qantas expects two more refurbished A380s to be flying be the end of 2019. WA is going to miss out millions of $ in tourism, but McGowan thinks he makes plenty of money anyway from iron ore, which the Chinese no longer want to buy. Because there's more to long term storage than what you mentioned. If youve forgotten your password, simply enter your email address Thatt's the same product as China Eastern, Shanghai Airlines, SAS etc who all debuted their products back in the earlier 2010s. See also: Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX battle for billion-dollar Qantas order. Updates to the first-class product include material changes to modernize the look of the suites. Exclusive: Qantas takes delivery of new 787 after 2-year delay, RAAF streamlines training for new recruits, AucklandBeijing flights to finally return, Leonardo Australia wins AS9110 certification, Baltik Air takes on Malaysia Airlines on AdelaideKuala Lumpur, Cracks that caused wing to break off biplane were hidden, Qantas A380s was flown from storage at LAX to a facility in Dresden, International borders to open in December, says Qantas. If they stored them at Alice Springs they would have to make them airworthy again just to fly them to Mohave for scrapping. And the similar scheduling windows that worked for Australia are unique. Its also worth noting that time of the year is one of the busiest times for international flights in and out of Australia. There will be 9 aircraft remaining. VH-OQB Hudson Fysh made a splashy return home and has been busy operating familiarization flights over Sydney for out-of-practice A380 crews. Qantas A380s serve Los Angeles (LAX) and Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) in the US, as well as other destinations in the carrier's network. You don't have credit card details available. VH-OQB will depart Sydney and operate QF11 to Los Angeles on Tuesday evening. Qantas reactivated another A380 in early November. Good luck to him. See also: Qantas unveils replica Boeing 747-200 first class lounge in a museum. In April, Joyce said each aircraft could potentially come back into service in as little as three to six months. Qantas are not mucking around getting these A380 back. Prestige and Profit, that's what will deliver a vaccine/'s from a US pharma/'s most likely by end of 2020, let's face it Armstrong walked on the moon 51 years ago. The airline is also reinstating services between Australia and New Zealand, projecting a re-start of the currently paused trans-Tasman travel bubble, also in December. It is not that significant. By the southern autumn, we might expect to see the refurbished A380s coming into service fairly regularly. English. The unrefurbished VH-OQB had been doing the SYD-LAX sector for some months, but departed for Abu Dhabi on 10th May for maintenance or refurbishment. 9. Seat map. In addition to larger screens and six additional seats in business, the updated aircraft will boast a 1-2-1 layout in business class, with aisle access for every seat. On The Move: Qantas Relocates An Airbus A380 To Abu Dhabi - Simple Flying Earlier, in February, the Qantas chief executive said that it was heartbreaking to see the fleet stored in the Mojave Desert and insisted that curfews and expensive airport slots meant flying them will still be profitable. I was lucky on my most recent trip from LHR to SIN - the lady next to me who had a window seat only needed to get up once. If they give these seats an extra couple of inches then I reckon you'd find the seats are very good expect for that cradle legrest. If youve forgotten your password, simply enter your email address Beyond that, it gets trickier. Qantas resumes scheduled A380 flights between Sydney and Los Angeles on Tuesday, January 11. PrimeFlight GSE Maintenance is a leading provider of Ground Support Equipment (GSE) maintenance, fleet maintenance, and facility maintenance services with operations across the US.
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