Qantas Frequent Flyer - J class - Qantas A380 or BA 747 + other Qs!

hi, I'm looking to book J class ex Sydney to London for Xmas since the business specials are great at present ($6000 BA or $7000 Qan return VS $13,000 First class)

Which is preferred, Qantas A380 or BA 747-400 ... or sample both .... and if sampling both, regarding lounge access, is there a separate Qantas business class lounge in Heathrow or does it share it with BA, if there are separate Qantas/BA business lounges in Heathrow, which one is better

my next question, on QF1 (which stops at Singapore), do you actually get off the plane in Singapore, or do you remain on board?

There is another flight Ex Sydney to Heathrow QF1 / QF9 ... but that appears as an actual plane change with a 50 min stop over in Singapore.

Any reasons why you would choose the QF1 / QF9 over the QF1 all the way? (more points etc/Singapore lounge access)

hi, I'm looking to book J class ex Sydney to London for Xmas since the business specials are great at present ($6000 BA or $7000 Qan return VS $13,000 First class)

Which is preferred, Qantas A380 or BA 747-400 ... or sample both .... and if sampling both, regarding lounge access, is there a separate Qantas business class lounge in Heathrow or does it share it with BA, if there are separate Qantas/BA business lounges in Heathrow, which one is better

my next question, on QF1 (which stops at Singapore), do you actually get off the plane in Singapore, or do you remain on board?

There is another flight Ex Sydney to Heathrow QF1 / QF9 ... but that appears as an actual plane change with a 50 min stop over in Singapore.

Any reasons why you would choose the QF1 / QF9 over the QF1 all the way? (more points etc/Singapore lounge access)
I would take the QF A380, but if you want I see no reason why you do not mix it up between the two.
For the Kangaroo route BA and QF use the same Lounges in LHR and SIN.
But IMO the better lounge is the BA Lounges in T5 which means you need to take BA to HKG and then switch to QF for the HKG-SYD sector, which can be the A380 on selected days.
For all transits you will need to disembark the aircraft.

The BA Club World seating thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1055540-seating-queries-club-world.html

Upper Deck is the preferred choice but may be difficult to get without paying for seat selection. The Ying Yang seats make window seats very private but they fly backwards.

Any reasons why you would choose the QF1 / QF9 over the QF1 all the way? (more points etc/Singapore lounge access)

If status credits are important to you, splitting the flight numbers, or stopping over in SIN, will get you an extra 40 each way, plus a few more points.

Thanks.

I'm flying Venice J class back to Sydney QF/BA codeshare. Some of the Venice flights arrive in London City Airport as well as Gatwick. To transfer to Heathrow is that my responsibility or will Qantas/BA issue me with a bus or train ticket?

It'd be either a 9 hour wait at Heathrow (arriving from Venice to Heathrow and then waiting for QF/BA back to Sydney) .... or going via Gatwick or London City with less wait....but time in a bus or a train transitting ... not sure what is worse?

I am almost certain that you will be responsible for your transfer between airports (but you should be able to through check bags).

Assuming your luggage is through checked why not come back via London City and stop off for some sightseeing / lunch / shopping on your way to Heathrow? Or if you come straight to Heathrow you could go into town on the Heathrow Express with a 9 hour transit but that would probably be more expensive as HEX tickets are pricey...

Your responsibility for travel between the two airports, as well as baggage.

Baggage is not transferred. It will have said this when booking.

... (but you should be able to through check bags).Just to confirm that there is no through-checking of bags if an inter-airport transfer is required.

Personally, I'd look to use the convenience of VCE/LHR and the additional time - assuming the VCE-LHR flight arrives pretty much on time - to go into Central London, rather than dragging luggage from LCY to LHR.

LGW might look the more attractive connection, but if that in-bound is delayed by an hour (BA 2585 has a 61% reliability factor with a 25min avg delay), then a 3hr connection around the M25 starting in the evening peak, in winter when snow may be a factor, would certainly increase my stress levels.

Regards,

BD

thanks for the replies.

to save the hassle I'll just book with heathrow connections only, we'll have a 6 months old with us so we will just sit in the lounge for a number of hours!

thanks for the replies.

to save the hassle I'll just book with heathrow connections only, we'll have a 6 months old with us so we will just sit in the lounge for a number of hours!

If its not too late, I'd suggest taking the QF A380 options over BA. Some of the BA 747s have seen better days and the catering, though improved, is a notch below QF. BA IFE very wobbly. I've also found the B Aplanes less clean (some positively dirty) compared to QF or Asian carriers. So if any of these factors matter, take QF. (If its not too late)

Are CX matching the fares? OW points and some (a small number) of their London flights are 77Ws with their new J seat - which beats BA F (let alone business). Worth a check.

....Are CX matching the fares? OW points and some (a small number) of their London flights are 77Ws with their new J seat - which beats BA F (let alone business). Worth a check.Not only is CX not matching the J fares, but their J fare HKG-LHR is higher than the BA F fare. So CX does know their J product beats BA F :)

For the outbound, BA has a very pleasant arrival lounge at T5 which you could visit if coming in from HKG. Whereas IIRC the SIN flights go to/from T3, both QF and BA.

Homebound, departing LHR T3 may be an advantage as T5 has a barmy rule that if you don't pass security 35 minutes ahead, a BA goon will throw you off the flight. Not that you'd plan to be that late but LHR is a horrible airport full of unexpected delays, plus its transport problems with the M25, rail strikes etc.

Whereas AFAIK BA / QF don't have those goons at T3.

If you're connecting from VCE or anywhere landing at T5, departing T5 for HKG makes sense though again if the inbound is late the goons may unload you even if you would have had a chance to make the connection.

However, if you're looking for a bargain in J class have a look at the thread on the Avianca program, under "other N American airlines".

For the outbound, BA has a very pleasant arrival lounge at T5 which you could visit if coming in from HKG. Whereas IIRC the SIN flights go to/from T3, both QF and BA.

Homebound, departing LHR T3 may be an advantage as T5 has a barmy rule that if you don't pass security 35 minutes ahead, a BA goon will throw you off the flight. Not that you'd plan to be that late but LHR is a horrible airport full of unexpected delays, plus its transport problems with the M25, rail strikes etc.

Whereas AFAIK BA / QF don't have those goons at T3.

Looking at this page (http://www.britishairways.com/travel/terminal-3-changes/public/en_gb?gsLink=searchResults) it seems to be in operation at T3, at least for BA flights.

Dave

... as T5 has a barmy rule that if you don't pass security 35 minutes ahead, a BA goon will throw you off the flight.http://i50.tinypic.com/e6xf9x.gif

Still sore about it, eh? :D

T5 has a barmy rule that if you don't pass security 35 minutes ahead, a BA goon will throw you off the flight

+1

What a pain their fixed ideas on timings are at T5 - recently got thrown off on a connection that I could have made easily (although, as it turns out, my luggage would not have because it took hours to show up). Yet another reason to hate LHR connections.

(although, as it turns out, my luggage would not have because it took hours to show up) ...Thus immediately suggesting that your confidently-stated assertion may be inaccurate.

Although I agree the T-35 conformance rule can be frustrating, it is accredited with seriously improving the percentage of on-time departures. (And to be pedantic, it is a BAA* goon who will stop you, not a BA one).

To answer the original question, I find Club World (BA business) to be far more private than QF if you have a window seat with the divider up.

* BAA is the company that owns LHR.