Originally Posted by
kirker
Having quite literally flown this exact route a week ago, it's definitely a mistake. DOH-LAX is a 16.5-hour flight, and both QR and EY fly the same metal on their ex-LAX routes: the 77L, which still holds the record for the longest-distance commercial flights in the world. The A380 can fly quite far, but I suspect it's just short of the necessary fuel capacity to make it to the Middle East -- or, rather, from it, given that it has to fly all the way up to the Arctic Circle to avoid jet-stream headlines.
I see others have dealt with this nonsense
Originally Posted by
kirker
It's too far to haul in coach unless you're a masochist, and having flown r/t on EY's LAX-AUH service and QR's LAX-DOH, it's subpar even in F or J (and I flew the former on EY and the latter on QR). My return flight to LAX last week was half-full even in J, which is a rarity these days.
Economy-class travellers have a tough choice: a single-leg of 16 hours or a two-leg journey of 20, hours or longer. Some may value time spent at an intermediary airport, though that probably comes with additional security theatre and/or immigration; others will prefer to get the journey over with as quickly as possible.
As I say, a tough choice. But for many, the shorter non-stop journey time will be a God-send
Originally Posted by
kirker
.. I wouldn't have been pleased with the comparative lack of privacy.
Not sure what you do in your seat that requires privacy: but be warned, the 1-2-1 seating isn't all that private!
Originally Posted by
kirker
Actually, no. Its IFE system is dated
This I really don't get at all: QR offers a big screen, enormous choice of films and a fine map service for me to help the pilot find his way
Originally Posted by
kirker
monitors in J are too far away from the seat (and not movable) to watch much properly
a function of the splendid seat pitch. But the screen is very big and the distance isn't THAT far. You might need glasses.
Originally Posted by
kirker
plus the sound on the QR-provided headphones is terrible!
Originally Posted by
kirker
service is pretty good, but nowhere near that on EK/EY.
unless you got a particular bad crew, this is something else I just don't get. True, my experience on Etihad and Emirates is limited: so could you expand on the service elements of those two carriers that are so much better than QR's??
Originally Posted by
kirker
even with no one next to me, the seats aren't great for sleeping.
I can continue matching subjective twaddle with subjective twaddle. Some of us really do like the long, wide, unconstricted bed offered by QR's B777. Hand on heart, I am way more comfortable in that arrangement than in the tight "tubes" of the herring-bone arrangement. The downside of the 2-2-2 is of course having a neighbour, but with a small privacy screen and sufficient gap to walk by him/her it's (usually) no great concern.
Travelling with an empty seat next to you is bliss on the QR B777. It means a seat turning into a real, wide, long, forward facing, unconstricted bed
plus a spare seat alongside you to store all your in-flight junk. I can't get my head round how any passenger wouldn't find this a near perfect public-transport sleeping arrangement. But, there you are, as I said, just more subjective twaddle... and this
is FLYERTALK