Originally Posted by
Smiley90
What you're forgetting is that nearly nobody posts that their route didn't have QSuite and became QSuite in the last 24 hours despite not being advertised. There's some confirmation bias at play where only complaints get posted. And nobody paid a QSuite surcharge (e.g. air Canada charges a surcharge for domestic lie flat planes, and there you 100% are entitled to refunds if the plane gets swapped. Not the case here, QSuite flights don't cost extra). Check the fine print in your ticket always applies.
I posted a random date as that person suggested, 1 May, and found at least 10 out of the 12 777 in 2-2-2 configuration already scheduled and accounted for. I checked a random date in June and found at least 9 out of the 12 777 in 2-2-2 configuration. I don't have the time to check all possible flights, I just checked the routes that more typically get 2-2-2 such as MNL, CGK, SEZ, AMS. I also found the ex-CX/VA aircraft too already allocated. If QR was doing a purposeful bait and switch they would just have all routes and showing Qsuite and change the flight a few days before to minimise the chances of the customer changing the flight.
I do agree that QR could minimise these switches by ring-fencing the 2-2-2 jets onto certain routes and having more spare capacity on their Qsuite 777. This would be less efficient in terms of fleet utilisation, and would mean less overall Q suite flights, as they would need to have more slack on the schedule of the Qsuite 777 to keep them on the ground more. That would reduce but not eliminate the swaps of Qsuite 777 with 2-2-2 equipped jets, as you sometimes you have those unlucky days where multiple IRROPS events cascade and ruin the schedules for days. Downside of this approach as mentioned will be a bit less overall Qsuite flights, and pax on those ringfenced routes or flights would have no chance to get the Qsuites at all.