Flybe Q400
 

Hello,

I am due to fly on a Flybe Q400 from London City soon.

I was wondering if anyone knew whether it feels much different flying on it rather than something bigger like an A319, especially since it is a propeller plane?

Would love to know!

Very different! Noisier for sure...

The seats are OK. The overhead bins are VERY small. The noise is too much for me to enjoy on anything other than short hops. It’s also a bit slower than an A320/B737, which is noticeable on a longer run.

Some people really like them as they feel like 'real' flying...

It's basically like flying in an unusually loud regional jet, but I like them on short trips. If you prefer window seats, you get better views at the Q400's lower cruising altitude.

Love the Flybe dash 8 q400's. They are noisy but nothing extreme. Flybe have one of the best BoB menus I've seen, a choice of 6 gins to choose from was impressive. I'd fly them over BA any day.

I just flew FlyBe on the Q400. It was undoubtedly the most comfortable turboprop I have flown on (comparison includes Jetstream 31/41, Dash 6, Dash 8-100/300, ATR42/72 and probably more before I started paying attention). The cabin is slightly noisier, but not much different than I recall from older jets. Comfort compares favorably to most regional jets (excluding the Embraer 170/190, which are not really RJs): far superior to the CRJ regional jets, and better than the ERJs as well.

Seat at pitch is tight, but no worse than other regional jets of similar size. The view from the windows is excellent.

I wouldn't avoid the Q400 at all. If it goes where I want, when I want, for the right price, it works for me.

I'm being offered extra leg-room seats for a flight next week for £9.99 - front row each side. I'm 6'3. Are these worth it and which row would you recommend?

It should be noted that if you want a good view, you'll need to be in either the front or the back; the middle row views are mostly blocked by the engines.

That sounds a rather high price for likely not much extra legroom. Better to get an empty seat next to you.

there low and slow, but a great experience to fly on. I use them regularly on the Westjet encore routes in Canada

I don't know about the FlyBE configuration, but I fly on the Q400 on Horizon all the time, and the 1B and 1C seats are my favorites as far as legroom space is concerned.

Several years ago I had front row on the right (looking from the rear) it was next to a small emergency hatch and the legroom was awful as it was a tight bulkhead row.
I would go for the AB side

To report back after my flight yesterday... the extra legroom seats on the left by the main entrance are restricted by the stairs as highpeaklad points out above. The 'B' seat however would provide limited additional room. The seats on the other side are very generous (the CD seats).

However, overall the legroom was fine even in a normal row (I'm 6'3). The seats are narrow but just about ok for a one hour flight.

Weight and balance issues meant the first 5-6 rows were empty, just one or two pax dotted here and there. The rest of the plane was packed in. Seat maps during checkin show seats as unavailable, but this may be because they are blocked for weight and balance rather than being occupied. You can move to the empty rows after takeoff, but must return to your allocated seat for landing.