NYBanker

Two technical stops in a few months on a route like this isn't an implosion.

Ewing

Yes.

Qantas use 747-400ER aircraft on the SYD-DFW route. All of these aircraft are currently in a 4 class configuration (First, Business, Premium and Economy) but they don't sell First on that route.

That means that Zone A (First) is sold as Business class for high status pax so some Business pax will get First seats with J service.
Zone B is Business class as per normal.
Zone C (Business and Premium) is sold as Premium economy, so some Premium pax will get skybeds with W service.
Zone D (Premium and Economy) is sold as economy, so some high status economy pax will get PE seating with Y service (but apparently still with blankets, pillows and noise cancelling headphones)
Zone E (Economy) and Zone F (Upper deck business) are as normal.

Platinum A332

If J is usually so heavily booked, why don't Qantas just offer all Skybeds as a J product? And surely as this is the longest flight in the Qantas network, there should be demand for F?

DownUnderFlyer

I wouldn't speak of implosion either. Without looking at any statistics, we had three reports about NOU and AKL stops in this and other threads plus pax and bags offloading at several occasions.

DownUnderFlyer

J isn't heavily booked at all. Its only the back of the plane which is full with paying passengers. If there is low demand for J, I doubt that F would make sense.

serfty

To enlarge on Ewings's post, look at this seat map:

Boeing 747-400ER: 14 First; 66 Business; 40 Premium Economy; 187 Economy

The seating is configured by Row:For this route the seating is redefined & the seating is configured by Row:So those:Note that starting later this year, these aircraft are to be refitted into 3 class J/W/Y with the First Class seats removed, Skybed Mk II (Full Flat) installed for business class.

nonce

I just flew QF8 on Wednesday night. AA out of BWI could not work out how to issue boarding pass, even through flight was on a single ITN (I was actually booked on the QF codeshare on the AA flight). As a result I was offloaded out of DFW for failing to meet the Minimum Check In Time. I went straight to the gate at DFW and after a short discussion with the gate staff and a few phone calls I was on loaded and placed back into original seat. I asked the AA staff in BWI to call either the OW desk or QF to resolve the issue but they refused, insisting that I would not be offloaded.

I was also denied entry to the AA lounge in DFW and had to remind the lounge dragon that as OWE I could use the lounge (she was trying to redirect me to the QF lounge).

My QF7 was delayed into DFW and on arrival to my BWI connecting flight I found that I had been offloaded and placed on a later flight (I was at my gate in terminal A within 30 minutes of landing), the gate agent reloaded me (flight was oversold) but onto the AA code, not the QF code (so no double SC), however flight posted as full Y, not discount Y.

By the way, a 15 and bit hour flight really needs more than 2 meals. Lunch was served on the outbound 2 hrs after take off and then nothing until 2 hours before arrival which was breakfast. I was starving and due to being reseated at back of plane for DFW-BWI there was no BoB left by the time the cart got to me. However the wifi on AA was great and helped pass the time.

I would not fly QF7/ 8 again (I was in Zone A) even with the shorter flight on AA as the BNE transit is brutal and you are woken at 2am Sydney time on the inbound making for a very long day on arrival.

I am off again in a few weeks but this time with United via LAX.

TrojanHorse

Due to the offloading etc, did you get booted out of your Zone A seating assignments? I'm in Zone A on both directions

In DFW on your outbound, I take it the QF departure gate is where you had to get your BP's? Did you try to use the cust svc desk in the QF lounge? What time did the QF Gate open (how long before scheduled departure)

Somehow, I can see this being a hassle at least on the outbound especially with two kids in tow.

littl_flier

Sadly not. As jkm024 mentioned, breakfast in business was served well out from NOU. This was due to the flight time being "too short" from NOU-BNE to do a full service, cook the meals, secure the cabin etc. The CSM also mentioned looking his crew as anothercreason for being served into NOU rather than rushing them at the end of a very long sector.

Jkm024, I was in 1A (I I'm either getting taller or it gets shorter each time I fly !!). Back to QF7 on Friday so I'll keep you updated on loads which look full in Y and W but the F zone is looking wide open when I preselected my seats last week.

nonce

I was fortunate that I got put back into the same seat I was booted out of but the risk is that I could have lost my Zone A seat.

I got my QF boarding pass at the QF departure gate. I did not visit the QF lounge. I only had 50 minutes between arriving from BWI to the scheduled departure time of QF8 so I am not sure what time the QF gate opened.

Gate 14 is a short walk from the SkyTrain stop so it was fairly straight forward.

jonathankk

I'm flying on QF7+8 in December in economy and have silver status. Any advice on getting one of the PE seats? (assuming the plane I'm on hasn't had the refit yet)

og

Demonstrate loyalty to OW and QF through status and the system should automatically put you in those seats.

LHR/MEL/Europe FF

I noticed with a friend's booking that seats in the premium economy cabin (sold as economy) opened up for general assignment about 2 or 3 days before the flight. This was reflected in both the QF on-line seat map under 'manage my booking->select seats' and on checkmytrip.

By the time those seats opened for general release there were about 4 or 5 seats available over the last couple of rows.

On board my flight there were a few seats open which the crew assisted other passengers to move into after doors had closed. Many of these were people sitting in middle seats in economy (so that everyone could spread out a bit).

So worth checking at the airport as well if you can't get a seat assigned in that cabin in advance.

Ewing

It certainly seems that way.

This is my flight on QF7 in just over a week:
J9 C9 D9 I0 W0 R0 T0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 G0 E0

I've been watching it thanks to E/F alerts. Y has been disappearing and then a few seats will come back on a weekday before disappearing again later that day. Yield management screwing around/overselling?

W sold out long ago.

There was I availability up until about a week ago.

My return trip on QF"Late" QF8 is not selling in any classes by the look of it:
J9 C9 D9 I7 W9 R9 T5 Y9 B9 H9 K9 M9 L9 V9 S9 N9 Q9 O9 G0 X5 E0

LHR/MEL/Europe FF

I watched my flights closely too and saw the shuffle with additional Y seats becoming available.

I think read somewhere the general aim is for the flight to go out with a load of 287 (undersell by 20). So the mix of Y and J availability changes closer to departure dates.

On my flight the crew explained the order of priority was pax, baggage and freight, in that order. So if they could sell a full flight they would, then leave off the appropriate amount of freight, then baggage to make the aircraft lighter (reflecting that freight is the least in order of priority).

It appeared from discussion that there was no 'balancing' to ensure that only the right amount of pax and bags and freight would be sold for the flight.

That seems if may have changed recently with some on here posting that they have been re-routed via LAX.