KingCanute

If you haven't spotted it already, the cheapest tier of Finnair business fares do not include any checked baggage. Might not be relevant for you of course if you travel hand baggage only

brunos

I feel surprised by some of the comments.
Comparing current fares to pre-covid fares is meaningless. We have entered a new era with totally-different economics. Flights have low pax load (except possibly in J) and carry heavy cargo. Many flights are at a loss but keep the airline flying and paying its staff. QR has been flying more reliably to a lot of destinations than most airlines.

Many airlines have introduced variations of their business fares, with a range of options (e.g. on baggage). As long as the benefits of each fare is explicit. I don't see why I would not compare the fare/product of each airline on my trip and choose accordingly. The knee-jerk reaction of rejecting QR simply because they introduce new family fare classes escapes me. Just look at benefits you want and compare between airlines. It is a simple value analysis.

QR has excellent quality and is usually not the cheapest anymore. It needed to be when it was unknown and launched its global campaign for market share. It does not need to anymore. It is often underpriced by other airlines that I regard of lesser quality/convenience/reliability.

Smid

Wow, that is new to me, a business class with hand luggage only. Not completely surprised, but that to me is not business class, the same way that without lounges isn't business class either.

KingCanute

It's pretty much the same thing that happened with economy fares being unbundled a few years ago. In part that was a necessary response to low cost airlines, but in large part it was also due to online fare comparison sites and needing to find ways to get your price as close to the top as possible, even if that meant creating a stripped down version of your product to reduce the headline price. The same thing has happened with insurance, package holidays, and many more. And of course some of your competitors may decide that their definition of what should be included in business class may be different from yours, forcing you to respond.

For us passengers, it means we now have to work a little bit harder to ensure we are comparing like with like before buying, as your AY / QR example shows. Whether airlines need to charge more now for what used to be their entry fare for a full service ticket is a slightly separate issue. There is no doubt that the economics of operating all businesses, and especially an airline, have changed over the last 18 months.

ft101

The AY fare has neither, but QR Gold (OW Sapphire) and above can make use of their OW benefits to access a lounge and bring a bag so this fare is great for them.

NextWhiteDeath

I think this is the difference between QR and AY unbundled business. With the AY fare you can basically get everything back if you have OW status. With QR you get some but to use the seat assignment you have to call. You can't get into the AM lounge but you will be sent to elites lounge which many people don't like.

anabolism

There's a post in the QR becoming more difficult with seat selection? thread where @SanDiego1K (in posts 42 and 48) has been unable to get seats assigned on a 'P' fare, despite being a OneWorld elite via Alaska Airlines.

oldAGE

Will I get complimentary access if I booked Business Classic (RBD R) prior to 4 September 2021, but am travelling post 1 October 2021.Yes, we will give customers access to the more generous and updated Business Classic attributes and will provide complimentary lounge access.

If I booked Business Classic (RBD R) prior to 4 September 2021, but am travelling post 1 October 2021 and have already bought a lounge voucher, will I get a refund.

We will unfortunately not be able to refund this amount.

This information comes right from QR.
AGE