Flight Club

Unusually, both Virgin Australia and Qantas are in a position of aiming directly for premium passengers with their main brands while passing price-sensitive or leisure market travellers off to their low-cost carrier brands Tigerair and Jetstar.

Yet neither of Australia’s main airline competitors has a clear lead in the kind of passenger experience features premium passengers are looking for.

While Virgin Australia may have an extra inch of seat pitch in economy on its Boeing 737-800 aircraft, Qantas has a Boeing 767-300 fleet with a passenger-pleasing 2-3-2 configuration. Qantas has Airbus A380 aircraft with quieter cabins, but Virgin Australia’s Boeing 777-300ER economy seats have an extra inch of pitch.

Overall, the most important part of the passenger experience is to set expectations and meet them. Part of that is having a consistent fleet, and in this, both airlines fall down at a surprisingly early hurdle in the passenger experience race.

On the 737, both airlines have a consistency problem

Domestically, each airline operates a fleet of approximately 60 737‑800 narrowbody aircraft, the mainstay “

Neither of Australia’s main airline competitors has a clear lead in passenger experience features.

Qantas’sof short- to medium-haul services. While each airline is receiving new aircraft to replace and/or augment its fleet, some aircraft date back over a decade to the early 2000s.

Newer aircraft for both airlines include the benefits of the Boeing Sky Interior design upgrade – with larger bins, higher ceilings, updated lighting and more. Yet with older aircraft still plying Australia’s key airways, both Qantas and Virgin Australia present an inconsistent product to passengers – on board if not in their advertising.

In terms of the economy passenger experience, Qantas offers 30in/76cm of pitch while Virgin Australia offers 31in/79cm. Both airlines offer the Boeing standard narrowbody seat width of 17in in a 3-3 layout.

Newer Qantas aircraft offer on-demand entertainment and seatback USB sockets, but there’s no guarantee any particular flight will be operated by an aircraft with entertainment or power.

Virgin Australia is rolling out “server on a plane” wireless streaming entertainment, but despite plans to complete the rollout by the end of 2013, the airline is yet to announce that the service is available on all 737 flights.

In business, standard recliner chairs in a 2-2 configuration are on offer, though the bells and whistles vary.

On newer Qantas aircraft, on-demand entertainment and at-seat power is available, while some of the Virgin fleet are also outfitted with power. Instead of AVOD, Virgin offers Samsung Galaxy tablets with larger screens, a selection of preloaded content and the ability to use the wireless streaming entertainment option where it is available – the tradeoff is that while dining it can be tricky to find a spot for the iPad-sized device. Neither of Australia’s main airline competitors has a clear lead in passenger experience features. On short-haul international services, Qantas uses its Jetconnect subsidiary for New Zealand flights with 737-800s outfitted like Qantas mainline’s newer 737s, with on-demand entertainment and at-seat power throughout, and a business class cabin in front.

Virgin Australia, meanwhile, maintained the Eurobusiness-style premium economy offering from its Virgin Blue days, with the former Pacific Blue aircraft now operating as Virgin Australia NZ, outfitted with regular economy seats offering extra legroom and a middle seat free as its best product.

While premium economy matches Air New Zealand’s current top offering, Works Deluxe in seat (if not in on-demand inflight entertainment and USB power), Qantas has a premium trans-Tasman product edge, particularly outside Auckland – Air New Zealand flies some widebody 767-300ER, 777‑200ER and, soon, 787-9 services with business class across the Tasman from AKL only.

Qantas’s domestic widebodies vary significantly by aircraft type and pure luck

Qantas operates a shrinking fleet of 767‑300 jets alongside the growing number of A330-200 and -300 aircraft it uses on high-demand domestic flights. With a 2-3-2 layout in economy, the 767s have long been passenger favourites for space and speed of boarding and disembarking, while the A330s’ 2-4-2 configuration is also a step up on the 737 fleet’s middle seat ratio and number of passengers to clamber over from the aisle.

In economy, Qantas’s 767s and A330s both offer 31in/79cm of pitch and between 17. 2in/43. 7cm and 17. 5in/44. 5cm of width, depending on the aircraft and generation of seat. An additional centimetre or two of width compared with the 737 might not sound earthshattering in the abstract, but there are real passenger experience differences in perceived space when each passenger is 2-3cm further apart from their neighbour.

All Qantas A330s offer on-demand entertainment in economy, while later A330-200 aircraft also offer AC power and USB sockets throughout. 767s are equipped with seatback iPads and the Qantas Q Streaming wireless entertainment option.

As a result, both aircraft are the first choices of knowledgeable Qantas passengers when flying economy domestically.

In business, Qantas’s A330s vary significantly, from standard recliners in a 2-2-2 configuration (technically 2-3-2 with the middle seat blocked by an inset “work surface” box) to the Mark I angled lie-flat Skybed seats designed by Marc Newson.

Towards the end of this year, the A330 fleet is expected to see the new Qantas Business Suite, the next generation of Marc Newson-designed seat based on the spacious Thompson Vantage XL, a staggered configuration full flat seat with direct aisle access.

In essence, the Business Suite offers eight columns of spacethroughout the cabin, with each passenger receiving two columns of personal space – one for their seat and one for a side console that contains the (fully enclosed!) feet of the passenger behind them when the seat is in bed mode. It’s set to be among the best of the new generation of business class seats, and is similar to what Etihad offers in business on its long-haul aircraft to Australia, or the upper deck on an Emirates A380.

In essence, each A330 flight will leapfrog from potentially offering the poorest business class offering (the recliners with “work surface”) to potentially offering the best (the new Business Suite). Qantas has, as yet, proven unwilling or unable to plan its business class offering ahead to distinguish between the “work surface” recliners and the Mark I Skybeds.

There is certainly an opportunity for the airline to stand head and shoulders above Virgin Australia’s product by planning ahead with its new Business Suite flights – ifQantas can follow the example of airlines like its oneworld alliance partner Japan Airlines in rolling out new aircraft to a preplanned series of routes and flight numbers.

Virgin’s domestic widebodies are fewer, yet have stark differences

When Virgin Australia rolled out its first pair of ex-Emirates Airbus A330-200 aircraft on transcontinental flights in May 2011, the move was a key part of CEO John Borghetti’s Game Change strategy to turn Virgin Blue into a true competitor on the domestic scene.

VH-XFA and -XFB kickstarted the transcontinental passenger experience arms race that led to Qantas scheduling Boeing 747-400 aircraft on Perth-Sydney flights (and then quietly withdrawing them), but the relatively narrow cradle sleeper seats are only slightly more competitive than Qantas’s recliners with the “work surface”. (One blessing: Virgin did strip off the rather nauseating salmon-and-lilac patterned fabriccovering of the ex-EK seats, which are now a white plastic. ) The installed loop video screens aboard the first two Virgin A330s didn’t impress either – the replacement Samsung Galaxy tablets are a boost (but, as on the 737, suffer from the “where do I put this while I am eating” problem), and the lack of in-seat power on a transcontinental flight is a real disadvantage.

The newer five A330-200s in the Virgin Australia fleet offer a significantly better product practically identical to VA partner Singapore Airlines’ A330s, the Weber (now Zodiac Aerospace US) 7800 angled lie-flat model in a 2-2-2 layout. The Webers are among the best of the angled lie-flat offerings, a firm improvement over the older ex-Emirates cradle sleepers, and surpass the Mark I Skybeds in terms of bells and whistles like on-demand entertainment and at-seat power, but still don’t exceed the Marc Newson design in overall seat and bed comfort. In economy, the 2-4-2 layout, 31in/79cm of pitch and 17. 4in/44. 2cm seat width are consistent between the older and newer Virgin A330s, but the extra thickness of the reupholstered Emirates seats means that actual knee room on VH‑XFA and -XFB is reduced. Similarly, the late-model on-demand seatback entertainment, at-seat power and USB sockets on the newer five aircraft are a significant bump on the elderly loop video channels of the older two birds.

Once again, the problem is consistency. Virgin’s A330s are markedly different, and the airline is either unwilling or unable to distinguish its products at the point of sale or even in a passenger-facing way at any time prior to flight.

Australia is about to see another domestic business class arms race

It’s clear that Virgin Australia CEO John Borghetti has plans up his sleeve to compete with the Qantas Business Suite domestically and, perhaps, on international short-haul markets not served by carriers with which his airline has a bilateral partnership.

There are certainly several fully-flat seat models with direct aisle access that would compare equally or favorably to the Thompson Vantage XL on routes of similar length. Zodiac’s Cirrus, B/E Aerospace’s Super Diamond, and Airbus Sogerma’s Solstys are probably the top three on the list.

“Convertible” seats requiring a flip-over of the seatback to change from seat mode to bed mode (such as Singapore Airlines’ two generations of long-haul business class seats, the latest Upper Class Dream Suite from Virgin Atlantic’s former Threesixty Aerospace unit, now part of Zodiac, or an updated version of original Upper Class Suite, as seen in Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777-300ER and787‑9 Business Premier cabins) are unlikely to work well on the stage lengths of Australian transcontinental routes: they don’t recline far enough to be truly excellent on day flights, and some passengers find simply reclining to flat preferable to having to get up, flip the bed and get back into it.

Yes, these are first class problems – or business class problems, to be precise – but a significant proportion of airline profitability comes from premium cabins, and on transcontinental routes being able to work or relax in a reclining Z-bed position during the day and maximise sleep during a short five-hour night are essential.

Comparing overseas flights is a matter of alliances

While Qantas and Virgin Australia compete head-to-head in domestic markets, the airlines’ strategies internationally are markedly different. Despite shrinking the Qantas International route map in recent years, the Red Roo’s network is several times larger than the limited number of routes Virgin Australia’s metal flies.

CEO John Borghetti’s series of bilateral alliances, principally with Delta to the east and a combination of Etihad and Singapore Airlines to the north and west, compares well with Qantas’s mix of its own flights, a later alliance with Gulf behemoth Emirates, and its on-again, off-again serial relationships with oneworld partner airlines (though American Airlines seems to remain in favour).

Yet the heady promises of bilateral alliances don’t always bear scrutiny under the harsh lights of the airport desk when it’s a “no, you may not enter this lounge”. (See Cabin Pressure, March 2013. ) Delta’s staff are infamous among Virgin Australia frequent flyers for not honouring the US carrier’s part of the clearly stated lounge access

There are peaks of excellence and valleys of substandard products in both airlines’ partner networks.

bargain, Singapore Airlines honours only the letter of its lounge access law (to its own flyers too) with the sans-shower, sans-loo KrisFlyer Gold lounge in Singapore, and some of SQ’s flights on regional aircraft use angled lie-flat seats that are well below standard. Qantas frequent flyers similarly bemoan poor earning rates on many oneworld carriers, the lack of an alliance-wide baggage benefit, and Emirates’ seating product outside its A380 fleet.

At the end of the day, the international bilateral agreements of both airlines mostly come out level overall on flights to and from Australia, although there are peaks of excellence and valleys of substandard products in both airlines’ partner networks.

Globally, though, Qantas’s oneworld alliance membership (and particularly the small oneworld Sapphire and Emerald ovals on Gold and Platinum Qantas Frequent Flyer cards) is a significant advantage. Wave a QFF card and you’re in just aboutany oneworld lounge worldwide – and oneworld’s global coverage is increasing significantly. Often, Virgin Australia’s bilateral arrangements are much less “present card, walk in”, and there are serious coverage gaps when flying around Europe and North/East Asia in particular.

Virgin Australia’s 777s could do with a business class upgrade, but so could Qantas’s A380s and 747s.

Comparing the actual metal flown by Australia’s two airlines on flights to the UAE and USA, Virgin Australia’s small fleet of five 777-300ERs goes up against Qantas’s mixed fleet of A380s and 747s (both the -400 and -400ER aircraft, a mix of refurbished and non-refurbished metal).

In economy, the 32in/81cm of seat pitch and 18. 5in/47cm seat width on Virgin’s 777 fleet gives an inch more legroom than Qantas’s A380s, plus over an inch more width than Qantas’s 747-400 and -400ER aircraft. For the ultra long-haul missions these aircraft serve, that isa significant passenger experience boon, despite the quieter, more airy cabin of the A380.

Premium economy is, by contrast, mostly the same: larger recliner seats slightly better than domestic business in a 2-3-2 configuration, although Qantas’s cabin upstairs on an A380 is superior to the 2-4-2 on the Boeing 777 cross-section (not least because window passengers enjoy a separate storage bin and surface to keep their personal items handy).

Business class, however, sees Qantas take a lead: while both airlines have a fully flat bed (and neither has direct aisle access), the 2-2-2 layout of the Marc Newson-designed Mark II Skybed in Qantas’s A380s means that if passengers are willing to forego a window and sit in the middle section, there’ll be nobody climbing over them. The privacy and sturdiness of the Mark II Skybed – whether on Qantas’s A380, 747-400ER or refurbished non-ER 747-400 aircraft – alsoedges out Virgin’s fully flat seats, which are narrower, less private and have a frustrating tendency to droop at the foot end. Of course, Qantas does still operate a diminishing handful of the older, non-ER 747-400 aircraft that won’t be refurbished before their retirement, which have angled lie-flat seats on board and which, as usual, operate interchangeably with refurbished aircraft on several routes.

Qantas has consistently denied plans to upgrade its Skybed-equipped A380 and 747 aircraft with the new Business Suite fully flat bed with direct aisle access, and with an incumbent position in terms of hard product there’s little incentive for Qantas to be the first mover here.

Thus, it’s up to Virgin Australia to make the next long-haul seating play. With relations between Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia warmed significantly since the latter shed its low-cost carrier skin to become a full-service airline, it’s possible that Virgin Australia could

Here the passenger experience will depend upon the equipment used.

licence either the Virgin Atlantic A330 Upper Class Dream Suite or the slightly older (yet upgraded) Upper Class Suite that Air New Zealand uses in its Business Premier cabins. (The ever-growing links between the Kiwi carrier and Virgin Australia could reinforce the latter option: with Virgin Australia a key ally rather than competitor, Air NZ would feel more comfortable licensing the Upper Class Suite now than when V Australia’s parent airline was competing domestically and across the Tasman. )

On regional flights, it’s all about the aircraft

Both Virgin Australia’s regional flights and the QantasLink operation of network carriers tend to be shorter flights where the passenger experience as such is less of a passenger behaviour driver than frequency, availability, cost and loyalty program.

After totting up the numbers, Qantas’s regional fleet size and destination spread is a good deal greater than Virgin’s, but here perhaps more than anywhere else the passenger experience will depend upon the equipment used. Qantas’s Boeing 717 aircraft and Virgin’s Embraer 190 fleet are both very good, while the Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft Qantas uses are just as narrow, uncomfortable and noisy as Virgin’s ATR 72 turboprops.

(To whit: neither airline’s website makes an effort to illustrate the passenger experience of regional operations, preferring instead to concentrate on competition, connections and regional sponsorships rather than pictures of what passengers can expect to find inside the aircraft. ) Qantas’s Dash 8-Q400 is around 150 km/h faster than Virgin’s ATR at cruising speed, but given the length of most regional flights any speed difference is down to just a few minutes once airport congestion and ATC delays are taken into account.

With like-for-like comparisons significantly less possible than on a triangle flight or a transcon, the passenger experience in a 2-2 layout with 31in/79cm of pitch on regional turboprop flights is very much “you pays your (often exceedingly expensive) money, you takes your (not especially great) choice”.

When making capital connections, always pick the jet

Where passengers do have choice is in flights between Australia’s capital cities. Between Sydney and Canberra, Qantas mixes 737-800 and 717 jets with business class and Q300 and Q400 turboprops without. Similarly, Virgin Australia uses business-less ATR 72 turboprops and business-equipped E190 jets on the same route.

For a start, the operating costs of outsourcing the flying from each airline’s mainline operation to a subsidiary or contract carrier is a prime driver of this passenger-negative move. But when the flight is under an hour, clearly passengers are not revolting and booking away from the turboprops, or do not have enough information to do so.

Both airlines have work to do, and the next year will be one to watch

The passenger experience race right now is neck and neck, mainly through the airlines’ own decisions in terms of short-haul product inconsistency and long-haul network planning.

With both airlines offering only a chance of receiving their best (and most advertised) domestic products on key transcontinental and triangle flights, 2014-2015 will be a key period for both Qantas and Virgin Australia to choose their products and make them consistent.

Watch this space.