Issue 344: Long Ranger

That is because in economy there are 166 seats that although pitched at 32in, are laid out in the industry standard 3-3-3 nine abreast configuration that leaves passengers in the main cabin with a seat width closer to 17in.

On a short-haul hop from Melbourne to Auckland, or a slightly longer journey from Gold Coast to Singapore, that might be acceptable, or even perhaps tolerable.

Qantas is keen to highlight that the 787-9’s economy cabin seat has been designed to give travellers more “space” than on any other aircraft in its fleet. Despite the marketing talk, the experience on board other airlines that have gone with the same nine abreast may be a harbinger of what passengers are in for on the likely 16- or 17-hour routes the Dreamliner is expected to operate.

A glance through any number of aviation-related websites or discussion fora throws up comments such as “cramped”, “narrow” or “squeeze” when describing the economy passenger experience on board the 787.

On the question of whether there was any consideration to going eight abreast in economy, Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce told reporters at the official product launch at the airline’s Mascot jet base on October 27: “This aircraft will have 32in pitch, a seat that is over 17in wide so that is a great deal of space. It is more space than we have on the A380s at 31in pitch so we think that is appropriate for those long-haul flying. ” In Qantas’s favour is the fact that the seats themselves are designed by Recaro, the same manufacturer that supplies the new economy seat on board its refurbished Airbus A330-200/300 fleet, which has been well received by the travelling public. The 787-9 version, although narrower, does feature extra storage spaces, a tablet holder, USB and power ports, a footnet, an extra light and the latest high-definition seatback entertainment screen.

Joyce said the aircraft has been designed with comfort in mind.

“Many of the cabin design elements reflect what our customers have told us. Personal storage rates really highly, so we’ve created extra space in economy for customers to store their personal devices and water bottles,” he said.

“We’re also redesigning the inflight experience for the Dreamliner, from rethinking our menus to making better use of the self-service bars during different phases of flight.

“This aircraft overall has more space than any aircraft in our fleet. ”

Elsewhere In The Cabin

The business and economy seats, as well as the seat count, for Qantas’s 787-9s were unveiled in front of 1,000 invited guests, staff and media on the same day the airline presented a new livery and Flying Kangaroo logo.

In addition to the 166 economy seats, the aircraft will feature 42 Thompson Vantage XL business class seats in a 1-2-1 configuration with direct aisle access for each passenger that are a refreshed version of what is already flying on the A330s.

There will also be 28 premium economy seats (at 2-3-2 abreast), with their design to be revealed at a later date as Qantas continues the slow tease in the lead-up to the first 787-9’s arrival some time in October 2017.

There is a heavy emphasis on premium seating, with the 70 business and premium economy seats representing 30 per cent of passenger capacity, the highest percentage of premium seats on board any of Qantas’s widebody fleet.

By comparison, the four-class A380 has 23 per cent of its 484 seats in first, business and premium economy, while the A330-300s that are used mainly to Asia have nine per cent of their 297 seats in business and the rest in economy.

That lower seat count compared with other 787-9 operators, alongside the emphasis on premium seating, all adds to the aircraft’s operating capabilities.

The two Japanese carriers operate three-class 787-9s with some of the fewest seats out there – Japan Airlines’ 787-9s have 195 seats (44 business, 35 premium economy and 116 economy at eight abreast), while local rival ANA has 215 seats (48 business, 21 premium economy and 146 economy) on its 787-9s used on international routes. JAL is the only carrier to maintain 2-4-2 in economy on a 787.

Qantas will have one more seat than Etihad Airways, which has 235 on its three-class 787-9s comprising eight in first, 28 in business and 199 in economy.

By contrast, across the Tasman Air New Zealand has 302 seats on its 787-9s, with 18 in business, 21 in premium economy and 263 in economy. However, the Kiwi carrier has announced plans to take three of the type with a more premium layout featuring 275 seats (27 business, 33 premium economy and 215 economy).

“We think on the routes that we are looking at, that the premium end is going to be sought after – direct flights as we’ve said on some of these routes have a lot of premium traffic and Qantas will be offering a unique proposition,” Joyce said.

“Therefore we think it is going to be very heavily patronised by business and premium economy customers. That’s what makes the economics of these services work. ”

Prospect Of Perth-london Depends On Airport Support

Boeing lists its 787-9 with a range of 7,635nm when carrying 290 passengers in a two-class configuration, while a Qantas factsheet released on the day of the product launch promotes a range of 14,400km – or 7,775nm.

As a reminder, Perth-London Heathrow is 7,829nm and Melbourne- Dallas/Fort Worth is 7,814nm. Meanwhile, Sydney-Chicago is 8,022nm. The first Qantas 787 route is expected to be announced “in the coming months”, with tickets on sale for the initial services before Christmas.

“The lower seat configuration does help us with some of the routes that we are looking at,” Joyce said.

“We’ve modelled all of the routes, we know what the loads can be on it, we know the restrictions in parts of the year.

“As you can imagine sometimes the winds are heavy and like on our Sydney-Dallas service parts of the year we can’t take a full load. That’s fine because the economics superbly work for the entire year. ” Currently, the longest route operated by a 787-9 is United’s 7,339nm San Francisco-Singapore nonstop service, which launched in June. United configures its 787-9s with 48 business, 88 extra legroom economy and 116 standard economy seats for a total of 252. (Singapore Airlines uses Airbus A350-900s on the same route. ) One route that has many genuinely excited is the possibility of linking Australia and Europe with a nonstop service between Perth and London.

Joyce said discussions with Perth Airport, the West Australian government and Canberra were ongoing, adding that he was hopeful of a positive outcome on what would be a “game-changing” new service.

“We hope to get to conclusions on that soon,” Joyce said.

“We’re still in the midst of those discussions and there is always to-ing and fro-ing on those commercial discussions, but it’s such a great opportunity for Western Australia. It would be a shame if we can’t close a commercial deal and WA and Australia lose out on this opportunity. I don’t believe that will happen but we continue with the commercial discussions.

It was reported a potential Perth-London service would operate out of Terminals 3 and 4 on the western side of Perth Airport, where Qantas and Jetstar’s domestic operations are currently, rather than at Terminal 1 on the eastern side of the airfield.

This would avoid the need for a time-consuming transfer by bus across the airport, potentially impacting on minimum connection times, the passenger experience, and ultimately the prospect of the route being successful.

In the October edition of Australian Aviation, Joyce said the support of local airports, particularly with suitable infrastructure to handle the connecting traffic needed to feed such ultra long-haul routes, could not be underestimated.

“The viability of the routes are very much dependent on some of the airport infrastructure issues,” Joyce told Australian Aviation.

“That makes all the difference in the business case. ”

London A Challenge

Qantas flies daily from both Melbourne and Sydney to London via Dubai with the A380. It is the airline’s only online destination in Europe, with the rest of the continent served via codeshares on its alliance partner Emirates through Dubai. (Qantas also has a codeshare in place with fellow oneworld member Finnair for Helsinki, which Emirates does not serve. ) And with airfares down amid intense competition on the Australia-Europe market, Joyce believes having a nonstop service to Europe would lead to Qantas having an improved operation into London.

The Qantas chief executive was asked at the company’s annual general meeting in Sydney on October 21 if the airline’s two London routes were profitable.

In response, Joyce said the airline did not “give details on our route network”.

“But I have to say, London is a challenge because you have over 30 carriers operating on that market and we have extremely low airfares,” Joyce said.

“That’s one of the reasons we are considering an operation like Perth- London. If we can make it work out of Perth that is a way of actually having a very good operation we believe into London. ” And should Qantas decide to order the still-in-development Boeing 777-8X, the Holy Grail of nonstop flights from Australia’s east coast to both New York and London may one day be within reach.

“In the future aircraft like the 777-8X, which may allow us to fly from Sydney and Melbourne directly into Europe in both directions, could change the face of Qantas’s route network,” Joyce said.

“They are things that we continuously look at and monitor to make sure the economics works for us. ”

A Consistent Premium Product Across The Widebody Fleet

The arrival of a refreshed business class seat essentially maintains a product split between the A380/refurbished 747s (Sky Bed MK II) and the refurbished A330/787-9 (Thompson Aero Seating).

And given the increasing focus on direct aisle access for those travelling in business class, it seems clear that eventually Qantas will move to upgrade its premium cabins on the four-engined A380/747 to match what is on offer on the Boeing and Airbus twin jets.

“Eventually we will renew the seats on the A380s,” Joyce said.

The question will be when is the best time for those refurbs to take place.

The one complication may be that because the 747s have only a limited lifespan at Qantas – the company has said on several occasions the 787-9s have been bought to gradually take over routes operated by the type – it may not be until the last jumbo is retired that the airline will have a consistent premium offering on all of its widebodies.