Qantas Airways

VH-QPA. Flew Qantas Airways from Sydney to Hong Kong. Recently updated entertainment console was excellent in terms of lots of the latest movies and 80s-90s hits and DJ music which included a unique section for Australian artists. TV screen took up the whole headrest and is a big improvement. Was also really good to access the entertainment prior to take off. Seat was reasonably spacious being a window seat however the aisle passenger next to me hogged the armrest and protruded themselves about 4 inches into my 'airspace' fairly often. Check-in was quite efficient. Departure gate was central to the main food court and shops. Was a little disappointed with the fabric upholstered seats which already showed signs of fraying together with torn pockets and the responsiveness of the touch screen. The cabin windows also had hair grease on them from a previous flight. Hotdog snack was soggy and too hot for about 15 minutes.

Perth to Brisbane and a great flight with Qantas, was a bit concerned with Boeing 737 IFE but was on a reconfigured plane which was great. Boxed meals, cabin crew and ground staff were all good.

Afternoon Qantas flight from Darwin to Perth the week of Christmas. A good flight, nice food, snacks plus ice cream. Service good on this flight, and I was interested to see what the catering would be like after the introduction of the boxed meals. Sure enough, the boxed meal came - hot choice was pork pasta, cold option was a tuna salad. I opted for the salad as I don't eat pork. The size of these meals are generally good, and certainly tasty. Cheese and crackers were also provided, with Lindt chocolates and ice cream to follow. On top of this, complimentary wine and beer is served, and on a flight of nearly four hours, a couple of wines is nice. Plane seemed fairly new, good crew, and flight on time.

Qantas flight QF17 on 2nd January from Sydney to Los Angeles was the worst airline experience of my life. My wife and I were literally imprisoned by the gate representative and the airlines "medical representative." My wife is in a wheelchair so we require special assistance to board. When we arrived at the airport, both of us were sick from catching bad colds in Tasmania on a rainy day from a cruise excursion. We had coughed and sneezed quite a bit and smelled of cough medicine. They dragged us off to a private lounge and insisted that my wife take a shower. The place was like a sauna and her cold got even worse, as did mine. They insisted that she put on some "mickey mouse" outfit that was so tight that it was described as a major scrape to her body by nurses who later examined her. When we returned to the gate they informed us that they had changed our seats to all the way in the back, which would make it very difficult for us to board and disembark since she really can't walk. It took forever for us to do both, which prolonged my wife's misery. Due to the shower, she coughed the entire flight back to Los Angeles. The medical staff woman ensured us that the seat change was for our benefit since I would be closer to the bathroom at the back of the plane. Hopefully she will be re-assigned to sweeping the floors. The flight itself was highlighted by the refusal of the Captain to turn on the seat belt sign in midflight until the plane was practically being violently tossed. The flight crew also needs a refresher course in disbursing and retrieving food. It was very disorderly. I had to tell the flight attendant 3 times that I didn't want to eat Barramundi, which as she explained was a fish, in case I didn't know. Disembarkation was fun with the crew making snide remarks about my wife's inability to walk and exit the plane.

We were very happy with Qantas on this journey from Perth via Sydney to San Francisco. Our original connection to Miami through Dallas was delayed but we were contacted by Qantas the day before and advised they could change us to the San Francisco flight and we would lose no time. This call was made from their Priority service for Silver and above FF status. We were disappointed a little that we had to fly on the Boeing 747 as we were looking forward to the A380 but the interiors of the 747 have now been upgraded so they are very similar. The flight was delayed slightly in Sydney but the pilot advised the delay could be made up in flight and it was. Most of the crew were very helpful and friendly and inflight service was very good. On both legs we asked if there was any spare meals we were still hungry and crew were happy to assist. On the flight to San Francisco we were served lunch, snacks and breakfast prior to arrival. This was in addition to the self service snack bar at the rear of the economy cabin which also included amenity kits.

Four of us flew Qantas from Hobart to Brisbane We had to change our flight date and were charged $952. So the cost to go from to Brisbane to Hobart and back was almost $3000. Then we were given a seat at the back of the Boeing 717 with no window. The engine noise was so bad - nobody should be given those seats. To top it up three out of four entertainment devices we were given didn't work and we were told there is no spare device available. Try any of the budget airlines first.

Qantas A330-200 business class service from Auckland to Perth. I also flew the reverse leg from Perth to Auckland prior. The quality of the meals was noticeably improved compared to the atrocity of the prior flight, and more food and drinks were served. The meal service was extremely slow however - at least a 1 hour gap between the entree and the main course. Disappointment remains with the old style business class seats, they are equivalent to premium economy on most airlines. I would have expected Qantas to use the newer style lie-flat seats for a 7 hour flight. Luckily the business cabin was hardly full and I had 2 seats by the window to myself for the entire flight. I would not recommend directly paying business class on this flight, however can recommend a points upgrade.

Brisbane to Tokyo Narita with Qantas. Check in all automated and therefore no bag drop queues. I was impressed by the new cabin interior in the economy section of A330. Modern interior, large IFE screen, great selection of movies, and positive flight attendants. A pre-flight drink supplied and great meals served. Captain/First Officer provided updates of our location, pointing out Mount Fuji upon our arrival into Tokyo.

Jakarta to Melbourne via Sydney return with Qantas. Jakarta to Sydney flight used a refitted A330-200 with new interior and personal iPads on every seat. IFE was faulty for the first hour of the trip and had to be reset a few times before it finally worked. FAs were quiet and a little grumpy - I asked for a pair of socks, and the FA said they only had eye patches; he then proceeded to throw me an extra blanket from a few rows away, found this rude and unnecessary. Meal service was rushed due to light turbulence. Breakfast was nice and relaxed, and the coffee served onboard was delicious. Sydney to0 Melbourne flight used a worn-out Boeing 737-800 with the old interior, no IFE. FA service was marginally better. Both flights departed and landed on time. A sub-par experience in general.

Melbourne to Jakarta via Sydney on Qantas. MEL-SYD flight departed late but arrived on time. The terminal transfer process was smooth and easy, which was quite impressive. Sydney to Jakarta flight was full, and I struggled to find space for my bag in the overhead cabins. FAs were courteous and helpful, but their service rarely went off-script and their replies to requests sounded stiff and a little "textbook". I requested a special online-only meal upon checking in, but my meal went to another passenger by mistake. When I raised this with the on-board Customer Service Manager, she scouted around and found a spare meal pack for me that matched my original request - lovely gesture. No in-flight shopping was offered which was a letdown for me. All in all a standard experience with Qantas - I feel their service is lacking the warmth and professionalism of some of their Asian competitors, such as Garuda Indonesia and Singapore Airlines.