Qantas to Implement A330 Only Flights

30th Nov 2012

Starting next year, Qantas will be operating exclusively on an all Airbus A330 all weekday service for its two busiest transcontinental routes, Melbourne - Perth and Sydney - Perth.

The twin routes will start seeing Qantas' largest aircraft for its domestic service by May 2013, as it takes delivery of the brand new A330-200 early this week.

The newly-arrived aircraft sports the livery of the airline with the logo of OneWorld, of which Qantas is a member. The bold OneWorld logo could be a reassuring sign of the airline's loyalty to the airline alliance despite the severance of its partnership with British Airways in favor of Emirates.

Christened Kangaroo Island, the new A330-200 will be in a two-class configuration, to seat 268 in the economy and 36 in its business class and will start flying over the weekend.

Like other Qantas A330s before it, the brand new aircraft will still have a 2-3-2 seat configuration in its business class. The middle seat (of the three seats in the center), as usual, will be converted into an 'inflight workspace' for occupants on either side seats to use.

This modified space, however, can't actually be used directly by passengers for their own disposal, rather just a temporary stowage of kit or a utility space.

The new A330s sports a 37-inch seat pitch, a space between the rearward point of the seat in front and the leading edge of one's seat cushion. The seat width, excluding armrests, is measured at 21.5 inches.

All business class seats have their own pair of AC and USB sockets as well as inflight on-demand entertainment.

The inflight system of the new aircraft will now be fitted in the back of the seat in front allowing the passenger to use it during take-off and landing.

If you want to be comfy in case you want to take a long nap aboard the transcontinental flight, the recline might get you a little bit disappointed.

Think about the Qantas' international premium economy seats and that exactly how the A330s look like.

This striking resemblance completely blurs the line between international premium economy of several international airlines and regional business class. Take Cathay Pacific, for instance, where its premium economy seats almost look similar to regional business class.

At present, Qantas utilizes a mix of Boeing 767s and A330s for the domestic service. The fleet of 767s, though headed for retirement soon, have been refurbished.

By the latter half of next year, Qantas will boast of an all-Airbus A330s fleet. At the same time, its fleet will significantly increase in number soon after all Jetstar's own A330s are retired in favor of the 787 Dreamliner exclusively for its fleet. Jetstar is Qantas' low-cost sister airline.