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Old 10th January 2016, 10:53 PM
Julian L Julian L is offline
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Sydney's Northern Beaches
Posts: 92
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The Flight

Boarding commenced on time, and since most of Changi’s gates pre-scan your boarding pass, there was no lining up to board. Boarding was done by rows and most people followed the procedure.
Once on-board I stowed my roll-aboard with ease, as there was plenty of space in the overhead lockers and settled down in my seat.

There is enough legroom but a large entertainment box takes up a third of the space on the window seats, which is very annoying considering that the aisle seat will also have the aisle to stretch out into. The seat itself looks very dated and worn out, which it probably is, seeing as the aircraft is 11 years old. The IFE screen is also very small, and the quality isn’t great, but it does have video on-demand, although containing a smaller selection of content.


Legroom shot (Taken on a previous flight, nothing has changed)


IFE screen (Taken on a previous flight, nothing has changed)


My view out the window, with a sister A330 at the next gate


Qantas’ special 95th anniversary inflight magazine featuring Qantas ambassador Hugh Jackman

We pushed back on time. The safety procedures were demonstrated and the video was started, but my screen was blank. Not a problem for me as I fly quite often. We proceeded to taxi out to runway 02C past Terminal 2 and the under construction Terminal 4, which was progressing rapidly. The sun had set by that point and not much could be photographed on the move.

We rocketed down Changi’s bumpy runway and lifted off into the darkness, with the lights of the city only visible after making the turn towards Sydney.
Linked below is the video of the take-off. I apologise for the reflections, since the cabin crew strangely did not dim the lights. It definitely isn’t by best work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbs7hntzpII

After take off, the welcome drink (there was one selection) was served by a single flight attendant on each aisle, whom held a pitcher in one hand and a stack of cups in the other. The pomegranate juice was served with assistance from the passengers. We had to take a cup and hold it whilst the flight attendant poured the drink. My drink was served without a problem, but the flight attendant spilled a few drops onto my seatmate. He apologised and quickly rushed to get some tissues to dry off the spilled liquid.


The menu

Dinner service soon followed and I selected the Chicken option.

The Main: ”Grilled lemon chicken salad with fusilli pasta, sun dried tomatoes and parmesan”


Dinner

Overall the dinner did not match my expectations and the service has changed since the last time I flew Qantas about 2 years ago. Gone are the trays containing a starter/salad, dessert, bread with butter, and a glass. Now the mains are placed on a small tray barely bigger then the container, and the bread and cutlery are lumped on top of the main. The choices of drinks are still up to par but are served in plastic cups without the option of having ice.

The bread roll comes pre-buttered with garlic spread and was nicely warmed up, but a bit dry.

The main was served cold which was quite disappointing as I was expecting the chicken and the pasta to be warmed up. The dressing was packaged in a small box within the container, which was quite messy to open and pour. The chicken was dry, and the pasta and lettuce was limp and soft. I regretted my decision to choose the chicken, and the menu description sounds a million times better then it tastes.

The dessert was the most enjoyable part of the meal. The passionfruit wasn’t too overpowering and balanced nicely with the vanilla panna cotta.

After the crew cleared the dinner service I went for a walk around the cabin. The forward cabin was fully loaded but as I headed down the back there were empty seats scattered around, especially in the last few rows. The lights were dimmed soon after and I settled down to try and get some sleep. Unfortunately for me I couldn’t. The cabin temperature was very cold and even with the blanked and the air con vent closed I couldn’t get comfortable and kept drifting in and out of sleep.

After a few hours to attempted sleep I gave up and started watching a movie on my iPad, seeing as the screen quality is far better then the IFE.
Soon streaks of light began appearing on the horizon and before long the great orange ball of fire we call our sun rose up.


Sunrise

Breakfast service soon started and there was only one option.

Breakfast: ”Mushroom and cheese breakfast scroll, and Strawberry yogurt bircher muesli”


Breakfast

After checking some old photos I realised that the breakfast menu has largely remained unchained since I last flew Qantas on this route and surprisingly the portion sizes has increased. The yogurt was nice but only contained half a strawberry. The scroll was warm and very flaky but was very dry. It also had barely any taste of cheese and no taste of mushroom at all. Overall the breakfast wasn’t substantial enough for me but is sufficient to fill be up till I arrive to have a proper breakfast.

We began our descent and after making a few turns we landed on runway 16R. We were one of the first arrivals of the day after the night curfew was lifted. Linked below is the landing video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf_d9h3yce8


Arriving into our gate

After The Flight

Deplaning was fairly quick and the terminal was very empty. I tried the automated immigration clearance again, but failed, again. The machines must not like my face. I headed over to the empty counters and quickly cleared immigration, the perks of being one of the first arrivals. Baggage claim was fairly quick and customs was cleared rapidly too. Unlike my usual Sydney airport experience, this one was smooth.


Head on with Quebec Papa Golf

Final Thoughts

My failed attempt at trying Qantas’ new economy seats made me realise how much the new seats are needed as the decade old product really shows its age. The cost cutting in food and drinks are very apparent, but the service has improved. The crew are friendly and feel quite genuine, not scripted or robotic. Overall the flight was decent enough and a fairly average Qantas flight.

Part 2 covering my return flights is coming soon. Please feel free to share your opinions on my report, I always look to see what I can improve on and add to, for future reports.
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