First look: inside Qantas’ upgraded A330s
The twin-aisle workhorses are in line for a refresh which will improve things down the back of the (Air)bus.
By David Flynn, October 25 2024
Qantas is giving its international Airbus A330 fleet a multi-million dollar make-over – but while passengers at the pointy end usually get the perks, this time around it’s economy class flyers who will feel the love.
Ten of the Qantas A330s which are seen on key routes into Asia – such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo – are being upgraded with all-new economy seats.
Qantas' new A330 economy class seats.
Key features include a 13.3" 4K video screen – 20% larger than the current A330 economy screen – with Bluetooth audio streaming direct to a passenger’s own headphones or earbuds, including of course noise-cancelling models which can shut out the thrum of the engines and general cabin noise.
Each seat will also come with a high-power USB-C port capable of fast-charging phones and tablets, plus a fold-down device holder for tablets and smartphones.
Qantas' new A330 economy class seats.
These are in fact the same ‘next generation’ seats that will feature on the Qantas A350s – including those ambitious non-stop Project Sunrise flights to London and New York.
So the seats are definitely built for comfort, with sculpted side-bolsters, lumbar support for the lower back, a six-way adjustable headrest and additional space from your knee to the seat in front.
Qantas' new A330 economy class seats.
Meanwhile, at the front of the A330 – well, nothing changes.
Passengers will find the same business class seats that debuted in 2014, which lack those modern economy-bound niceties such as the USB-C and Bluetooth audio streaming.
Qantas' A330 business class seats.
All the same, these spacious Business Suites – an evolved version of which appears on the Boeing 787 and upgraded Airbus A380s – remain comfortable in their own right and highly competitive on Australia’s transcontinental east-west routes, since Virgin Australia axed its own A330 jets.
Other key elements of the A330 cabin upgrade program include new mood lighting and the replacement of all curtains and carpets.
“We’ve used our fleet renewal program to completely rethink the inflight experience and these cabin upgrades mean we can bring next-generation features and designs to our existing aircraft,” says Qantas International CEO Cam Wallace.
“Customers can look forward to brand new economy seats that have been specially created to maximise comfort and provide features that our customers want for international travel.”
Work on the first A330 is expected to start in mid-2025 in Qantas’ Brisbane maintenance facility, with the first refurbished aircraft taking wing by the end of the calendar year. The refurbishment program is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
WiFi on the way...
Qantas has also started adding its fast and free satellite WiFi to the international A330s, with the service expected to be available on selected Qantas A330 flights between Australia and Asia from December this year.
As previously reported, two dozen Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 jets will eventually replace the ageing twin-aisle domestic and international Airbus A330s beginning in 2027-2028.
However, with those deliveries taking place “over a decade or more,” according to the airline, some red-tailed A330s – including these upgraded ones – will still be carrying passengers well into the 2030’s.
Executive Traveller understands the A350s and 787s will be fitted with the same seats as their red-tailed siblings – which for the A350s means the private business class suites and premium economy recliners of the long-legged Project Sunrise A350s jets, but without first class or the ‘wellbeing zone’.
A largely identical configuration will add consistency on international flights while also providing the flexibility for some of these A330 replacements – particular the Boeing 787 – to be swung onto longer-range routes as needed.
05 Feb 2015
Total posts 24
Is this upgrade coming to the 200's or 300's? I'd say the 300 economy seat is already pretty competitive, whereas the 200's are between 'just okay' for the ones with small IFE screens, to 'not acceptable' for the ones with iPad's.
12 Jan 2012
Total posts 3
According to the media release, the refurb program starts with 10 A330-200s
16 Jan 2019
Total posts 2
Seems strange (poor) to not even refurbish the business seats with new seat covers, better screens and usb-c at the very least......
American Airlines - AAdvantage
13 Jul 2015
Total posts 276
I agree, you can easily tell the A330 biz seats are a little more aged when you get on, so the fact they're changing nothing is odd.
12 Dec 2023
Total posts 5
they probably just assume that the planes gonna get retired in the next 10 years anyway so what's the point, it's still lie flat and direct aisle access. But at least upgrade the screens and add modern niceties
03 May 2021
Total posts 54
So basically the “domestic” a330s which actually often end up serving international flights up to 8 hours long, which don’t even have an IFE screen, rather an old IPad, is still not going to be changed?
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
24 Jan 2018
Total posts 767
So let me get this right, starting mid-2025, even with 9+ months pre-planning, it's going to take Qantas' Brisbane maintenance facility eighteen (18) months to do this upgrade to ten (10) only planes? Surely, surely, with all that pre-planning, this upgrade could be done & dusted within 6 months (rather than 6 months for the first plane)?
What a dreadful advertisement for Australia's aircraft maintenance industry (or is it localized to a Qantas facility)? I sincerely hope the players involved re-think and come back with an improved schedule (I really do).
05 Mar 2015
Total posts 416
I would imagine the refit will take around 3-4 weeks per aircraft, if they are also doing any other maintenance checks and adding Wi-Fi at the same time, but Qantas is avoiding scheduling any A330 refits during the peak travel seasons when they need the maximum number of aircraft flying. So if you take out of the equation December & January plus each of the school holiday periods there's almost four months out of the year It's still not a super fast rate, that's true, but maybe there are other reasons on top of that.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
29 Nov 2013
Total posts 475
If you factor in (potential) supply chain delays plus a need to have alternate aircraft in place - the timing seems reasonable - I think you're being a bit harsh on both Qantas and the local manufacturing/maintenance industry.
14 Oct 2016
Total posts 112
I'd think the upgrades will be to the newer birds (ie 2008+ and a330-200s) as the older ones are the near replacement age and won't be in service much longer whereas their younger allotment will still be in service a bit longer and as for the case with one plane I was in this week vh-ebj (2008 bird) is still very much using the ipads in economy.
It's not just Qantas being cheap but one of the issues is there isn't as many widebody slots available at Boeing or Airbus, so Qantas needs to fully use its existing fleet for a bit longer.
08 Feb 2018
Total posts 166
Still no PE on long flights into Asia....so I'm looking at SQ, BA, CX etc
Jetstar Airways - Qantas Frequent Flyer
13 Jun 2020
Total posts 12
Omg these planes A 330 are so old you have to be joking and they always break down, what no premium economy . No consistency and if you are stuck in Brisbane this is what you get , it makes the competition look so much more attractive , at least they have the latest products and new planes.
Turkish Airlines - Miles & Smiles
08 Jun 2014
Total posts 262
PER to SIN has to get this upgrade, it’s embarrassing. Event Coast to Coast.
05 Dec 2018
Total posts 146
I hope they fix the exit sign they fell off mid flight that I was on. It could do with some new stronger sticky tape.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
16 Oct 2021
Total posts 1
Do we know if the refurb in business includes the separating walls that can be dropped like in the A380 and 787???
05 Mar 2015
Total posts 416
As the article pretty clearly says, there's no refurb in business class.
28 Apr 2021
Total posts 32
When the 'Headline' caught my eye about the ' "First look: inside Qantas" upgraded A330s there was a quick rush of blood immediately thinking that someone had signed off to have modifications carried out that included on the absurd barrier in the Business section that so many Passengers, especially couples or business colleagues sitting together have had to put up with in the center seats.
Over the years since this particular aircraft first commenced operation, there has steady flow of criticism and one would have thought while and 'mods' were being carried out for a few extra shillings it would present an ideal opportunity to rip out this ridiculous piece of structure and replace with a modern day screen that can be activated as necessary in an up or down position.
We have done the 8 hour haul to Singapore several times and after the first trip in the A330, we the chose to sit diagonally with the isle across so at we could see each other and at least have a chat without having stand up and down or bend a neck around the barrier.
A group of racing friends travelling regularly to S'pore, gave up on trying engage in business discussions, flagged Qantas and commenced flying with the much better and congenial conditions J Class offered with SQ even if it sacrificed the loss of QF Status/Points.
Our next trip will be on SQ now no 'mods' will occur in the J Class A330.
Bravo Cam Wallace for making life more tolerable for the Y Class Passengers, however alas, obviously the 'Pointy end high yield Travelers" were given no consideration in the splash of cash 'mods' and hence many will still look to fly with competitor carriers on the same routes of the A330.
28 Sep 2022
Total posts 23
These seats are really bad, so it's sorely needed, just strange that it's coming so late, and aren't these planes meant to be retired from 2027 anyway? Come on...
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on First look: inside Qantas’ upgraded A330s