Review: Qantas Boeing 737 business class (Sydney-Brisbane)

The review didn't say anything about roast beef, it looks to be carved roast  lamb. How much are you eating that you need more than bread, a large plate full of healthy salad and a dessert on a quick domestic lunch flight?

I agree - the lunch and dinner options in Qantas business can be a bit light on the BNE-SYD vv route - usually a choice of a salad or a soup or a cheese plate. Though it's true there's always plenty of breat to fill yourself up on if you're still hungry.

More than once I have thought the economy hot dinner offering announced over the PA system soon after takeoff sounded better than what I was being offered in business (though I suspect may not have lived up to the description!). 

.. and, in respect of the new seats - amount of recline ? .. Also, are there any additional 'hidey-holes' for glasses, phones etc.

Must admit, I'm a little surprised with the choice of maroon leather - but the photos seem to do it justice.

Hi wilsoni, thanks for sharing your feedback.

Being a 'guest' of Qantas actually meant receiving my business class seat assignment and boarding pass only once check-in had closed and boarding had commenced, by which time the seat is determined based on which are still available (not which passenger I'd be sitting next to) – I gave preference for an aisle as I take photos and this is what was left.

I'm sure you'd realise that Qantas can't control the behaviour of other passengers on-board but it's interesting to hear other experiences all the same. I've flown Qantas domestic business class many times and I've found it rare that they'll run out of a dish by the second row. From what I could hear that wasn't the case on this flight, although Emre should certainly provide feedback on the issue.

These days we try to keep our reviews of shorter flights relatively succinct and to-the-point and aspects such as the cleanliness of the bathroom, on-time performance and baggage delivery aren't mentioned unless there's an issue. (And for the latter, like many business travellers on this route we fly without checked bags wherever possible so are rarely seen at the baggage belt to provide comment.)

Re: seat pitch+width: these had been excluded in the interests of being brief but following your feedback we have included these with the review and will look to do so for other short-haul reviews also.

Re: the coffee, this is a flight review which entails only a few brief sentences on the lounge as a whole, not so much a detailed review of the lounge itself – you'll find that linked above as a separate piece of content.

Re: 'alternately' vs 'alternatively', 'alternately' is correct as passengers can alternate between their own device during take-off, the fixed IFE during cruise and then back to the own device before landing (and whenever they desire). If the option throughout was more so one or the other for entertainment, 'alternatively' would be more appropriate. :)

To be clear, my suggestion was (and is) that Qantas knowing who you are would strive ensure you got your meal choice and that no chewing gum was affixed to your seat. Etc etc.

I struggle with the notion the Qantas "cannot control the behaviour of other passengers on board". 1. Why not?  2.Reports suggest they attempt to do so quite often.

I take your point about being succinct, even so there are two kinds of review - those that go no further than immediate experience and those that delve deeper. Though you had no checked bags, you were at liberty to attend the baggage belt to ascertain if there was or was not an issue.

For the record all meal preferences on this flight were taken in seating order, so 1A, 1C, 1D, 1F, 2A etc. – being a journalist doesn't get you 'first dibs' off the inflight menu, nor should it.

Other passengers' behavour isn't really relevant to the review and content of this piece so that concern is best-addressed by Emre providing feedback directly to Qantas if help from the crew was indeed requested but not provided.

While a nice idea, standing at the baggage belt after a flight and waiting to look at other passengers' baggage roll by isn't a great use of our time, and being an aspect we don't usually include in our reviews isn't something we'd do.

We appreciate that some readers enjoy long-form reviews that dive into every small aspect of a journey in great detail, but our broader feedback and analysis indicates that the vast majority of our readers prefer content that's succinct yet still informative, which is what we strive to provide.

Please feel free to email any further feedback on the editorial itself to our editor David Flynn ([email protected]) or to myself, which allows us to keep the discussion here on-track. As your views have now been fairly shared and responded to, any further comments here concerning the presentation of the content or AusBT as a whole rather than the content itself will be removed as outlined in our published comment policy. :)

Thank you for your feedback. I stand informed of your commitment to informative journalism and the commitment of ABT to open and honest discussion.

Cheers wilsoni.

I wasn't disagreeing with this review at all. I just wanted to share my experience of these new business class seats on the same (albeit reverse) route. The crew was very polite and understanding but it wasn't a very positive experience compared to my previous Qantas flights, all of which were absolute blasts for me.

The business class wasn't even full and they ran out of food. I understand that there's a load ratio for food. Not important, I had had some food in the lounge.

After a 9 hour flight from Taipei to Brisbane, it isn't a very nice feeling to have a little kid scream and crawl around you. Though kids will be kids. Nothing we can do about it.

I seconds Marc's comments.

I will however make my personal opinion that I think the leg rest in this business seat is pointless as it doesn't swing up enough (because of the seat pitch) to actually rest the legs.

At least the full menu