Review of Qantas flight Dubai London in Economy

Airline Qantas
Flight QF1
Class Economy
Seat 52C
Aircraft Airbus A380-800
Flight time 07:55
Take-off 26 Apr 15, 02:30
Arrival at 26 Apr 15, 07:25
QF   #34 out of 96 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 175 reviews
flywunala
By 13071
Published on 13th May 2015
This trip report covers the second leg of a 6 legs trip from Sydney to Madrid that I took recently. This trip is the continuation of QF1 originating from Sydney, stopping over in Dubai before continuating to London.


A380-842 VH-OQB QF1 25 -Apr -15 SYD/DXB 24F PremEco QANTAS AIRWAYS : http://flight-report.com/en/report-10225.html
A380-842 VH-OQB QF1 26 -Apr -15 DXB/LHR 52C Economy QANTAS AIRWAYS: You are here
A320-216 EC-LVD IB3175 26 -Apr -15 LHR/MAD 14F Economy IBERIA; Coming soon
A340-642X EC-LFS IB3164 30 -Apr -15 MAD/LHR 36D Economy IBERIA: Coming soon
A380-842 VH-OQK QF2 30 -Apr -15 LHR/DXB 22B BUS QANTAS AIRWAYS: Coming Soon
A380-842 VH-OQK QF2 30 -Apr -15 DXB/SYD 83G Economy QANTAS AIRWAYS: Coming Soon

Due to the late arrival of the aircraft, the turn around in Dubai is extremely quick. Which leaves us very little time on the ground. Going through transfer security and accessing the departure level upstair is a breeze and completed in no time. Obviously the aicraft will depart from the same gate it arrived at. Dubai AIrport seems to be run efficiently. Overall I am not a fan, I find the airport crowded with no real sense of comfort and space….
photo IMG_0931photo IMG_0935


Soon we are on our way to London. I am now in econmy, seat 52C, which is an aisle seat, it is located at the front of the cabin, I can actually see the first class suite very well from where I am. Luckliy the flight is not full and I have an empty seat next to me, which will make a hell of a difference and bring space and comfort to my flight.
The seat pitch is pretty decent
photo IMG_0940photo IMG_0941

Plane holding short of the operating runway
photo IMG_0943

take off timel lapse


DXB-LHR is a much shorter sector than the SYD-DXB one, Nearly half flying time. I find it much more manageable to do the longer sector first (as opposed to QF1 via SIN where the shorter sector was the first sector)
photo IMG_0948photo IMG_0953

A small snack is serve (it is about 3am DXB time!


Up in the Air. A great movie. Seen before, watching it again!
photo IMG_0917


A few extracts from the moving map




Clear above the European clouds…
photo IMG_0979

Time for breakfast. Scrambled eggs, muesli and pastry. Pretty good, coffee is good too
photo IMG_0967

Time to start our descent
photo IMG_0980photo IMG_0983

Welcome to the UK!
photo IMG_0986


It would not be London if we did not have to hold for a while…..
photo IMG_0988photo QF1 DXBLHR Approach

Landing in London - Time lapse video



The full journey flight path
photo QF1 DXBLHR

Given the delay ex Sydney, into Dubai, and into London, we disembark 45 min later than scheduled at T3, which is pretty good considering the long delays.
I have to run to T5 to try to catch the earlier flight to MAD….to be continued…
photo IMG_0995
See more

Verdict

Qantas

7.8/10
Cabin8.0
Cabin crew8.0
Entertainment/wifi7.5
Meal/catering7.5

Dubai - DXB

7.0/10
Efficiency8.0
Access6.5
Services6.5
Cleanliness7.0

London - LHR

6.4/10
Efficiency6.0
Access6.5
Services6.5
Cleanliness6.5

Conclusion


This QF1 flight was very interesting as I had the opportunity to fly in two different class, premium economy and economy back to back. Luckily I flew the longer sector in premium eco. The premium economy seat was comfortable enough for me to sleep about 7 hours which made the long flight go very quickly
The cabin of the Qantas A380 is pleasant and comfortable, whether it is in premium eco or in eco. Crew on both class were friendly.
The plane which is relatively new was in good condition. The IFE system is getting a little old. Unfortunately it is located in the armrest in premium eco, which means you have to stow it at take off and landing. Given the fierce competition amongst carriers, the QF IFE is due for a revamp in my opinion. All seats have a USB power outlet which is very useful.
The premium eco cabin was full yet it still felt spacious and private enough. The eco cabin was not full, and having no one next to me made a huge difference as I could stretch and take a more comfortable position.
All in all a very enjoyable experience (well I always enjoy flying to Europe so perhaps I am less critical....). Qantas product is solid in both class. Must admit I was very surprised by the premium eco product which is worth considering for long haul flight ex Australia to Europe. A great and cheaper alternative to Business Class.
Lots of time was wasted in holding patterns, in DXB and LHR. Seems that DXB is becoming a very congested airport and air space. I could feel the pilot frustration through his announcement, saying the given estimated time of arrival would probably be blown away 30 min, and that this was his very own estimate (which proved to be accurate).
Again a one stop journey through the Middle East or Asia is still a much preferred option to travel from Australia to Europe, versus a second stop over via LHR, CDG or FRA to reach a European secondary city such as Madrid.
 

Information on the route Dubai (DXB) London (LHR)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 16 avis concernant 4 compagnies sur la ligne Dubai (DXB) → London (LHR).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Emirates avec 8.4/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 7 heures et 48 minutes.

  More information

4 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 136334 by
    NGO85 SILVER 1963 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this FR!

    It's interesting how they handle the layover. So you are required to deplane and go through security. How long was the actual time on the ground? I guess in this instance, it is probably best to deplane and stretch your legs versus sitting there while they refuel and reload the catering.

    Catering is back to reality. Pales in comparison to what you had in Y+, just look at the two pictures of your omelettes side to side.
    • Comment 315912 by
      flywunala AUTHOR 155 Comments
      Hello NGO85, I always look forward to reading your witty and fun comments, they are usually the most enjoyable part of writting a FR!
      Yes all passengers and their belongings must leave the plane, go to transfer, go through security and go to the departure level and reach the same gate. This was done in SIN the same way. However I vaguely remember that in the old days we could stay on board at stop over point. They usually say it is a regulatory requirement, but they are also cleaning the cabin so that is easier to achieve that with an empty plane. Due to the late arrival of our aircraft the turn around was quick, I don't exactly remember how long but I think it was just under 1h15 min whether the scheduled lay over is 1h40min. And yes it is absolutely necessary to get out and stretch your legs..
      The Y breakfast pic is not flattering, but no it wasn't that bad actually!
      Thanks again for reading my FR.
    • Comment 315917 by
      NGO85 SILVER 1963 Comments
      they are usually the most enjoyable part of writting a FR!
      - Too much pressure! I have been slacking recently, too busy.

      Okay, I think the policies differ highly depending on the security requirements of the country you are entering/leaving. I've only done two of these segmented routes before (ICN-NRT-HNL and NGO-PEK-AUH) and those were handled differently. KE made us deplane in NRT, so the plane could be cleared for US security requirements. EY made use stay on the plane in PEK while all the cleaning/refueling was done (and the PEK international transfer checkpoint would have taken more than 3 hours to complete).

      I agree 100% though that a stop in DXB is much better than a stop in SIN. Nothing is worse than getting to SIN and realizing you still have 12+ hours to go...
    • Comment 315927 by
      flywunala AUTHOR 155 Comments
      Agree. Transfer can be awful. Sometimes it is much quicker and pain free to clear customs out and go to the departure hall and clear customs and security in....I have done it a few times...

Login to post a comment.