Welcome to the final part of this series about my trip to Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia! This part will cover the last segment from Doha to Stockholm with QR.
NOTE: Some shots are taken with my phone and some are taken with my camera.
We went to the airport rather early as there was not much to do in the city, all of us were quite tired as well. Our driver was Pakistani, my dad had a good chat with him in Urdu on the way to the airport.
Inside the terminal.
Immigration and security was rather smooth and we were airside in no-time.
I immediately went to the food court to try and get some decent spotting shots, even though this was not the busy time of the day and I already knew the movements would be limited. I didn't catch many birds as a result. However, I could at least get some decent shots unlike last time when the reflections made it nearly impossible.
My family headed towards our gate shortly after my uneventful spotting session.
Our assigned gate was B7 according to this FIDS.
The walk to our gate took approximately 6-7 minutes.
We were allowed to enter the seating area prior to departure 1h 15 minutes before our scheduled time of departure.
There was one thing I noticed while waiting for the boarding to announce. There were a good amount of Bengali families in the seating area and that number increased and increased by time! There were at least 10 Bengali families (excluding us) with 4-6 people in each family. The estimated number of Bengalis on this flight was over 50, it almost felt like we were traveling to Dhaka. Not just that, apparently one of them knew my mother and she greeted us. She asked us were we had been and we told her we had arrived from Singapore, she told us she had been in Dhaka, Bangladesh. So many Bengali families with children onboard wasn't a positive thing, Bengali children cry a lot! That's the part I dislike about flying to DAC, that isn't any airline's fault though.
Flight information:
Airline: Qatar Airways (QR)
Flight number: QR171
STD (Scheduled time of departure): 14:00
ATD (Actual time of departure): 14:09
STA (Scheduled time of arrival): 19:10
ATA (Actual time of arrival): 19:00
Scheduled flight time: 6h 10 minutes
Actual flight time: 5h 51 minutes
Origin: Doha
Destination: Stockholm
Route: DOH-ARN
Aircraft: Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner
Registration: A7-BCM
Boarding was announced 40 minutes prior to our STD (scheduled time of departure), 20 minutes late in other words. All priorities were respected.
Wing view from seat 20K.
The seat pitch was decent, it was enough for me on this 6 hour flight. I was approximately 5'10/178 cm tall at this time.
The IFE, an A/V port and a USB port can be found behind the seat in front of you.
The handset/controller.
Headphones located on every seatpocket upon boarding.
Saudia A320 getting ready for a flight to Jeddah (JED).
This particular IFE onboard this 787 offered a good amount of movies, programs etc. It also had an updated version of the software, similar to the software found on the QR 350 & 380 IFE. There were still a few differences between this and the 350/380 IFE though.
Overhead bins.
Blankets found on every seat upon boarding.
Your standard QR labeled headphones.
The flight was completely packed in economy. More than 50 of the passengers were Bengalis, probably from DAC as there was a QR flight (QR635) from DAC that landed a few hours before this flight to Stockholm would depart.
Refreshing towels were distributed to all passengers once boarding was completed.
Pushback was done at 13:57 (1:57 PM), 13 minutes before our scheduled time of departure.
QR A350.
Oman Air B738 just came in from Muscat (MCT).
Taxiing to runway 16L.
QR A321 departing from rwy 16L.
Takeoff from runway 16L at 14:09 (2:09 PM).
The button from where you could set your preferred window tone.
My friend from Germany managed to track my flight again! Danke! All screenshots used in this FR were provided by my friend.
Shopping Extravaganza magazine.
You could control the IFE, watch the moving map, play games and do some other things on this device as I mentioned on previous reports.
The tray table.
The first drink service began 45 minutes after departure, I went with OJ and water.
The first meal service began 1h 40 minutes after takeoff. There were two options for this meal service, chicken or braised beef. Unfortunately I was left with the beef option as the chicken option was no longer available when the FA serving our aisle came to our row. The flight attendants on this flight were friendly but nothing extraordinary, they did their job efficiently with a decent amount of smiles.
This beef option was pretty similar to the meal I had on flight QR836 from DOH to BKK, which didn't get my hopes up. The main tasted identical to the other beef course I had on my flight to Bangkok. The beef was tasteless and full of fat. The rice was extremely dry and there was no taste in the vegetables. The dessert was decent and the bean salad had no taste as well, the bread bun was rather cold. Metal cutlery was a plus but doesn't compensate for all the other negative parts about this meal.
I was supposed to watch a film but later thought the wing view was more interesting in the end.
I soon dozed off while this film was playing, I had a good sleep of 3 hours.
Zzzzzzzz…..
Zzzzz…..
I woke up three hours later, we were quite close to Stockholm by then.
Frost had accumulated on the window.
Soon we began our descent into Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, getting closer to home.
Qatar Airways flight QR171 landing on runway 19L at Stockholm-Arlanda Airport.
Vacating runway 19L.
The official spotting pavilion at Arlanda.
We disembarked at 19:24 (7:24 PM) local time.
Well, I guess that concludes my 12th QR flight.
It took a while for all the 245+ passengers to get their luggage but at last we were off to the shuttle bus station.
We took the free shuttle bus to the BETA parking area and drove off to our home after that. I guess that's it for this series. Thank you for taking your time to read this FR/series!
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Verdict
Qatar Airways
7.3/10
Cabin7.5
Cabin crew8.0
Entertainment/wifi8.0
Meal/catering5.5
Doha - DOH
8.4/10
Efficiency9.0
Access7.5
Services7.5
Cleanliness9.5
Stockholm - ARN
7.9/10
Efficiency9.0
Access8.0
Services7.5
Cleanliness7.0
Conclusion
Summary is as follow:
Cabin comfort - Decent seats offering a decent amount of legroom, cabin slightly tight in a 9-abreast layout. The flight was full in Y as well which didn't help.
Crew - Normal crew doing their job efficiently and offering a good amount of smiles along the way. They were quite friendly.
Meal and catering - Disappointing meal, hardly any taste at all.
Entertainment - Great IFE with lots of content, the responsiveness wasn't on top though.
On-time performance - Departed 9 minutes late and landed 10 minutes early, but we had a long taxi to our gate as we landed on rwy 19L.
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Thanks for sharing this final segment of your series.
Great spotting shots. It seems that QR has a subsidiary that I wasn't aware of judging by the livery on those planes painted in green.
Good to know that you found the amount of legroom to be fine. I have read a lot of reports where people complain about the legroom of the 787's being very tight in general.
Meal looks well presented for Y but too bad that it was tasteless. It is disappointing that you did not get a choice neither.
Thank you! Yes, that's Al Maha Airways. They were supposed to start operations in KSA but the launch has been delayed due to some licensing issues. The Al Maha A320s fly for QR at the moment.
I have heard many complaints about the seat pitch on these 787s. Tbh I find the legroom to be similar to many A330s and A340s I've flown on, which isn't amazing but acceptable for 6-8 hour flights. The seat width might also be a reason why many complain, the seat width is tight but it wasn't an issue for me as my family members sat next to me.
I'm usually unlucky with the choices, I always get left with the worst option haha.
Thanks for sharing this cool series. You sure got to fly a nice variety of the latest generation of aircraft in this routing. With the A350 and 787 and A380! I've only flow A380s before. Hoping to get an opportunity to fly 787 soon finally. Don't see any opportunities for A350s though, here in the U.S. :-( Although the QR A350 and 787 cabins look very similar from your reports, 3-3-3 in a 787 is way tighter than on an A350, so I'd pick the A350 for Y travel whenever there is a choice. Thanks for sharing the series and see you for the next one!
It was truly a fantastic experience to fly on these fantastic planes on one single trip. Maybe you can try Finnair's 350 if they decide to put it on its US routes, QR will also launch A350 services to JFK, BOS and PHL starting next year.
Not just that the 787 cabin is tighter, the seats are less comfortable and the seat pitch is worse compared to the 350.
Nice series of reports, including a journey to my home country Malaysia.
I like Arlanda Airport, but my experience was limited to departure hall, as I was on MH flight to and from Newark at the time when they still flew this route. Hopefully I would be able to visit Stockholm in the future to see this airport inside out.
Malaysia is a beautiful country, it's probably one of my favourite countries by now and I would love to visit Malaysia again. A big plus is that there are a good amount of Bangladeshis there, it's very convenient for us as my family originates from the Bengali region.
I think my home airport (Arlanda) is mediocre, I don't like the design of it tbh. Oh yeah, I remember when MH used to fly to Stockholm. Those were the good days!
You are more than welcome to visit my city of birth! Even though I personally think there's nothing extraordinary about the airport.
I'm late to the party, but thanks for sharing this series with us!
Spotting may have been limited at DOH, but at least the shots you did get turned out really nice. Very much a regional flair in the middle of the day with many Gulf carriers present (I consider 9W to be EY in disguise).
So, the meal situation seems to be a common trend. Why do they keep running out of food? You were sitting over the wing, how do they do meal service: front to back or back to front? If you are in the last 10% of passengers to be served I can understand them running out of food, but not in the middle of the cabin.
I'll get my first B787 experience in a couple of days. I didn't pick the flights so it wouldn't have been my first choice given the criticisms on cabin comfort, but I am a little excited to at least try a new aircraft type.
You can tell it's summer in Sweden, blue skies and grass. Can you also use the plane spotting hut for duck hunting?
Thanks for sharing this series with us highlighting most of the QR long-haul fleet. Hopefully see you for another series sometime soon!
Better late than never :). Thanks for your nice comment!
I'm glad you find my shots to be nice! They were pretty much EY in disguise when EY used to operate 77Ws in a 9W livery to DAC. I used to track that flight every day, AUH-DAC operated by EY in a 9W 77W. These still fly around for EY but not to DAC anymore.
The first galley serves row 10 to 25 in Y, I was seated in row 20. This might have been why the other option was not available when the FA made it to my row. The second galley served row 26 to 36.
I don't think you will be too impressed by the comfort, can't wait to see your FR of that flight though (if you make one).
Those were the last days of the Swedish summer, good days indeed. Now we're back to the cold here. Unfortunately I don't think there are many ducks there haha.
Thank you for your continuous support, it's highly appreciated!
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12 Comments
B787 and A350 help QR to get even higher services than before.
I guess pitch is better than other B787 like AC or LO
See you
These new planes do provide a nicer service for the consumers but the A350 is on another level IMO.
I have yet to try the 787 in other airlines, I find the seat pitch on QR's 787 to be decent (not that good but barely acceptable).
See you!
Great spotting shots. It seems that QR has a subsidiary that I wasn't aware of judging by the livery on those planes painted in green.
Good to know that you found the amount of legroom to be fine. I have read a lot of reports where people complain about the legroom of the 787's being very tight in general.
Meal looks well presented for Y but too bad that it was tasteless. It is disappointing that you did not get a choice neither.
Thank you! Yes, that's Al Maha Airways. They were supposed to start operations in KSA but the launch has been delayed due to some licensing issues. The Al Maha A320s fly for QR at the moment.
I have heard many complaints about the seat pitch on these 787s. Tbh I find the legroom to be similar to many A330s and A340s I've flown on, which isn't amazing but acceptable for 6-8 hour flights. The seat width might also be a reason why many complain, the seat width is tight but it wasn't an issue for me as my family members sat next to me.
I'm usually unlucky with the choices, I always get left with the worst option haha.
Although the QR A350 and 787 cabins look very similar from your reports, 3-3-3 in a 787 is way tighter than on an A350, so I'd pick the A350 for Y travel whenever there is a choice.
Thanks for sharing the series and see you for the next one!
It was truly a fantastic experience to fly on these fantastic planes on one single trip. Maybe you can try Finnair's 350 if they decide to put it on its US routes, QR will also launch A350 services to JFK, BOS and PHL starting next year.
Not just that the 787 cabin is tighter, the seats are less comfortable and the seat pitch is worse compared to the 350.
Thank you for reading this series, see you!
I like Arlanda Airport, but my experience was limited to departure hall, as I was on MH flight to and from Newark at the time when they still flew this route. Hopefully I would be able to visit Stockholm in the future to see this airport inside out.
Malaysia is a beautiful country, it's probably one of my favourite countries by now and I would love to visit Malaysia again. A big plus is that there are a good amount of Bangladeshis there, it's very convenient for us as my family originates from the Bengali region.
I think my home airport (Arlanda) is mediocre, I don't like the design of it tbh. Oh yeah, I remember when MH used to fly to Stockholm. Those were the good days!
You are more than welcome to visit my city of birth! Even though I personally think there's nothing extraordinary about the airport.
Thank you for reading this series, see you!
I once wrote quite frequently on a Malaysian aviation forum, but I stopped. I think it is about time I start posting flight report again.
Spotting may have been limited at DOH, but at least the shots you did get turned out really nice. Very much a regional flair in the middle of the day with many Gulf carriers present (I consider 9W to be EY in disguise).
So, the meal situation seems to be a common trend. Why do they keep running out of food? You were sitting over the wing, how do they do meal service: front to back or back to front? If you are in the last 10% of passengers to be served I can understand them running out of food, but not in the middle of the cabin.
I'll get my first B787 experience in a couple of days. I didn't pick the flights so it wouldn't have been my first choice given the criticisms on cabin comfort, but I am a little excited to at least try a new aircraft type.
You can tell it's summer in Sweden, blue skies and grass. Can you also use the plane spotting hut for duck hunting?
Thanks for sharing this series with us highlighting most of the QR long-haul fleet. Hopefully see you for another series sometime soon!
I'm glad you find my shots to be nice! They were pretty much EY in disguise when EY used to operate 77Ws in a 9W livery to DAC. I used to track that flight every day, AUH-DAC operated by EY in a 9W 77W. These still fly around for EY but not to DAC anymore.
The first galley serves row 10 to 25 in Y, I was seated in row 20. This might have been why the other option was not available when the FA made it to my row. The second galley served row 26 to 36.
I don't think you will be too impressed by the comfort, can't wait to see your FR of that flight though (if you make one).
Those were the last days of the Swedish summer, good days indeed. Now we're back to the cold here. Unfortunately I don't think there are many ducks there haha.
Thank you for your continuous support, it's highly appreciated!
See you!
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