Review of Qantas flight from Sydney to Melbourne in Economy

Introduction.

Welcome to the second part of my Melbourne trip, consisting of 3 flight reports, this one being the second.

This report will cover Sydney to Melbourne on a 737-800 with Qantas.

At the Airport.

I had a two-hour layover after my flight from Tokyo with ANA and used the T-Bus to transfer from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3. I had around an hour and a half before my flight, which is more than enough time for a domestic flight.

The terminal was quite calm, with plenty of kiosks and check-in desks available. The check-in process was smooth and efficient.

There were some minor queues at security but nothing significant.

The airside area was nothing special, with just a few shops and restaurants. Fortunately, my gate was conveniently located right next to security.

Our plane was arriving from the Gold Coast, but that flight was delayed, which subsequently caused a delay for our departure as well. The flight ended up arriving around 30 minutes later, but by that time, the gate area was chaotic with crowds of people.

When the plane from the Gold Coast finally arrived and passengers began disembarking, it became clear that one passenger was quite ill, possibly vomiting. Paramedics were called to assist the individual, and a cleaning crew had to sanitize the aircraft. This added an additional 30-minute delay to our departure.

Boarding eventually commenced by groups, but due to the delay, the gate area was overcrowded with people, turning the entire boarding process into a chaotic experience.

Our plane for this flight.

Aircraft Information

Aircraft - B737-800
Reg - VH-VXM
MSN - 33483
Line Number - 1177
Age - 22.2 years

The crew welcomed me onboard and I made my way to my seat.

Cabin and Seat.

Qantas’s Boeing 737-800s are configured with 174 seats, featuring 12 recliner-style business class seats and 162 economy seats. The economy cabin follows the standard 3-3 layout, with seats offering a width of 17.2 inches and a pitch of 30 inches. While all Qantas 737s have nearly identical cabins, only about half of the fleet is equipped with personal TV screens.

These seats are definitely due for an upgrade. Compared to the brand-new seats on the A220, they feel worn and outdated, lacking many of the modern features found on the A220, such as improved ergonomics.

The seat features a generously sized tray table, a seat pocket, and shared power sockets. Despite their age, the seats still offer good padding and are relatively comfortable. It's really nothing special, but fine for a short 1 hour flight.

The Flight.

Boarding wrapped up shortly after I settled into my seat, and it was clear that the flight was fully booked—I can see why they call it "Commuter Flight." Once everyone was on board, the safety video played on the overhead monitors, and we began our pushback. The taxi time was brief, and before long, we were in the air.

There was an inflight magazine located in the seat pocket, which is quite a rare sight these days..

At around 10,000 feet, a video demonstrating how to connect to the Wi-Fi was shown on the overhead monitors. Connecting the Wi-Fi to my device was pretty straightforward and seamless

The Wi-Fi speed was impressive, especially considering it was free. YouTube videos streamed with minimal buffering, and it worked perfectly for messaging and browsing.

Shortly after, the in-flight service began. Given the short duration of the flight, the crew worked quickly and efficiently. There was only one option: a packet of cookies, served with a choice of beverage.

The cookies were quite sweet but unfortunately on the crunchy side. Personally, I prefer my cookies to be soft and chewy, but they were still tasty and filling for a short, one-hour flight. I chose orange juice as my drink, and it was refreshing and enjoyable.

Since I was still quite tired from my earlier ANA flight, I took a short nap for about 20 minutes to recharge a bit..
We soon started our decent into Melbourne.

Arrival and Disembarkation.

Since my suitcase was stored in an overhead bin about five rows behind my seat, I had to wait a while for the aisle to clear before I could retrieve it.

As I was disembarking, I managed to get a shot of the business class seats.

While walking towards the airport exit, I spotted a Qantas A220 for the first time. It was exciting to see this new aircraft in person.

Thats going to conclude this FR. Thanks for reading!