I’ve written about the Qantas 787 Dreamliner on the blog but up until a few days ago, I hadn’t yet flown on the aircraft. I’ve made 3 attempts to get on the aircraft in the past but something has always come up or I’ve had to change plans. When I was in Amsterdam a few days ago, I was having a look at space and happened to see one flight with space and it happened to be a direct flight to Brisbane on the 787, safe to say I booked immediately.
Boarding for the flight started right on time and was done very proficiently. As I made the booking pretty close to the date of departure, I wasn’t able to secure a window seat so I decided to go with seat 12D which is the last row of Business but also makes it easier to get photos.
Qantas 787 at Hong Kong Airport
The Business Class product featured on the 787 Dreamliner is a refresh and upgrade of the A330 Business Class. The suites on the Dreamliner feature a bit more space, a longer bed, and a slightly wider seat.
This seat is called the Vantage XL and is designed and manufactured by Thompson Aero Seating.
Qantas 787 Business Class
The Business cabin is split into 2, the first cabin contains 30 suites while the second part of the cabin holds 12 seats.
Qantas 787 Business Class
The seats are really pleasing to the eye and look fantastic, especially with the wood grain finishing on the sides of all the suites.
Qantas 787 Business Class
They are in a 1-2-1 staggered configuration which means technically not every seat is a true ‘window seat.’ Below shows what I mean by this:
If you’d like to have a look at the Qantas 787 Dreamliner layout, take a look here.
Qantas 787 Business Class
The colouring on the suites is simple and subtle however the dark shades really make them look sleek and corporate looking which I’m a big fan of. Many people will argue with that but that’s a preference of mine.
Qantas 787 Business Class
12D is my seat for this evenings QF98 service from Hong Kong to Brisbane.
Qantas 787 Business Class
As I sat down onboard, the crew came around to introduce themselves, offer a pre-departure beverage as well as hand out Pyjamas.
Seat 12D
To the left or right of your suite (dependant on the side) is where the control panel for the seat and lights are found.
Seat & Light Functions
The seat features a massage function as well as a do not disturb function which is always nice if you’re someone who wants to maximise sleep.
Power Sources
You’ll also have access to USB power, a Powerpoint and headphone jack.
Entertainment Controller
There’s also find a controller which will control your IFE screen.
Seat 12D
Awaiting at your seat will be a pair of noise cancelling headphones as well as a bottle of water. Shortly after boarding was complete, the cabin door was closed and we were ready for departure. We had to wait 5-10 minuets for Philippine airspace to go down and shortly after that we were in the air ahead of schedule.
Here are the menus for the flight:
I went to go and change into my pyjamas and by the time I was back at my seat, my bed was already made up and had the mattress topper fitted, very proficient service Qantas!
Seat 12D
Seat 12D With Mattress Topper
The meal service was started off with an Arancini ball with Mushroom and a glass of water.
Arancini Ball and Water
Then followed the Duck salad for the starter:
Salad of Duck
And for the main dish, I went with the Beef Ragù.
Beef Ragu
The meals on the flight tasted fresh and they weren’t heavy dishes which is always nice in the sky. I’ve noticed lately I’ve been really cutting down my drinking and eating on flights which has really helped with getting more sleep.
I was planning to sleep for longer than a couple of hours but as I slept all morning and afternoon in Hong Kong, my body was just completely messed up.
About and hour and a half before starting our arrival into Brisbane, I decided to have some coffee, fresh cut up fruit and also a muffin.
Breakfast
As we started our descent into Brisbane, the cabin was slowly woken up with mood lighting which replicates the Sunrise, I’ve always been a huge fan of mood lighting in aircraft.
Qantas Dreamliner Business Class Cabin
Qantas Dreamliner Business Class Cabin
After 7 hours and 45 minutes, I was back home in Brisbane after what was quite an exhausting trip to say the least.
Qantas 787 Dreamliner
Overall
I had an absolutely fantastic experience Qantas’ 787 and would definitely like to give it a go on a long-haul flight either to the United States or London but I’d also like to give the Premium Economy a review as It looks like quite a nice product.
The aircraft and seat itself were fantastic but what won me over on the flight was the attention to detail and friendliness of the crew. A special shoutout to cabin crew members Matt and Tineka – you two were absolutely awesome and really made the flight something else and one to remember.
