We were all excited for our two week family holiday to Hong Kong which we had eagerly been looking forward to since we came across some great fares six months earlier.  We flew into Sydney to catch the bus to the international terminal where our plane was to depart from.

Airline and Flight #

Qantas | QF127

Aircraft

Boeing 747-400

Departing Airport and Terminal

Kingsford Smith Airport Mascot, Sydney NSW Australia | Terminal 1

Scheduled Departure Date and Time

Monday 14th January 2013 | 11:55 am

Flying Time

8 hours and 55 minutes

Luggage Allowance

Carry-on: 1 x 115cm (45in) bag or 1 x 185cm (73in) non rigid garment bag up to 7kg (15lb)

Checked baggage: 1 piece up to 23kg (50lbs)

If you are a Qantas club member or have silver or gold frequent flyer membership you are allowed an extra piece of checked baggage.

Fun Facts

• Qantas is the third oldest airline in the world and Australia’s largest airline
• Qantas is an acronym for Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services
• Qantas is the founding member of the Oneworld airline alliance
• Qantas’ main hub is in Sydney, Australia

Website

The Qantas website is easy to use and provides plenty of details when booking flights including type of aircraft, flight duration, any meals and snacks, stopovers and even how many frequent flyer points and status credits you will accrue on your chosen flight.  If you pay by BPay there are no extra costs incurred.  Unfortunately for international flights, you can’t book seats without incurring a fee of $35 if you’re travelling on a sale fare unless you wait up to 48 hours before departure.  Extra legroom seats cost an extra $20 per person on top of the $35.

Check-in 

On-line check-in for Qantas is available from between 2 and 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure time.  You can also download your boarding passes and secure your seats at the same time.  Check-in at Sydney Airport is located on Level 2 in area C.  As we commenced our journey in Canberra we checked in there and were able to also check our luggage all the way through to Hong Kong.

Seating

Qantas B747-400 seat plan

• The Qantas B747-400 is a wide bodied jet with a 3-4-3 configuration in Economy.  The aircraft has 353 seats divided into 14 First class seats, 52 Business class seats, 32 Premium Economy seats and 255 Economy seats.
• On our seats were a blanket sealed in plastic, a set of headphones also sealed in plastic and a pillow.
• Seat pitch 31 inches (78.7 cm), seat width 17.5 inches (44.5 cm), seat recline 6 inches (15.2 cm)
• The seats were made from a light maroon material which looked quite dated.

Cabin Comfort

Despite the plane being quite old and due for refurbishment, we had a reasonably comfortable flight.  The plane was also quite full so it meant the two of us and the Girls had someone sitting next to us.

 

In-flight Entertainment

Electronic devices

• Electronic devices can be used whilst boarding using the aerobridge but not if you’re using the tarmac to board.
• Once doors on the plane have closed you need to then switch your device to flight mode

 Power

• Shared PC power is available in Economy class
• Power is provided at a maximum of 75 watts which if exceeded needs to be reset on the ground

Reading material

• Qantas Spirit of Australia is the inflight magazine found in the pocket of each seat.

WiFi

• WiFi is not available on this flight.  Qantas has decided not to offer inflight internet as a result of a trial it conducted back in 2012 where less than five percent of passengers took up the service.  The demand for internet on international flights is a lot lower than domestic flights given the majority of international flights are overnight and most passengers prefer to sleep.

Entertainment System

• Each seat had a personal entertainment system although the screens were very small.  There is a selection of movies, TV shows and music to keep you entertained throughout the flight.

Catering

Menus

The menus on board Qantas were thoughtfully put together.  On the front page was a close-up of the inside of a pomegranate which I thought looked quite good with it’s vibrant red pips that formed a star against the white flesh.  Upon opening, the left hand page was the menu in Cantonese with a little welcome section in English down the side letting the reader know the tableware is Marc Newson and the coffee is Grinders Bodum.  It also points out the journey planner that runs across the bottom of both pages which I thought was a good idea by Qantas.  This is essentially a timeline showing you roughly when meals and snacks are served, when comfort kits and arrival documents are handed out and when duty free shopping is available.  The right hand page of the menu is in English.  Lunch is a choice of an Asian or Western meal. Later in the flight there is Cadbury hot chocolate or peppermint tea. Fresh fruit is available as are Nissin cup noodles on request.  For Dinner you can also choose between an Asian or Western style meal.  And finally on the back page are two columns of beverages including the variety of sparkling wines, Australian wines, apertifs, spirits, beers, juice, soft drink and hot beverages.

Food/Drinks

Cabin crew handed out bottles of water whilst we waited for our lunch to be served.  This was a choice of chicken gumbo or Japanese style pork with rice.  The four of us chose the pork.  It came with a salad with a balsamic and vinaigrette dressing, a bread roll with butter, cheese and crackers and a cookies ‘n’ cream mousse for dessert.  The meal was very tasty.

It was several hours later before we were offered another drink with our refreshment.  This consisted of a tasty red roasted and mozzarella pizza, a fruit salad and a mini Crunchie (chocolate covered honeycomb bar).

Service

The service on board this flight was friendly and professional.

Pros

• The food was tasty
• Individual entertainment screens at every seat
• Cabin crew were friendly

Cons

• The plane was old and showing its age
• The entertainment screens were small
• The plane was very full

Conclusion

It was a shame the plane was so old as the refurbished Qantas 747-400’s have nicer interiors and larger inflight entertainment screens.  Otherwise, the flight was enjoyable with the crew friendly and the food tasty.