We were about to embark on the beginning of our holiday to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary and what better way to kick it off than 5 nights in an overwater bungalow in tropical Pangkor Laut, Malaysia.  However when we got to the airport we were in for some unexpected news.

Airline and Flight #

Qantas QF809

Aircraft 

Boeing B737-800

Airport and Terminal

Canberra Airport, ACT Australia | Domestic Terminal

Departure Date and Time

Scheduled: Tuesday 6th August 2019  08:15 am | Actual:  08:50 am

Arrival Date and Time

Scheduled: Tuesday 6th August 2019  09:25 am | Actual:  09:44 am

Our flight was late departing due to high winds in Sydney which was affecting other services and whilst some flights were cancelled we were fortunate enough to be flying to Melbourne where our flight was delayed leaving but turned up only about 20 minutes late as a result of a decent head wind.

Flying Time

Scheduled: 1 hour 10 minutes  | Actual: 54 minutes

Luggage Allowance

Carry-on: Adults and children in all classes are allowed one piece up to 10kg or 14kg total when flying domestic only plus one 1x185cm non rigid garment bag.  Sizes include:

1 x 115cm bag = 56cm + 36cm + 23cm up to 10kgs or

If you are continuing on to an international flight on a Qantas or Emirates flight on the same day or ticket to a country other than North or South America, then international allowances apply which is 30kg (66lb) in Economy or 42kg (92lb) for Qantas Frequent Flyers.  See the Qantas website for allowances for higher status flyers, or if flying to North or South America or for children or babies.

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
• This plane with registration VH-XZO is named Leichardt after Australian explorer
• First revenue service was October 2014 from Brisbane to Melbourne

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.  Seat selection is free on Qantas domestic flights.

Check-in 

Last night we were sent a text from Qantas telling us our connecting flight from Melbourne had a flight time change.  We were used to flights changing their departure times by a few minutes so we weren’t bothered by this.  However, when we got to the check-in counter at the airport in Canberra we found out not only had the flight changed but the airline we were flying with had changed too.  Our Qantas A380-800 had been replaced by a Malaysia Airlines A330-300.  We were not happy about this on a number of accounts.  We had also been seated apart from each other and told we would need to go to the Malaysia Airlines counter once we got to Melbourne to see if we could change it.  Not a good start to our holiday!

Check-in for Qantas flights opens from 24 hours up until 45 minutes prior to departure.  If connecting to an international flight then 60 minutes prior to departure is recommended. This can be done on-line or at the airport using the self-service kiosk or at the check-in counter.  You can check-in three ways:

1. Mobile check-in – by downloading the Qantas app you can check-in and access your digital boarding pass without the need to print it out.  Other benefits of this method include being alerted to when check-in first opens, access to real time flight data in case of delays and the ability to view any entertainment options prior to your flight.  You can also choose your seats.
2. Desktop check-in – by logging on to the Qantas website http://Qantas.com and clicking on Manage Booking.  Enter your booking reference and last name to bring up your booking.  Select the Checkin/Print Boarding Pass button and remember to take your boarding pass with you to the airport.
3. At the airport – via the self-service kiosks or at the desk in the Departures area prior to passing through security.  Here you can also select your seat, enter your frequent flyer number, upgrade your flight using Qantas points and print out your boarding pass and bag tags so you can drop off any bags at the bag drop.

Seating

• We were seated in row 24 of 30 on this flight  The Qantas B737-800 is a narrow bodied jet with a 3-3 configuration throughout.  The aircraft has 168 seats divided into 12 Business class seats and 156 Economy seats.
• The Marc Newson styled seats were made of a navy blue cloth with grey leather four way adjustable head rests and ergonomic cushions.  The seats appeared in good condition and felt relatively new.  Armrests were retractable but there were no foot rests which for this short flight, didn’t pose a problem.
• Leg room was quite restrictive on this flight
• Seat pitch 30 inches (76.2 cm), seat width 17.2 inches ( 43.7 cm), seat recline 5 inches (12.7 cm).

Tray tables – These were pretty standard non-foldable tables that slide out depending on how close you want it to your body.  A cup indent helps to keep your drink from sliding around.

Storage – A netted pocket in the seat back in front is really the only storage apart from the overhead bins for storing your carry-on.

Cabin Comfort

I found this flight very comfortable.  Unlike some of the other Qantas B737-800’s I’ve flown, this one had individual entertainment screens and WiFi.  The seats seemed relatively new too which was nice and included the adjustable headrests.  Individual adjustable air vents above your head meant you could have the air flow to your liking.  There wasn’t a lot of leg room but it was only a short flight.

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

Communication

• Seat chat allows you to communicate with other passengers on board your flight from your seat.

Power

• Individual USB power ports are available at every seat and shared universal power between the seats.
• Power is provided at a maximum of 75 watts which if exceeded needs to be reset on the ground.

Reading Material

• In the seat pocket you can find the Qantas Spirit of Australia inflight magazine, the safety card and information about connecting to Wi-Fi on certain flights and downloading the Qantas entertainment app if the plane isn’t fitted with individual entertainment screens.

WiFi

Free Wi-Fi was available on this flight allowing you to browse the web or stream entertainment from your device.

Entertainment System

This plane was fitted with individual 23cm (9in) seat-back inflight entertainment touchscreens that included 17 pages of premiere (latest release) movies. A flight path was available to view and retrieve live information about the flight such as speed, distance and time to your destination.

As this was only a short flight, I didn’t bother with the in-flight entertainment although it was good to see the plane had it, unlike the last Qantas B737-800 I flew.

Catering

Menus

As this flight was only about an hour, there were no menus.

Food/Drinks

Food on board Qantas flights is complimentary.  Today’s breakfast was fresh fruit salad with Greek yoghurt.  Not the heartiest of breakfasts but knowing we would get more food on next flight it didn’t bother me too much.  Drinks including tea and coffee were served but I was happy just with a bottle of water.

Toilets

There was very little room to move so using the toilets on this plane was not the most pleasant experience.

Service

Service was friendly on board this short flight to Melbourne.  I would like to see Qantas hand out hot towels prior to meals like some other airlines do.

Pros

• complimentary food and drinks were served on this short flight
• the plane felt new and was in good condition
• staff were friendly
• this plane had inflight entertainment and Wi-Fi

Cons

• plastic covering on Wi-Fi card was torn and tatty, needing replacing
• very little leg room
• toilets were cramped
• only one choice of breakfast

Conclusion

Apart from not having very much leg room, this was a comfortable flight and I would happily fly this service again.  The breakfast could have been a bit more substantial but the plane was in very good condition, passengers had WiFi and entertainment screens and the crew were friendly.  Kudos to the pilot too who performed a very gentle landing in quite turbulent conditions.