Perth to London
By Geoffrey Thomas...
And from journo Natalie Richards in Economy Class (another article in The West)...
The West Australian, Monday, 26 Mar 2018.
We didn’t feel a thing
On the first commercial Concorde flight as it passed through the sound barrier, a passenger sitting next to one of the chief designers said, “I didn’t feel a thing” .
The designer replied, “That was the hard part” .
And so it was on the first Qantas 787 nonstop flight from Perth to London — two years of hard work so that passengers didn’t feel a thing.
It was effortless because of the enormous effort expended by Qantas, Boeing, engine maker General Electric, Perth Airport and Border Force.
And that effort was on show at Perth Airport on Saturday evening, because it seemed every Qantas staff member was working, whether rostered or not. As QF9 taxied away from the terminal, airport staff and visitors at every vantage point waved us farewell.
The tyranny of distance was finally defeated — easily.
The food, wine and champagne flowed and across the plane it was a thumbs up on the culinary scorecard.
According to Lisa Norman, Qantas’ 787 chief pilot and in command of the flight, it was “leading the pack” of Europe-bound flights from Asia and what is more, we were flying higher at more than 12,000m, giving us clear air ahead in what is some of the world’s most congested airspace.
The landing, to rousing cheers, was superb.
We have made history.
We didn’t feel a thing
On the first commercial Concorde flight as it passed through the sound barrier, a passenger sitting next to one of the chief designers said, “I didn’t feel a thing” .
The designer replied, “That was the hard part” .
And so it was on the first Qantas 787 nonstop flight from Perth to London — two years of hard work so that passengers didn’t feel a thing.
It was effortless because of the enormous effort expended by Qantas, Boeing, engine maker General Electric, Perth Airport and Border Force.
And that effort was on show at Perth Airport on Saturday evening, because it seemed every Qantas staff member was working, whether rostered or not. As QF9 taxied away from the terminal, airport staff and visitors at every vantage point waved us farewell.
The tyranny of distance was finally defeated — easily.
The food, wine and champagne flowed and across the plane it was a thumbs up on the culinary scorecard.
According to Lisa Norman, Qantas’ 787 chief pilot and in command of the flight, it was “leading the pack” of Europe-bound flights from Asia and what is more, we were flying higher at more than 12,000m, giving us clear air ahead in what is some of the world’s most congested airspace.
The landing, to rousing cheers, was superb.
We have made history.
Comforts ease squeeze
The headrest is too high, or not high enough, my neck feels like it’s been kicked by a donkey’s hind legs and I’ve lost all feeling in my right leg.
The much-hyped Dreamliner this may be, but let’s get one thing clear, this is a long-haul flight and, as with all long-haul flights, there are places you’d much rather be — bed for a start.
That said, these complaints are universal. But, if you’re sitting at the back of the bus, Qantas’ spanking new Dreamliner is about as good as it’s going to get.
They’ve thought of everything here — there’s a stand for your iPad, plug sockets and USBs. On a flight that takes off a few hours before bedtime, sleep was going to be critical to prevent cattle class from descending into a scene from the Muppets.
The cabin lights gently faded to a red glow after dinner and the temperature dropped, which was our cue to try to catch a bit of shut-eye .
The legroom, however, was a common niggle. The second the seats went back, we were squished in centimetres of space.
As we hit the tarmac at Heathrow, there was a loud round of applause at the back of the plane and not only because the inaugural flight had made it in one stab (let’s be honest, we were all a tad nervous).
It was over, far quicker than we expected.
The headrest is too high, or not high enough, my neck feels like it’s been kicked by a donkey’s hind legs and I’ve lost all feeling in my right leg.
The much-hyped Dreamliner this may be, but let’s get one thing clear, this is a long-haul flight and, as with all long-haul flights, there are places you’d much rather be — bed for a start.
That said, these complaints are universal. But, if you’re sitting at the back of the bus, Qantas’ spanking new Dreamliner is about as good as it’s going to get.
They’ve thought of everything here — there’s a stand for your iPad, plug sockets and USBs. On a flight that takes off a few hours before bedtime, sleep was going to be critical to prevent cattle class from descending into a scene from the Muppets.
The cabin lights gently faded to a red glow after dinner and the temperature dropped, which was our cue to try to catch a bit of shut-eye .
The legroom, however, was a common niggle. The second the seats went back, we were squished in centimetres of space.
As we hit the tarmac at Heathrow, there was a loud round of applause at the back of the plane and not only because the inaugural flight had made it in one stab (let’s be honest, we were all a tad nervous).
It was over, far quicker than we expected.
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Does the QF 787 have the Y class row with window-seat-with-no-window that the EY machines possess?
12 hours jammed in a corner after expecting a view on the outside world is bad enough.....but 17....
And the nannying window-shading, even if you do have a window?
12 hours jammed in a corner after expecting a view on the outside world is bad enough.....but 17....
And the nannying window-shading, even if you do have a window?
Does the QF 787 have the Y class row with window-seat-with-no-window that the EY machines possess?
Long been a Boeing feature, to regard windows as optional for certain rows just mid-cabin, apparently to route service ducts behind. Other manufacturers seem able to do without such an approach.
Geoffrey Thomas insisted and was given 5K. What the hell was Anthony Albanese doing on the flight? Reward for keeping quiet during Senate Enquiries or just in anticipation of a Labor Government?
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What the hell was Anthony Albanese doing on the flight? Reward for keeping quiet during Senate Enquiries or just in anticipation of a Labor Government?
'Regulatory capture' is an interesting process Qantas have their invite only Chairman's lounge, junkets to Seattle, where the aircraft was full of 'journalists' where the champagne and caviar flowed. Scant mention of the fact that there were 600 odd 787 already operating, some on the Pacific...
As Media Watch correctly asserted, critical commentary is few and far between
Riding the first Qantas Dreamliner: Seattle, Honolulu and finally Sydney | afr.com
Yet Mr Joyce stands there with a straight face calling out the Australian cricket team for corruption (cheating) when their own business practice is at best soft corruption. Wonder why no one challenges it in the mainstream? Ask Jo Easton at the AFR..
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Inching toward NYC
Qantas Airways Ltd. is evaluating direct flights from Australia to Chicago as the next step in its plan to add more ultra-long-haul destinations using an expanding fleet of Boeing Co. 787 jetliners.
It’ll be interesting to see how this compares when SIA commence their 350ULR to NYC later in the year.
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Because he's the Shadow Minister for Transport I would think and yes, let's face it, he WILL be Minister for Transport, it's just a question of when and how big the landslide ends up being.
Nunc est bibendum
No rumour. They were planned over the top with 8. (Maybe 7.9... last week so I can’t remember anymore!) That’s at least 1.5 hours over min reserves of 30 min so closer to 120 minutes over the top. Given the low fuel flow of the 787 and the lower ZFW of these flight I suspect 8.0 is probably closer to 135- 140 minutes. No idea what they were on blox with.
Interestingly the flight a couple of days ago was planned at 17:35 flight time. Originally had 4.4T over the top. They had space to load additional fuel (which they did). Would have ended up closer to 6.0- 6.5 over the top.
Interestingly the flight a couple of days ago was planned at 17:35 flight time. Originally had 4.4T over the top. They had space to load additional fuel (which they did). Would have ended up closer to 6.0- 6.5 over the top.
Keg,
The 787's are good on fuel, but there is no way 8T is ever going to be more than 120mins of fuel.
But, its good to see they can get there with 60 holding plus reserves if the have favourable winds.
in reality, the PER-LHR is not as fuel critical in the final stages as the LHR-PER will be. Lots of options in Europe, approaching PER, not so much. without a big tailwind, 8T won't get you to ADL
The 787's are good on fuel, but there is no way 8T is ever going to be more than 120mins of fuel.
But, its good to see they can get there with 60 holding plus reserves if the have favourable winds.
in reality, the PER-LHR is not as fuel critical in the final stages as the LHR-PER will be. Lots of options in Europe, approaching PER, not so much. without a big tailwind, 8T won't get you to ADL
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...long-haul-push
It’ll be interesting to see how this compares when SIA commence their 350ULR to NYC later in the year.
It’ll be interesting to see how this compares when SIA commence their 350ULR to NYC later in the year.
True. But the limiting factor then will be the 20 hr TOD hard limit. Anyone who has lobbed into the continent short of LHR knows that it's difficult to gas-n-go quickly; mainly it's a slot thing back into the LHR system, from my experience.
Oh that's right, just get the duty limit changed:
https://www.smh.com.au/business/comp...27-p4z6l2.html
"Mr Joyce also said aviation regulators would have to change rules restricting how long pilots can fly for the long-haul routes to work."
Oh that's right, just get the duty limit changed:
https://www.smh.com.au/business/comp...27-p4z6l2.html
"Mr Joyce also said aviation regulators would have to change rules restricting how long pilots can fly for the long-haul routes to work."
