A press release landed in my e-mail this morning which was the announcement Qantas is leasing a couple of Finnair A330s. The leases will commence in October 2023 and will last for a total of four and a half years.
According to Executive Traveller, the Finnish planes will be used on Sydney to Singapore (as QF291/292) from October 2023 and Sydney to Bangkok (as QF295/296) from March 2024. The reaction from Australian frequent flyers has been mixed to say the least, which is pretty amusing.
Leasing Finnair Planes Means The AirLounge!
Finnair have installed a non-reclining and pretty groundbreaking business class seat called the AirLounge on their fleet. This will be on the Airbus A330s that Qantas will be putting into service. The seat map here shows it to scale.
Moaning Aussie Frequent Flyers
People are usually quite supportive of their home airlines and nowhere is this more evident than in Australia. Some people have been immediately negative about the leasing arrangement, such as these comments.
“Sigh. Legacy of AJ creating a good business and lacklustre airline. Can only imagine these will be the oldest Finnair aircraft available. And what a weird experience to have half Finnair and half Qantas hard & soft product.”
“Qantas wonders why passengers with lifetime status are moving to other airlines. Here’s a good example with a further downgrade of Qantas service because of poor management of their fleet coupled with Thai & Singapore flying multiple times a day to Asia.”
Overall Thoughts
It’s funny to see the knee jerk reactions from a certain group of Qantas frequent flyers at the news the Aussie airline is leasing Finnair Airbus A330s. I guess some people are just glass half empty people as a general rule.
This is a total upgrade from the usual Qantas business class seat. Anyone flying from Sydney to Bangkok or Singapore should actively choose to fly on the leased aircraft.
What do you think of the fact Qantas is leasing Finnair A330s? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Featured image by Jakkrit Prasertwit on Airliners.net via Wikimedia Commons.
All other images via Finnair.
I love that seat. Incredibly comfortable and cocoon like privacy without a door. Everyone’s experience varies but also the best sleep I’ve ever had on a plane. The in flight entertainment is also the most responsive system I’ve ever used. Add to this Qantas’ soft product and you’ve got a winning combination.
Sounds wonderful! I can’t wait to give it a go myself.
The first comment you posted is clearly being sarcastic. Aussie humour. And those few that are unhappy with this news are lamenting how QF got itself into this position, not about Finnair itself. Under investment in aircraft and routes led to this. You need to understamd the context better if your to comment.
Oh I understand the context very well – appreciate the comment. It’ll be handy for other readers to see.
Many Australians suffer from a terrible medical condition called AJDS (Alan Joyce derangement syndrome). Anything that can be blamed on Alan Joyce is, and even things that can’t be blamed on him are.
Hahahaha! AJDS is real, I agree. Thank you for that!
I don’t get the fascination with Finnair’s new business seat. As a side sleeper it was uncomfortable. Left with bruises from where my knees hit the corner of the monitor every time I rolled over.
Sardines have to be packed in a certain way to fit in the tin.
Hahaha! Indeed!
Everyone has been raving about it everywhere I’ve seen. I’m trying it in August (albeit on a short flight) so I’ll see if I can toss and turn in bed mode a bit and see what it’s like from a variety of positions.