Qatar Airways will be leasing LATAM Brazil’s A350s for the near future. According to Airlineroute, the company will be deploying the A350s for their Munich flights. The airline will start off with one of the two daily flights. By the start of April, the airline will fly both frequencies with the leased aircraft.

A350 Comparison

There is a stark difference in the amenities on the A350s used by Qatar Airways and the ones used by LATAM Brazil. For starters, the Qatar Airways A350s have 6 more business class seats when compared to the LATAM A350s. There are 30 J seats in LATAM vs 36 on Qatar’s. There are also 30 more economy seats on the LATAM A350. The differences continue in the mode of the business class seat as well. The A350 Qatar currently flies has one of the best business class hard products out there. They offer all aisle access, lots of storage and a large bed. The LATAM A350s are in a 2-2-2 arrangement, which means that only 67% of passengers have aisle access. There is also much less storage space and less personal space. The seat is very similar to what can be found on Air China’s A330s.

Why is this happening?

My guess as to why Qatar is leasing the A350s is because there are delays in production for Qatar’s own A350s. The airline has continually complained about the delays on their aircraft purchases. They went as far as to cancel an A320neo order just because of the delays and performance issues. They have since selected the 737 MAX to replace the A320neos. The airline is in an aggressive expansion, so it requires aircraft very often in order to keep all time tables and frequencies. This is where the LATAM A350s come in. They will help fill the gap while Qatar’s A350s are delivered. LATAM probably does not need the aircraft because it is the start of the low season in the Southern Hemisphere.

Landing Thoughts

I advise everyone who is flying Munich-Doha to call in to see if they can request a refund due to an equipment change. The Qatar A350s are miles ahead of the LATAM A350s. For those who are considering Munich-Doha-XXX I strongly advise you to reconsider your routing. The experience will be much better if you get a 787 or Qatar’s own A350.

What do you think? Would you go out of your way to avoid the LATAM A350s? Are you flying that route and are planning on changing your flight? Let us know!