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The brand new look cabins heading to Heathrow on the refurbished Qantas A380 aircraft

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It is around 18 months since Qantas announced the refurbishment of its A380 fleet, but only now is the first new-look aircraft getting close to taking to the skies.  Flights are scheduled to start in March, with the full A380 fleet of 12 planes completed by the end of 2020.

It isn’t clear yet if the refurbished aircraft will be assigned to specific routes or not.  You would expect that Heathrow will be prioritised.

Remember that Qantas flights can be redeemed with Avios and that you can earn Avios and British Airways tier points when you fly with them.  Qantas now flies from Heathrow to Singapore and then onwards to Sydney.  It no longer flies Heathrow – Dubai – Sydney.

Qantas A380

What can you expect on the refurbished Qantas A380?

First Class

The Qantas A380 fleet has 14 First Class Suites on the lower deck, designed by Marc Newson.

(I see Marc occasionally – who is probably the 2nd most famous industrial designer in the world after Jony Ive at Apple – because his daughter is at school with my son.  In the polite way that you don’t talk business with the parents of your kids school friends, we have never discussed his Qantas work.  I was also friendly with Canadian rocker Bryan Adams at one point, even more oddly, because his daughter was at nursery with my son, but that is another story ….)

Qantas A380 refurbished First Class seat

These will not see major changes.  We are promised a bigger IFE screen (17 inches) and changes to the materials and cushioning used, but the seat will still look the same.

Qantas A380 refurbished first class seat

Qantas is also introducing a lounge at the front of the cabin on the upper deck.  It isn’t a full bar, by any means, with Qantas choosing a layout aimed at business class passengers who want to sit together and work during the flight.  Drinks and snacks will be self-service.

Qantas A380 new lounge

Business Class

This is where we see the biggest change.  The existing Skybed seats have been ripped out and replaced with a version of the Business Suite used on the Boeing 787 fleet.  Very nice it looks too.

Qantas A380 new business class

The key change is that every seat will have direct aisle access for the first time.  You will recognise the alternating left/right seat layout from various other airlines including Iberia and Finnair, which will see your feet disappear under the back of the seat in front.

Qantas a380 new business class

There is also a substantial increase in the size of the IFE screen, from 12.1 inches to 16 inches, and more storage space.  There will be 70 business class seats compared to the current 64.

Qantas A380 new business class

Premium Economy

The Boeing 787 Premium Economy seat will also appear on the A380.

Qantas A380 new premium economy

There will be 60 seats in a 2-3-2 layout.  Business Class and Premium Economy will be on the top deck, with First Class on the lower deck.

Conclusion

Overall I’m very impressed with what Qantas is offering here.  I genuinely can’t see any reason – unless it is substantially cheaper – to take British Airways over Qantas to Sydney once the refurbishment is complete.

Both flights hub via Singapore, both flights earn you Avios and tier points, but Qantas will be offering a far better quality of seat in both First Class and Business Class.  Hopefully I will able to take a look in the flesh when it arrives at Heathrow.


How to earn Avios points from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways BA Amex American Express card

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways BA Premium Plus American Express Amex credit card

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

Nectar American Express

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

American Express Platinum card Amex

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express card

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)

Comments (69)

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

  • Mike says:

    Rob, the IB J seat layout is different from Finnair’s. AY does indeed have alternating left-right middle seats on their A330s. IB’s are staggered 1-2-1 seats with the middle pair alternating from close together (honeymoon) to being farther apart and next to the aisles. Some would argue it’s not much different from stating that it’s actually 2-4-2, seeing the footprint they occupy and the width of the seats, much like BA’s current CW layout but with forward-facing, direct-aisle access seats (though this is a topic for another discussion!).

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.