QSuiting on Qatar's Longest Flight

Qatar Airways' QSuites have now been flying for a few years - it's a world leading Business Class product which has deserved the accolades and awards it has received.

I had an opportunity to experience this product in 2019 - Qatar was halfway through refurbishing their 777-200LRs which they sent nonstop to Auckland. It was the longest flight in their network - a block time of 17 hours 50 minutes covering 14,535km/9,032mi. Qatar had advertised that you could watch both the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies with 5.5 minute intermissions between each movie over the duration of the flight. The seat map had shown that the new Qsuite product was scheduled to operate on the day I wanted to fly so I trusted it and booked.

I selected an odd numbered window seat - these are the true "window" seats as the seats are actually next to the window unlike the even numbered row seats which are closer to the aisle than the window. The only thing you need to contend with is that the seats which are closest to the window face towards the rear of the aircraft - not an issue for me but some may not be so keen to fly backwards. When in front of the engine, sitting in the rear-facing seats make looking back towards the wing and engine much easier and means you can appreciate the miracle of flight much more comfortably.

The day arrived to take one of the longest flights in the world (at the time, it was the longest flight in the world as Singapore Airlines was still waiting for their A350-900ULRs to resume their Singapore to Newark route which they had ceased a few years earlier due to the high operating costs of the A340-500).

Check in was smooth with no queue in the Business Class line. The time when Qatar departed Auckland was in between the main international departure banks - later than the main Asian bank and before the North American bank. This meant the immigration and security lines were short.

As a oneworld Alliance member, Qatar passengers are sent to the Qantas lounge in Auckland. The lounge has been slated for refurbishment for many years but it still hasn't happened. The lounge is still closed, pending a return to higher passenger volumes through Auckland.

Soon enough, it was time to head to the gate and embark on this long journey.

The Boeing 777-200LR was built (and named) for long range. It is somewhat a hybrid between a 777-200ER and a 777-300ER - it's either a 777-200ER with the avionics, engines and wings of a 777-300ER or a 777-300ER shortened to the size of a 777-200ER. Qatar operates nine of these long haul aircraft and had operated them on their longest flights, such as Doha to Los Angeles and Doha to Auckland. A350-1000 has now taken over Los Angeles duties. At the time I flew on this aircraft, five of them had been refurbished with the QSuite Business Class product. A7-BBI was the ninth and last 777-200LR delivered to Qatar Airways in September 2011.

Boarding commenced not long after reaching the gate. The single airbridge was connected to Door 2L which meant a left hand turn for me to reach my seat. I was in awe even as I moved down the aisle to my seat - I couldn't see a single seat as I turned to walk to my seat.

When I reached my suite, the place blew me away. It could challenge many First Class products. It was stylish and didn't look exuberant. The doors/walls to the suite were high enough to stop someone of my height from wanting to peer into the suite. Once sat down, it was amazing to see just how much room there was and it was all yours. The doors were locked open until after takeoff (for obvious safety reasons) but the amount of privacy even with the door open made it feel special. The fact that the seat I chose was set back from the aisle definitely made it feel more private.

Waiting at the suite were two pillows (they encourage you to take the one with a quote on it away with you), a blanket, a mattress underlay (in the foot well) and an amenity kit.

The seat was already slightly reclined in the takeoff/landing position - there was a button to put the seat more upright for eating. The seat itself was very comfortable - there was plenty of room for shoulders and stretching. There were plenty of useful storage areas too such as under the side table and under the little area beside you.

All the buttons for seat adjustments/ambient light were in a handy positon within arm's reach. Below them were all the sockets for USB/headphones/power/HDMI plus the IFE controller for handy access.

The tray table was massive and also very sturdy. It folded in half to fit underneath the TV screen.

Though I did not review the IFE in depth, Qatar's IFE system in general is very good - plenty of content to keep you occupied. The only downside was that the screen was quite reflective and could detract from your viewing if your window was kept open. Noise cancelling headphones are provided in the storage compartment next to the seat.

Wifi was available on the flight - a complimentary hour or USD10 for the duration of the flight. Clearly value for money for a 17 hour flight. The download speed was very good - capable of doing what I wanted without any issues; however it did temporarily drop out in a couple of spots (potentially the turbulence was a contributing factor) .

A flight attendant came by after I had settled into my suite to offer me a predeparture beverage and to hand out menus and pyjamas. I took a glass of champagne and continued to take in the experience, checking out the nooks and crannies of the seat. The seat controls are within easy reach underneath the side table's storage area. The only thing missing from the seat is a legrest but that is due to the design of the seat whereby the foot well is used as the extension of the bed. It means that if you wish to raise your legs off the floor, you need to position the seat in a way that you can reach the edge of the foot well. There's a button to slide the seat forwards and backwards in order to achieve an optimal position.

It wasn't too long before we pushed back for departure. The distinctive whir and vibration of the GE90 was heard and felt. Soon we were off towards Runway 05R and airborne, bound nonstop for Doha.

We went above the stratus cloud - a view of white which would last nearly the whole way across the Tasman. A flight attendant went down the aisle with a special tool to unlock the suite doors. The doors close fully and seem to be able to stay in place through light-medium turbulence. There's a small gap at the bottom of the door but has no effect on the privacy which the door provides. What an amazing feeling it was to have the door closed to my own Business Class suite! You can push the DND button on the control panel and your seat number on the outside of the suite will turn red.

Post-departure beverages and nuts were served just as orders were taken for lunch.

Qatar Airways does provide a dine on demand service in Business Class on longer flights so you can request for meals to be served at any time during the flight (allowing for enough time to warm and plate the meal - the flight attendant can assist with timing so you don't end up waiting too long). You can also book your meal at the beginning of the flight so that your choice doesn't run out before you would have ordered.

An hour after takeoff, my table was being set for lunch. I immediately noticed a crack in the water tumbler - the textured and coloured glass definitely makes it harder to spot cracks compared to a clear glass tumbler.

First was a palate cleanser of salmon, salmon roe and creme fraiche. That was followed by the soup - a cauliflower veloute and the entree of the Arabic mezze (unfortunately they had run out of the prawns and crayfish by the time they got to me). They all tasted very nice. I chose the lamb shank for the main which was also quite nice albeit a little cheesy - not a flavour I'm used to in lamb shank dishes. That was followed up by ice cream and then the berries - a very satisfying way to round out the meal.

There was quite a bit of turbulence during the flight. It didn't affect the service but the aircraft was swaying quite violently at times. It had eased by the time the lunch service had ended.

Just as lunch was being cleared, we had crossed the New South Wales coast. Amazingly beyond the Blue Mountains, the clouds parted for a great view right across Australia. Our flight path took us over Bathurst, just south of Lake Eyre (the largest (salt) lake in Australia) in South Australia, about 150km south of Uluru and finally over Port Hedland and out towards the Indian Ocean just under 4 hours after overflying Sydney. The sun was still up when we headed into the Indian Ocean so the whole transit of Australia happened to be during the day. Watching the landscape change from the green hills of eastern NSW to farmland right through to the Outback made for a great form of entertainment.

It wasn't too long before the light faded. We weren't even half way to Doha! Given there'd be nothing to see across the ocean at night, it was time to sleep. My bed was made and closed the door. The bed was really comfortable. The foot well didn't bother me too much - there was enough wiggle room for me.

I got a solid 6 hour sleep and when I woke up, I was amazed that there was still 3.5 hours of the flight left to enjoy! You don't get that privilege with many flights - the vast majority of ultra long haul flights have an overnight portion where it isn't quite as easy to stay up for most of the flight. This flight would arrive in Doha just after midnight.

The second meal offering on this flight is a breakfast - a rather odd choice given that the scheduled arrival into Doha is just after midnight. It fits perfectly well for breakfast time in New Zealand if you choose to have this meal at the end of the flight but this is illogical as most people would be looking to adjust to another time zone a long way away from GMT+12/13. Sure, you could choose to have breakfast at the start of the flight but breakfast at 4pm is equally as unappealing.

Given my reluctance to succumb to eating a breakfast main, I asked if they had any remaining lunch mains. To my delight, they still had the snapper fish available and I snapped that up immediately.

The meal started with a fruit platter and bread and was soon followed by the seared snapper fillet with mussels and octopus. I was blown away by the snapper - it was the best cooked fish dish I'd had on a plane - moist and well balanced.

When I took this flight, Qatar Airways aircraft were still banned from overflying Saudi and UAE airspace. This meant we had to go all the way around UAE to get to Doha, adding at least half an hour to the flight time. It didn't worry me at all - the more time in the Qsuite the better, in my opinion.

The last stage of the flight passed by fairly quickly. It was such a joy to relax in the comfort of the suite, disconnected from everything.

By the time the crew started securing the cabin for landing, including locking the doors open, the longest flight in the world was all but over. We descended for Doha Hamad International Airport and touched down a couple of minutes behind schedule. To my amazement, we did not taxi for the terminal but were instead sent to a bus gate. After later inspection of where we ended up, we were given the hard stand which was the furthest away from the terminal. It was pure irony that the longest flight was coupled with the longest bus ride to end the journey. I would have thought that being the longest flight in Qatar's network, it would have been given some sort of priority to be docked at the terminal to save the souls onboard from a prolonged travel time. I guess I was wrong!

What a fantastic all round product the QSuite is. From the service and food through to the seat/suite and IFE, it is one formidable product. The privacy provided from the door just adds to the seclusion. Qatar has set a very high Business Class benchmark with this product and leaves all other Business Class products in its wake.

The QSuite absolutely blew the old Qatar Business Class product out of the water. The old product was six abreast (not all aisle access) and there was no privacy if you happened to have a stranger as a neighbour. Not only that, the storage space around the seat was woeful. They did a fantastic job to get to this product.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this adventure!

Nick Young Photos

Qatar Airways Boeing 777-200LR

Boarding

Menus

Lunch