Back in 2017 we covered Qatar Airways’ reveal of its new Qsuite business class seat. But 2017 was a long time ago. How has Qatar’s flagship product fared since then? The short answer is: it’s doing VERY well. Qsuite remains a huge favorite among among frequent flyers, and it has helped drive Qatar to the top of many global airline rankings.
But it’s been almost eight years since Qsuite hit the skies, and that’s an eternity in the ultra-competitive world of premium cabin air travel. How does it hold up today? We got to find out by making a Qsuite our home-suite-home on a long-haul flight from New York to Doha.
Did Qatar’s business class hold up to the hype? Our full story has our answer, plus plenty of the usual photos, videos, and window-seat views for you to enjoy along the way. Don’t miss out — read on!
N702VL, a former Southwest 737-700 departs BUR in September, 2021. – Photo: JL Johnson
Long-time readers know we here at AirlineReporter LOVE an opportunity to try out new airlines and AvGeek experiences. Given that, we regret it has taken us so long to try new(ish) airline Avelo which launched in April of 2021. On the West Coast, this airline operates primarily out BURbank airport, just a hop, skip, and a $60 ride-share north from LAX.
We managed to get out to BUR last September to gawk at their fleet, but it took us a full additional year to be in the right place at the right time to finally get our opportunity to fly. Thankfully, following #SpotLAX2022, we had a bit of extra time to give them a shot for a quick trip up to Boise.
Finally, an Avelo Airlines Review!
Sample seat map featuring various seating preferences. +5 inches of legroom was GREAT. – Image: Aveloair.com
Avelo Airlines Review: Booking
The booking process was not efficient, but that’s the norm these days. And while I would love to, I can’t fault Avelo for it. Even legacy carriers gum up the works pushing up-sells and various add-ons. Not long ago we used to joke “ULCCs (ultra-low-cost-carriers) are gonna ULCC”, but it’s hard to criticize when even the old guard is doing it. That sweet ancillary revenue is just too hard to pass up, so why not follow the path ULCCs have long since pioneered and normalized?
Icelandair’s livery refresh features larger titles with a revised font, and a variety of new colors on the tail – Image: Icelandair
In what Icelandair’s director of marketing Gàsli S. Brynjólfsson describes as “More of a refresh, not a total change,” the airline has begun rolling out an updated livery and associated marketing collateral.
Icelandair’s current branding was last updated in 2006. “We needed to strengthen our story and the emotional part of the brand,” Brynjólfsson said. “Icelandair culture has changed a lot, it’s much more relaxed than it was before.”
For perspective, he explained that the idea was to democratize the brand, as the current white, blue, and gold livery had been seen as a bit stuffy. “We took the gold out – it came up a few times in the talks with experts and focus groups that the gold-and-blue feels a bit royal – Icelandair is not a royal airline – Iceland is very democratic with small power differences,” he said.
Icelandair’s now-former livery seen on its very first 737 MAX-8, TF-ICE, which was also the first in the fleet to receive the update
“We are so much like a normal Icelandic company – the power distance between people is very little – we’re a company of equals, so that’s something that needs to be represented in the brand,” he explained.
For those who are fans of the airline’s iconic special liveries like Hekla Aurora and Vatnajökull (the glacier livery), he was reassuring. “We’re definitely going to continue to have special liveries.” But don’t expect to see the new livery on the airline’s substantial 757 fleet.
“I doubt that we will do the refresh on the 757s – we’re doing just the MAX to begin with. The fate of time for those planes (the older 757s), combined with the cost of changing those planes, would not be reasonable.” He did say the airline’s two 767s would likely receive the makeover at some point.
A Southwest Air 737-700 seen at BDL – Photo: JL Johnson
A few weeks ago I posted about how I was ready to fly. This is a follow-up to that story. You can start there (link opens in a new tab), or this story can also stand on its own.
I recently completed my first COVID-era trip. My AvGeek wife and I flew to Connecticut on Southwest with the following routing: MCI-MDW-BDL-BWI-MCI. Two years ago our trip wouldn’t have been noteworthy nor deserving of an AirlineReporter piece. But here we are. Everything is different in our new reality and frankly any chance to fly (even to cold places despite a brutal winter) is special.
Once the lockdowns began and the reality of the pandemic set in, I decided I needed to remain grounded until a vaccine became available and I had it in my arm. Not for risk to myself, but to protect others and not allow myself to be an unwitting vector for transmission. My decision came with a serious sense of FOMO (fear of missing out.) Airfares plummeted, airlines were flying planes nearly empty, terminals seemed abandoned, and hundreds of planes were put into storage. Heck some planes were parked on perfectly good runways for lack of space elsewhere. I say all of this to underscore a point. There were many reasons why I really wanted to get out there. But I resisted.
As I booked my first trip in over a year I wondered if upon getting back out there I would regret waiting to be fully vaccinated before flying. Perhaps all of the PR that airlines, airports, and their lobbying groups had pushed could be trusted? Maybe it was indeed safe to fly?
Many non-profit organizations have had challenges from COVID-19, and our local Seattle friends at the Museum of Flight have been one of them. However, they have put their creative thinking caps on and are offering up some pretty cool premium experiences, while still keeping visitors safe. From their website:
The Museum now offers new private, curated tours for groups of up to four combining exclusive access to aircraft cockpits and cabins, viewing of rare artifacts not on public display, entertaining and expert stewardship, plus some upcoming experiences will include catered food and drink.
These Premium Experiences are customized for the interests of the group, from the most casual fan to the ultimate aviation geek. All of them will adhere to the best COVID safeguards. And during Phase II and Phase III (Editor’s Note: these are specific criteria for Washington State) general attendance restrictions, the Museum’s spacious galleries will seem luxuriously intimate.
There are some great options, but my favorite has to be Cocktails with the Queen. You get VIP access to the first Boeing 747, including the upper deck lounge and flight deck. It is not a short in-and-out sort of experience, but one that will last you 2-3 hours and will build some life-long memories. But if that is not to your liking, there are other options…
