Qatar Airways - 5 Star Airline? Really?
Emma and I have done quite a bit of travelling over the past 6 years we’ve been together, and in that time it seems like we’ve rarely flown the same airline long-haul more than twice. That’s probably more to do with the varied destinations we’ve travelled and highly competitive ticket prices than any real desire to fly with every airline we can. But it was with much excitement when we decided we’d be flying Qatar Airways on our most recent trip back to Australia, they are after all supposed to be the world’s only 5-star airline. That excitement started to fade before we’d even got to the airport.
As we were travelling back with a friend Emma checked us all in online as early as possible to ensure we would all sit together. And being the delightfully diligent person she is she checked regularly to ensure nothing had changed, but unfortunately it felt like every time she checked our seats had been re-allocated and we were separated again. After speaking to customer services on the first occasion she hung up and felt quite irate about the way she’d been treated (those following on twitter may have noticed my Qatar Airways Fail tweet). Again, it definitely feel like the kind of service we’d received anywhere else that was reported as being “5 star”. We printed our boarding passes the night before the flight, and took them with us the next day. On check-in we discovered we’d been moved yet again from where we’d been allocated the night before, for the fourth time. I fail to see what the point of even letting passengers check-in and choose their own seats is when it’s obviously reallocated as often as this. The lady at the check-in desk appeared to be helpful and said she’d seat us together, but when we got on the plane we discovered we weren’t. It appeared the less than auspicious start we got off to with Qatar Airways had really set the tone for the rest of our experience.
Once we were in the air, things began to look up. The seats were comfortable and with more leg room than other flights I’d taken, and the seat pitch seemed quite generous although I forgot to take note of what it was exactly. The headrest was adjustable with the wrap around bits to help keep your head in place. When the food came, we were pleasantly suprised. There was an option of chiken curry or beef cottage pie. Neither would win any Michelin stars, but they were really quite good by airline standards; The cottage pie was the clear winner. I passed on the second meal, meanwhile Emma opted for the “lamb sandwich”. In almost every other country I’ve ever seen this particular dish it’s actually been called a sausage roll.
I had a lot of work and reading to catch up on so I spent the entire Heathrow to Doha leg pre-occupied and not using the entertainment system. The fact there was a lack of any particularly interesting movies that I wanted to see helped me stay focussed on what I needed to do. The entertainment system however was one of the moderns setups with various on-demand TV shows and a selection of movies (in addition to some music and games).
Transit in Doha was speedy to say the least. We hopped off the plane straight onto a bus, were quickly ushered into the terminal and through a small security screening gate, up to our boarding gate, back onto another bus, and then onto another place for our Doha to Melbourne leg. We didn’t have time to stop at shops, toilets, or anything. Easily the quickest international transfer I have ever had.
Doha to Melbourne is a 12–13 hour flight and the longest part of our journey to Australia. Unfortunately for this leg there were problems with the in-flight entertainment system. They tried to reboot the system a couple of times but to no avail. The battery in my laptop soon went flat given I’d used it most of the London—Doha leg, and before too long I’d read every piece or material I’d brought with me plus everything contained in the seat pocket. Thankfully we had some sleeping tablets (I find it almost impossible to sleep on a plane) and so managed to fill a few hours with a nap, but otherwise there was little to do than stare at the back of the seat in front.
A good measure of many businesses, and the staff within them, is how well they cope when things go wrong. For a “5 star” airline the service really didn’t feel any different to what I’d expect flying with a budget airline. Food/trolley service appeared the apparently regulation 2 times you get on a trip of that length but otherwise the staff were almost always seated in their stations in the galley. The mention and apology for the non-functioning in-flight entertainment was basically a footnote left until after we’d landed in Melbourne. And for our travelling companion who’d had no working system from Heathrow—Doah (despite numerous requests to cabin crew and subsequently no action or feedback) it was a very long 21 hours indeed.
I don’t think I’m some kind of air travel snob. In fact, with increasing competition and margins being eroded by rises in fuel costs I’ve come to expect very little in the way of luxuries when flying. As I pointed out at the start, the leading factor when determining who we fly is normally cost. But when the unique selling proposition of a brand is the quality of their service I think it’s only fair that they be held to a slightly higher standard than their peers. And on this basis Qatar was tested, and found wanting.
I guess we have another 21 hours on the return leg for them to redeem themselves.
We’ve posted an updated Qatar Airlines review
