[Anonymous]

[ExecPlatAA]

The gilt is definitely wearing off Qatar Airways. Flew them BOM-Doha-LAX in business this weekend and they are in a rapid cost cutting mode (and falling staff morale). Bom-Doha is a night flight – no amenity kit offered (ok it’s a sub 4 hr flight – but used to get a kit – no more). The crew was the most disinterested bunch I have encountered on a non US airline – everything was too much trouble. Considering I (and most people) just wanted a quick drink, a hot towel and slept. Al-Mourjan lounge is now serving canned orange juice (vile) and Krug is definitely gone. All coffee machines “in servicing” – drip coffee only. No hair dryer available in the showers – “all in use”! The attendant told me that the restaurant style dining will end next month – buffet only. Just as well, as the a la carte breakfast was awful. T Doha-LAX the crew was awesome but cost cutting in the menu is super evident – items ran out and the falafel wrap served was cut in half (!!) – a small portion as they were running out. Come on!! he trouble is that QR standards were so high, and now to have fallen dramatically, is jarring. Is the chief listening??
Its one thing to introduce high standards for a quick flash, but then when they are not maintained, customers will not likely be very forgiving (this has been my 2nd poor experience on the same route in LAX in 2016). I’d much rather prefer the consistency of a Cathay or SQ, with superb First lounge that can be accessed by program elite travelers even while flying Business (or coach for that matter). No such option on QR – making the Al-Mourjan shortcomings far more severe.

[StephenLondon]

I’ve just flown three sectors on QR (A380 and 787 aircraft), and like ExecPlatAA mentions, I found that the gilt is wearing off Qatar Airways in business class.

Gone are the amuse-bouches with a drink, replaced with nuts. Amenity kits plus socks/eyeshade bags now all blended into one and very uninspiring (black square bag). PJs are only now offered on longer flights and those landing in DOH past midnight (go figure), but even when they are offered, they never have M or L sizes, rendering the product irrelevant. Wine and fizz definitely has moved down a notch or three, nearing what a friend called ‘supermarket’ levels (esp champagne).

The lounge in Doha baffles me slightly. It is vast, spacious and clean, but there seems to be no intuitive flow, you have to meander to find a nesting spot. If it hasn’t happened already, someone on a phone or tablet is going to go a-over-t into the water feature. Shame the a la carte is going, I loathe hot buffets with people sneezing and coughing all over them. I couldn’t really care about Krug…a nice selection of drinks is more important. I have always found the lounge dining room staff to be very pleasant and attentive, once you find your way there!

Looking at plus points, my crew on all three sectors were polite, welcoming, attentive and caring. I found them to be a bit more relaxed that previous flights, more confident in their service and customer approach. I was never denied my food choice on any sector, nor did I notice others being disappointed. Portion sizes were definitely smaller, but nobody seemed to go hungry! All aircraft were immaculate, and stayed so during the flight (lavatories included). The lounge on the A380 was a terrific place to change environment and pass some of the flight time (incidentally there seemed to be Krug available in the premium lounge on board).

All flights were on time, priority baggage arrived on belts first. Boarding was done well. We were coached at DOH on a LON-DOH inbound, which was dull given about 10 empty jetways and plenty of people already late for connections.

I guess many users of QR were, indeed, used to the very high standards set by the Chairman. They need to be maintained and even exceeded, especially on the ultra long-haul sectors where customers expect top service levels for the duration of the flight.

[ExecPlatAA]

Agreed re the amenity kit – appalling. The cutbacks, combined with the not-so-competitive 777 business seats, makes QR second tier. Also agreed on the pajama sizes – L/XL or S – and the L/XL is XL for sure. Ah well – as the cookie crumbles..too bad really.

[Pies1311]

Agree with all the comments above. I generally fly SQ biz for work but having been using QR more as they are so much cheaper than SQ biz. A year ago their product (incl lounge) was second to no one. But I am seeing a slow decline and their 777 (2-2-2 seating) product is past its prime. The A350 is good but in flight meals are on the decline to what they used to be. Interesting to see they are closing the a la carte service in the lounge, I quite liked this.
Clearly there is a disconnect between the marketing and actual product. For such a rapidly growing airline they need to address this quickly otherwise it could be a slippery slope.

[FDOS_UK]

I wonder if there is any correlation/cause and effect between QR joining Oneworld and the perceived changes?

To be clear, I don’t use QR very often and have never been over impressed (the sample size is too low to compare to my EK or EY flights), but it crosses my mind that being in an alliance could alter the mind set of an airline.

What do others think?

[StephenLondon]

I think it is purely down to cost and nowt to do with oneworld. As we have seen, they have ignored several of the basic oneworld features (lounge access) at both DOH and LHR.

Crew did mention to me that crewing numbers had been reduced both on the 787 and 380, which is one reason they ‘simplified’ the meal service by doing away with the amuse-bouches.

[MrMichael]

I don’t actually think QR have ever been nor ever will be really committed to Oneworld, or any other alliance. I have not flown QR but am intrigued reading on here in the past on this forum how 5 star they are. I am not sure an alliance can work too well if one airline has a significantly higher/lower standard than its stablemates. A case in point is SQ in Star Alliance. When last year I was looking at RTW options in business I did of course consider a star alliance routing. As it happens it did not really float my boat so I ended up with Oneworld. However I was curious to note that a supplement was required to fly on SQ. When looking for my RTW on Oneworld no supplement applied to QR, but on my routing I was always unlikely to end up on their metal.

Maybe QR is reducing its standards to lose the 5 star & reduce itself to 4 star like BA (I know, BA is…..errr…. “enter a figure between 0 and 4”). Profitable but less likely to earn Kudos, particularly on this forum.

[FDOS_UK]

StephenLondon – 16/02/2016 09:30 GMT

I don’t think that QR has ignored lounge access, they just provide it in a different way, like BA with the CCR.

All OWS/OWE get lounge access, only pax travelling in the business/first classes get dedicated lounges.

Most OW airlines operate some exceptions.

[FDOS_UK]

MrMichael – 16/02/2016 09:33 GMT

You sum up my thoughts pretty precisely.

[EU_Flyer]

I’ve never flown Qatar Airways (but curious to do so!).

How do they stand in terms of the competitiveness of their fares? Do those who fly QR pay a ‘premium’ to fly them (like those chosing to fly, for example, SQ do)?

I can certainly understand why people would be upset if they’re paying top dollar and getting an average product in return, but if they’re paying less to fly QR between A and B than others in the same market (even those flying A -B direct) then I wonder if we are expecting too much, irrespective of QR’s marketing.

Do those flying QR chose them because of price or because of quality?

[MrDarwin]

@ Alex_Fly – that’s a really interesting question. In my case, I often pay for my own business travel and of course leisure. So I am fairly price sensitive. I originally flew QR on a trip to an Indian city only served by QR and EK and wanted a change from EK. I had a ‘wow’ experience and threw a lot of my eastbound business their way thereafter. This was around the time the average EK prices were increasing too. With QR having since joined OW it’s been an even bigger bonus. For me it’s not just price – if it were I’d be flying China Southern etc. It’s about a balance – I feel I get great value for money from QR, I’d rather spend £2000 on a good or great experience than £1500 on an average or poor experience.

In terms of the degradation of services, the meals in J have definitely been pared back. But having had a 5 course meal I’m still absolutely stuffed. On all my recent flights I had one main mean I recall that the chicken was dry, everything else has been good or great. They offer dine on demand which is fantastic for J, pyjamas for most overnight flights and many other things legacy carriers cut long ago. Crucially for me they seem to innovate their hard product regularly – they are actively converting the few remaining long haul aircraft to flat beds, and the 777 has a new product in development.

If aligning yourself to an airline or alliance were a strategy, based on all these things I see a longer term relationship with QR than I do many other airlines. That said I’m not a blind loyalist, and have changed alliances a few times in the past.

[JohnHarper]

QR Platinum here.

I would agree that there has been a reduction in the catering offering on QR but then I would also say it was OTT for what in many cases are flights of an average six hour duration.

There is still a substantial offering on any flight in business class stretching IME to at least five courses. I’ve yet to have to accept a second choice and the dine on demand offering really does work better than it does in F on some airlines. It is certainly no problem to want to eat in the last hour of a flight or for that matter straight after take off. The quality of the offering remains high.

The seating on the new aircraft i.e. A380, A350 and 787 in C is excellent and the seats have been compared very favourably to F on some airlines. There is full flat on the 777s although not every seat has direct aisle access 66% do and that’s higher than most similar cabins. The A330s are being refitted with flat seat too.

Fares remain competitive and of the ME3 QR often offer the cheapest fare. Over the years on almost every carrier I fly with I’ve seen hard products upgraded and that has usually been matched by a cut in the soft product. On QR that is less noticeable than I have seen on some others including SQ.

For now QR offer excellent value for money paricularly from Europe to places beyond Doha and long may it continue.

[TominScotland]

I have just flown EDI-DOH-MNL on an Economy reservation with QR – that is all that many public agencies are permitted to cover. I had no choice with my routing even though I have expressed reservations about the airline in the past. I used both the BA and 1st Edinburgh Lounges (QR’s third party lounge in EDI) – very different in their offerings but both satisfactory.

EDI – DOH on the 787 was, contrary to many of the comments on this Forum, fine for me and I am no skinnymalinky!! I was in the front row so extra leg room but a colleague was further back and had no problems either. Seats are narrow but comfortably padded. Admittedly this was a day flight and I was not looking to sleep. Catering was fine (bland, to be honest) and I was recognised as a oneworld Emerald by cabin crew – given first choice of main course!! IFE was fine – screens have good resolution even though the choice is certainly not up to that offered by EK.

In Doha, we made use of the oneworld lounge available to passengers with status but travelling in Economy. A functional and fairly miserable space, even the First Lounge and certainly way down on what BA offers to oneworld status holders in Heathrow. Catering was limited but the staff were attentive.

DOH – MNL was on a 777 but I was denied the Economy experience as I was upgraded at the gate. The seating was 2-2-2 and reasonably comfortable lie flat. After my poor lounge experience, I decided to stay awake for a quick meal (not that quick, really, in fact service went on for well over an hour on a 7′ 40″ flight which is not great). I had the Mezze which was spot on and a superb steamed snapper on rice in a divine sauce. Worth staying awake for. Service was fine but nothing special. I woke up just 40 minutes out and requested muesli and fruit with coffee and this was served promptly.

Flying into MNL from the Gulf is great in that 95% of the passengers are Philippines passport holders so the foreigners queue was non-existent. My luggage (priority tagged) was first off although my colleague’s (no tagged) was among the last.

I am on the return in a few days and will comment further on that in due course. In summary, the 787 seating in economy is nowhere near as bad as suggested (this is my third time to experience it), the downgraded Doha oneworld First lounge is poor (especially as previous trips gave me access to QR’s own Business Lounge) and the Business cabin on the 777 is good but not spectacular.

[LuganoPirate]

Maybe now the price of oil is so low QR have to cut back elsewhere in order to stay competitive.

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