September 23rd, 2016
Qatar Airways 669 Doha (DOH) - Colombo (CMB) Departure: 1900 Arrival: 0221 Duration: 4:30 Aircraft: Airbus A340-642
Registration: A7-AGC Seat: 52J (Economy Class)
Few days ago, I have posted a review on Qatar Airways' Airbus A340 Business class to Doha, Qatar. This A340 flight has exactly same configuration as I have used but different registration number. Now I have managed to try 2 out of 4 A340s Qatar Airways own although there's no difference between all 4.
The Economy class on board are configured as 2-4-2 from row 10 to 51 and 2-3-2 from row 52 to 55(AB I DEF I JK). There are total of 348 standard full feature slimline seats with pretty wide 32 inches of pitch and 18 inches of width. All seats are equipped with 10.6 inch relatively small screen and no AC power sockets.
The afternoon flight to Colombo was only about 50% filled so the entire aft section seats were empty. I was assigned to one of the last seat and I found no one at all seating in front or behind me. I moved to the middle section and occupied all 4 middle row seat to take a nap. But the armrest bar did not fully went up instead it was stuck at 45 degrees angle so it was rather annoying when it contacts you.
The Cabin:
The A340 series are now aging and do not have settings other aircraft have. One of the example is the mood light. It was a evening flight but there was no mood light but just bright white light on all aisles. However, I still like the 8 per row cabin layout because most airlines nowadays are fitting more seats into wide body aircrafts. The overhead baggage compartment is similar to the ones on A330s.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class Aft Cabin.
The Seats:
The seats were pretty comfortable although it did not recline that much. Staring from row 52, you can notice its 2-3-2 configuration making the aisle little wider and aisles can be accessed more easily without disturbing fellow passengers on their sides. It was only short-haul flight but pillows and blankets were provided in each seat showing why Qatar Airways is the best existing airline.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class Seats.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class Window Seats.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class Seats: Tray table, cup holder and footrest.
In-flight Entertainments:
The Oryx One in-flight entertainment system is always one of the best but the small monitor screen and remote controller were so old and dirty.
The remote controller is equipped underneath the armrest and you can pop it out by pushing the grey button. I find these kind of remote controller which is identical to the ones in Boeing B777s very sensitive when pressing the directional buttons. The brightness of the screen can be adjusted by pressing on the "Brightness" button below the screen or from the remote controller directly.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class IFE.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class IFE: Remote controller.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class IFE: Remote controller font section.
Qatar Airways A340 Economy Class IFE: Remote controller rear side.
Summary:
A 9 year old aircraft really needs some improvements in terms of IFE and lighting. I would like to give a score of 80 for the seats and overall cabin appearance. There were enough cabin crews to look after the passenger during the flight. On this flight too I did not had meals because I was asleep and I told the crew not to wake me up when they are servicing the meals. The footrest on every seat was imposing which the bottom of my foot felt less stress. Having 2 seats on window is perfect for traveling couples or along and the 3-4 seats on middle for families.
I think Qatar Airways will keep A340s few more years and they'll be replaced by either B777s, B787s or A350s in the future. It is still a waste deploying ultra long-range aircraft to 4 hours short-haul with very little passengers. Must find a wise way to operate these A340s.