In December of 2021, we learned thatQatar Airways will be taking on some Boeing 777s from Cathay Pacific. The planes have already been used for cargo flights. It looks like that may be changing soon.
Due to a shortage of aircraft, the airline has grounded most of its A350 fleet. There is a dispute between the airlines over the condition of the A350 planes.
Due to the aircraft shortage, the planes it flies have gotten creative. Some of its A380 fleet has been reactivated, as well as a few of its A330s and a couple of its Boeing 777s. The lease makes sense because of the lack of demand for travel to Hong Kong from there, and because of the fact that Qatar Airways owns a stake in Cathay Pacific.
Up until now, the planes have mostly been operating cargo flights, without passengers. An update suggests that will be changing.
We saw the planes on some passenger routes, but they were quickly removed. In the last few days, we have seen the plane loaded on more passenger routes.
Based on the current schedule, Cathay Pacific will operate the following passenger routes.
The most recent schedule filing is the one that remains highly subject to change. If you look at the seat map, you will see that it matches the layout of the airline. This also includes:
There are two first class award seats available on most of these flights, so that's cool. There is only long haul first class on the A380s, which have recently been reactivated.
Hong Kong remains closed to visitors, so the Maldives route is more useful.
I've secured award seats for this service and I've planned a trip to the Maldives for this spring, even though there's no guarantee this schedule will stick. Even if I get demoted to business class, I would still be able to find award seats I couldn't have found elsewhere.
There are implications for those in all cabins. Some people will be happy to have first class on more of theQatar Airways planes, as that is not something that the airline typically offers on the 777s. The first class of Cathay Pacific's plane is excellent. It is an incredibly spacious and intimate cabin, even though it doesn't have fully enclosed suites with doors.
It is a different story in business class. The airline is known for its Qsuites and the business class is phenomenal.
The reverse herringbone seats in the business class of Cathay Pacific are excellent, but not as good as what you will find on Qatar Airways. Depending on which plane you're scheduled to fly, Qsuites are not available on all of the Qatar Airways 777s.
Premium economy seats will be offered to some passengers in economy, which is quite an upgrade.
The plane substitution is good for those in first class, as well as economy passengers in premium economy. For others, I would say that standard 757s with Qsuites offer a better experience.
The airline is leasing some of the planes. These planes have been used for cargo, but recent schedule updates suggest that they will fly to Male and Hong Kong as of March 1, 2022. It's anyone's guess, but that's the case for now.
There are two first class award seats available on virtually all of these flights, which is a good opportunity for anyone looking to travel to the Maldives.
I'm curious to see if the arrangement of leasing the Cathay Pacific planes will increase further, given that there is an aircraft shortage atQatar Airways. It would be cool to see these planes in action.
What do you think about the Cathay Pacific lease?
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