Unfortunately I forgot to film the intro to this video at Melbourne Airport so I
found another airport. Hello my name is Paul Stewart and a number of weeks ago
I flew with Jetstar in their 787 economy product from Melbourne through to Sydney
and quite a few people asked how does it compare to their business class product?
So coming up are my thoughts on Jetstar business class and is it worth it, on a
flight from Melbourne through to Sydney in their Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The journey begins at check-in and there is a separate queue for business so I only
had to wait a number of seconds to be called, it was then through customs and
into the departure terminal. Even though this is a domestic flight, I'm catching
an international aircraft and via their terminal so I still had to clear customs,
either with a passport or just a proper photo ID. Now I should stress that there
is no lounge access with the cheaper business class ticket so you have to get
the max bundle which was an extra $80. If you selected that option you'll be
granted access to the Qantas business lounge. Having said that if you happen to
hold status with Qantas, then you can also get access to the lounge that way.
I'm fortunate enough to have attained platinum status so I was allowed into
the first class lounge. I've published a review of this lounge in a separate
video so I only mentioned the highlights. First off, I had a complimentary
20-minute massage in the day spa and all of this with a fantastic view
out of the windows. Next up I had some lunch and then dessert at the restaurant
which has an ala carte menu and full table service, and all this with a
fantastic view of the airport apron again.
My flight was called and I headed for the gate. Our aircraft is a Boeing 787-8
which first flew in 2015. The Dreamliner was the first passenger
airliner made out of composite material, so carbon fiber and other magic
materials, rather than the usual aluminium. One of the multiple advantages that
this has is that it doesn't rust so the aircraft's interior can be kept more
humid. Another perk of business class was that the boarding was called earlier
so you could get on board, unpack your carry-on luggage and relax.
First up when you turn left is an economy mini cabin which is actually a
great place and I'll explain why in my other review. Row 10, in particular, has
heaps of legroom and here's my seat 3A which is at the back of the business
class cabin and in my opinion is also the best seat and I'll explain why later on. It's
a small business cabin with the seats in at 2-3-2 layout and I'll show you
through my seat in more detail.
The legroom was adequate although not amazing and there are these little leg
rest things which I'll let you decide how useful they would be.
Between the two seats are these two power points and USB ports and above you
are individual vents.
Here's the fold-out table and they provided complimentary headphones.
That don't usually give out amenity kits on this short flight although the
crew nicely made an exception for me and I'll be giving away this kit
to a subscriber later in the video.
We backed out and headed for the runway. This Qantas A330 took off in front of
us and then it was our turn. I'll stop talking so you can enjoy the spoolup
from the General Electric GEnx engines. I'll speed up through some
of the take off, although I'll upload the full takeoff video to my new channel
Paul Stewart EXTRA and there will be a link to that below.
The views as we come through the clouds were pretty impressive and a reminder of
how cool flying actually is. While I do think that the 787 Dreamliner
is a really good aircraft, the one thing I'll briefly rant about are the windows.
Here's me on a previous flight playing with electric window shades. Instead
of the simple plastic shade, they have a resin between the glass that goes dark
when electricity is applied. The problem is that the crew can lock them in the
dark setting which completely destroys the view. The other thing is that they
don't really completely block direct sunlight which becomes an issue if
you're a ginger like me , unless you've applied sunscreen before
the flight. Having said that, thankfully the crew did
not lock them in the darkest settings so I could continue to enjoy the views of
New South Wales from 40,000 feet. I'll briefly mention the in-flight entertainment,
which is free in business but comes with a fee in economy. The content is
reasonably limited so I'd suggest you fill up your tablet or
computer and then use the power plugs to keep them going
I should also mention that there is no in-flight Wi-Fi so a Millenial will need
to avoid social media for at least 60 minutes if you can .And on the topic of
my generation, don't forget to check out my Instagram account and Facebook page
for the latest news about this channel and aviation images. Because the
flight was only 59 minutes a complimentary snack was provided so
I'm afraid I can't really comment on the hot food so sorry about that.
After 30 minutes the gradual descent into Sydney began and the impressive
views continued Now I should point out that there is a single toilet for the 12
business passengers and it was perfectly fine.
So to summarize the flight. The 787 itself is a great aircraft.
It's reasonably quiet and the additional humidity avoids drawing you out like the
older generation of aircraft such as the Airbus a330 and Boeing 777. My only
issue is the electric window shades although thankfully they did not lock it in the
dark setting during this flight like they did on a previous one. The most important
consideration here is that Jetstar are a low-cost carrier and the business
class is often still quite cheap especially with a sale.
So it is really unfair to compare it to a business product of a full service
airline who might offer a lie flat seat. it's actually best to compare it with an
international premium economy seat and in that case it's a reasonable option.
It doesn't have the improved food or decent in-flight entertainment you'll get in
Qantas premium economy although the seat is pretty similar and it's usually still
quite a bit cheaper. The crew a perfectly fine and friendly and the seat itself
was also fine for premium economy. Again I can't really comment on the food and
drink as the flight was too short. Now before I forget, in my opinion
row three is the best in business because the galleys and the toilet are
at the front that's where all of the noise will be and you're far enough the back
to still get a good view of the wing and engine! And don't worry, the bassinets
aren't right behind you as they're back in row 23. Now Jetstar also cop a lot
of criticism for the service recovery when something goes wrong although in
their defense they are a low-cost carrier and I suppose that's the risk
you take when you only pay a few hundred dollars to fly tens of thousands of
kilometres. By buying a cheap ticket you're kinda accepting that you'll
potentially get a cheap service in my experience a roughly twenty flight to
the Jetstar, I've never had a cancellation and the delays have been
reasonable, certainly in comparison with the stories you hear about Tiger and
European low-cost carriers I don't think we've got it too bad with Jetstar. So to
answer the question is Jetstar business any good? well if you compare it with
similar price services, which will be a premium economy, then yes it's fine.
Is it worth if when compared with economy? I think it is, avoiding the long
queues is really handy and the wider seats will make for an easier nap
the longer flights. And also once you start paying for food, entertainment and
luggage with the economy fairs, the price difference quickly disappears. aAnd
finally the amenity kit give-away. the competition last 30 days and to enter
simply reply below and include the text (JetstarKit) in brackets. Full
details of the giveaway are in the video description below. If you enjoyed the
video, be sure to click the thumbs up button and check out my channel for more
similar videos I don't forget to watch my economy-class review of the same
aircraft and I'll include a link to that below. Thanks for watching and I'll see
you another time and enjoy the learning into Sydney.