Qantas has announced that it will be undertaking a major cabin overhaul for its Boeing 737 aircraft. The Boeing 737 is the workhorse of the current fleet, and through the upgrade Qantas are aiming to provide an improved inflight experience for passengers.
The upgrade program will see 42 of the airline’s 737 aircraft receive a full cabin overhaul, including:
- New Business seats
- New Economy seats
- New, larger overhead lockers with up to 50 per cent more space, making it easier for every customer to store their carry on bags
- Full cabin refresh including new carpets, sidewalls and mood lighting
- The aircraft will continue to deliver fast and free Wi-Fi
Timeline
According to Qantas, the first of the refitted 737s will take to the skies in 2027. That is two years from now, so I guess we are going to have to be patient waiting for the upgrade to come.
Interestingly, there are currently 75 of the Boeing 737s in the Qantas fleet. From this announcement, we know that 42 are getting the refit, which leaves 33 that will not. It would be expected that those 33 are the ones slated to be replaced by the earlier deliveries of the A320 aircraft – in particular the initial A321XLR.
As such, we are going to be seeing both things happening – some 737s being replaced by A320 aircraft, while others are overhauled. I don’t know for sure, but I guess we’ll be seeing the updated 737s flying around for another decade or so.
The Product
Aside from the need to refresh the cabins, Qantas are looking toward some consistency in product across their fleet. As such, expect that the new seats to be similar to those that will be fitted to the A321XLR.
That leaves a question make over the seatback screens. The newer deliveries of the 737s had seatback screens throughout the cabin. On the A321XLR, however, Qantas are installing tablet holders, rather than individual screens. The following image shows the A321XLR with the tablet holder.
On the plus side, the larger overhead bins should make finding space for your hand luggage less challenging than at present.
Other Aircraft Updates
It is not just the 737 aircraft that are being updated. Qantas have previously announced that ten A330-200 aircraft and Jetstar 787 aircraft will also have an update.
According to Qantas Group CEO, Vanessa Hudson
The suite of cabin upgrade programs across the Group complemented the largest fleet renewal program in the airline’s history.
“Investing in our fleet is one of the most significant ways that we can transform the flying experience for our customers and make sure we’re consistently delivering a great journey
“As we bring more new aircraft into our fleet, we are also making our existing aircraft look and feel like new.
The suit
