2019 is the year Qantas embarks on the complete refurbishment of its A380s. The first of the airline’s fleet of 12 superjumbos will begin the Qantas A380 upgrade in March with the project being entirely managed by Airbus.
Completion of the overhaul is set for 2020 but here’s what you can expect to find on the renovated Qantas double-decker jets.
Photo source: Qantas
First Class Suites
There will not be any major cosmetic changes to Marc Newson’s bespoke design of the Qantas A380 first class suites. There will remain the 14 ‘open’ suites without the sliding doors on the lower deck.
Rather, the cabin will receive a refresh with new materials, each suite will have contoured cushioning, and the entertainment HD screen will be larger with sharper images.
Business Suites
The most noticeable transformations of the Qantas A380 upgrade will be in the business class cabin with the Skybed II seats being replaced by the Business Suites that already exist on the Qantas Dreamliners.
These seats will allow passengers in the middle seats to remove the dividers should they wish. There will be direct aisle access at every seat which unfold into fully flat beds, storage and workspace will be increased, and the HD entertainment screen will be go from 12.1 inch to 16-inches.
The new Business Suites will be arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration and the numbers will increase from 64 to 70 business class seats.
Onboard lounge
The onboard lounge will become lounges and will be placed on either side of the set of stairs that leads from the business class cabin down to first class.
The right-hand side will have two café-style tables with padded benches and soft LED lighting whilst the left-hand side will boast a self-serve minibar (that includes snacks as well as drinks) and a large video screen.
For further information on the Qantas A380 upgrade, please see an earlier article on Qantas’ A380 upgrade https://www.firstclass.com.au/qantas-soon-upgrade-a380-fleet
It is about time Qantas dumped the Business class cocoon seats and eliminated the 2-2 -2 configuration in the Business class. The existing seats would have to be one of the most uncomfortable with a bar in the seat right in the middle of your back (tall people). It has taken a long time for Qantas to catch up to other airlines and eliminate the need to climb over someone fully reclined to get from the window seat to the aisle. That is not Business class seating these days on the A380. What will be the changes to the boring food selection, Perry’s products are boring both in the lounges and worse in flight.