QANTAS: A380 to LAX means First Class back in the air from 1 July 2022

Qantas released a slew of reward tickets on 19 October, and I missed the fact that some of these are for First Class tickets on the Sydney to Los Angeles route. And what’s more, they are in First Class, because the A380’s – the only Qantas aircraft with Firts Class, will be back in the air from 1 July 2022.

Look, these seats go like hotcakes, and already seem to have all gone for July. But there is some availability on August – but get in quick:

That’s 163,800 points for a Classic Reward one way to LAX in First class, plus AU$350. Now, this is not the best reward ever, but it’s pretty good.

. . . and for the return the same number of points, and a slightly reduced cash contribution of AU$280. But as the signals on the Qantas website indicate, ‘Seats nearly gone’.

Qantas First Class

There are just 14 First Class seats on the refreshed first class on the Qantas Super Jumbo’s on this 6 times a week service between Sydney and Los Angeles.

I have had the pleasure of travelling on one of these beauties, but with the ‘old’ First Class seats between Sydney and London via Singapore. On first appearance, this is not the best first-class cabin – think Emirates or Singapore Airlines with their fully enclosed suites. But actually, the seat plus the service and the wine, although not so much the food, make for an excellent First Class experience. One that I would love to experience again.

Remember that Qantas usually releases Reward redemptions for Business and First Class at different periods in advance for long haul according to status:

• Gold, Platinum & Platinum One – 365 days ahead
• Silver 323 days
• Red 297 days

So get in quick!

First Class Lounge

This lounge briefly opened when the New Zealand Bubble was open. It closed again when Sydney went into lockdown. It is scheduled to re-open on 1 November when Qantas resumes scheduled international flying, and that is something to look forward to.

2PAXfly Takeout

This is another timely reminder to wear your seatbelt when seated. Holding you close to your seat will protect you from the sort of injuries sustained on this flight, when unsecured passengers flew to the ceiling of the aircraft, and then came crashing down once the ‘drop’ ceased.

The hope will be that this is an anomaly – a ‘freak accident’ in casual parlance. If it is a systemic error either mechanical or electronic, then this is a larger concern for the airlines that fly Boeing Dreamliner 787 aircraft. Let’s hope it isn’t. If it is, it will pile on the woes to Boeing’s existing stack.

Get onto these immediately. Classic Rewards for Qantas First Class don’t last for long, and you have to deal with the Qantas clunky points booking system. If you can, I suggest you use Expert Flyer to search for seats and then go back to the Qantas site for booking.