Qatar Airways is to reveal the next generation of its award-winning QSuite Business Class seat at the Farnborough Airshow, which will take place between 22nd and 26th July 2024, the airline’s new CEO Badr Mohammed Al Meer has confirmed.
During a wide-ranging interview with CNBC Interview, Al Meer confirmed that the airline was nearly ready to unveil QSuite 2.0 at one of the aviation industry’s biggest biannual events.
Al Meer didn’t, however, give any further details about the new seat, although it’s believed that it will be another bespoke product which will be unique to the Doha-based carrier.
The original QSuite was unveiled nearly eight years ago at the 2017 ITB Berlin aviation event, and the seat has largely lived up to the hype perpetuated by former Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker.
The QSuite was one of the first Business Class seats to feature a sliding door, greatly enhancing passengers’ sense of privacy and space. The seat also features a fairly unique quad seat, allowing four passengers to ‘share’ the same space.
The seat, however, isn’t without its critics, with some complaining how the sleeping surface when in lay flat mode, as well as storage space. Perhaps more critical is the fact that the original QSuite is particularly heavy and it’s far too wide to fit on the airline’s fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliners.
Expect to see the next generation QSuite to feature lighter materials, an updated sliding door, improved storage and more space carved out around the feet for a better sleep experience.
The seat is also likely to be fully updated with the latest tech, including wireless and USB-C charging, as well as Bluetooth headphone connectivity.
During the same interview with CNBC, Al Meer also revealed that Qatar Airways is working on a brand new First Class product based on the private jet experience.
Al Meer said that the product is around 70% to 80% complete and that an announcement should be ready soon. The decision to develop a new First Class seat follows a months-long ‘war room’ review of the airline’s strategy following the ousting of Al Baker.
