Back in 2021, Qatar Airways fell into a serious disagreement with Airbus over peeling paintwork on its Airbus A350 aircraft, which eventually led the carrier to withdraw 30 such jets from its operating fleet, while a full legal dispute was launched against the manufacturer.

As we reported in February this year, the feud happily came to an end with both sides reaching “an amicable and mutually agreeable settlement”, paving the way for these aircraft to return to service.

A dozen stored A350s are already back in action

Qatar Airways and Airbus have been quick to return these jets into service, with 12 of them already back in operation at the time of writing, and crucially 11 of those are Qsuite-equipped.

In fact only one more Qatar Airways Airbus A350 with Qsuite Business Class is still among the 18 yet to return to service – A7-AMG, so the carrier’s former Qsuite capacity is practically back to its former strength.

Good news for Singapore flights

The great news for our readers based in Singapore is that Qatar Airways has once again restored its Qsuite to all three daily flights between Changi and Doha, for the first time in nearly two years.

Since 11th April 2023, all Qatar Airways flights to and from the Lion City have been fitted with Qsuite in Business Class, and from now until at least the end of the northern summer season on 28th October 2023, all flights are planned with this excellent product.

That means, subject to operational changes, you can be assured of the Qsuite on the Singapore – Doha – Singapore part of your journey for at least the next six months, which is great news if you have a booking or are eyeing a redemption seat.

Here’s how the Qsuite has gradually made its way back on the carrier’s Singapore flights over the last few weeks.

Qatar Airways Singapore – Doha Flights
Week commencing	Qsuite cabin
27th February 2023	71% (15/21)
6th March 2023	62% (13/21)
13th March 2023	62% (13/21)
20th March 2023	67% (14/21)
27th March 2023	48% (10/21)
3rd April 2023	90% (19/21)
10th April 2023	95% (20/21)
17th April 2023	100% (21/21)
24th April 2023 to 23rd October 2023	100% (planned)

The schedule

Qatar Airways operates three flights per day from Singapore to Doha, all of which now have the Qsuite, with a mixture of Airbus A350-900 and A350-1000 aircraft used.

Singapore – Doha
Now – 28th October 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	QR945 A350
SIN 02:40		DOH 05:25
	QR943 A350
SIN 10:45		DOH 13:30
	QR947 A350
SIN 21:00		DOH 23:45

From Doha to Singapore the same three aircraft operate as follows.

Doha – Singapore
Now – 28th October 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	QR948 A350
DOH 02:40		SIN 15:45
	QR944 A350
DOH 08:20		SIN 21:25
	QR942 A350
DOH 20:00		SIN 09:05*

* Next day

Which Qatar Airways aircraft have the Qsuite?

Currently only newer Qatar Airways Airbus A350-900s, all Airbus A350-1000s and selected Boeing 777s have the product installed. The only aircraft you’re guaranteed to get the Qsuite on is the A350-1000.

• A350-900: 29% (10/34)
• A350-1000: 100% (19/19)
• 777-200LR: 78% (7/9)
• 777-300ER: 70% (38/54)

Wide body aircraft without Qsuite:

• A330 (0/13)
• A380 (0/10)
• 787 (0/41)

In total 74 of Qatar Airways’ total wide body fleet are now fitted with Qsuite in Business Class. That’s still only 35% of the carrier’s 209 passenger aircraft, though if you exclude the A330, A380 and 787, since the current Qsuite design doesn’t fit on these narrower aircraft, it’s a more respectable 64% completion rate.

What’s the Qsuite like?

We flew the Qsuite on the A350-1000 from Frankfurt to Doha back in September 2018, just after it launched. It wasn’t perfect – the food and service were a bit of a let-down, and the seat itself is smaller than it looks (certainly no First Class competitor in size terms).

Nonetheless, the design and finish of the product, the excellent privacy and the ‘proper’ double bed or quad / group style middle seating options simply make this a fantastic hard product.

If you haven’t tried it – you should!

We have enjoyed several Qsuite trips since our review, and we’re happy to have two out of four upcoming flights with the airline now also allocated with this product (the Singapore – Doha – Singapore sectors of June Europe trip).

What about operational swaps?

Unfortunately despite now scheduling all-Qsuite operation on the Singapore route, and sticking to this religiously for the last 17 days and counting, there is always the possibility of a last minute operational change to a non-Qsuite equipped aircraft on your flight.

That would likely be in the form of the older Collins Super Diamond product fitted to the non-Qsuite Airbus A350-900s, but it’s probably unfair to talk about these seats in a derogatory way.

This is still a solid Business Class seat, indeed recently selected by British Airways for a long overdue renewal of its Club World cabin (albeit with a privacy door in that case).

We reviewed the product in September 2019 on an A350-900 flight from Athens to Doha.

While it’s no Qsuite in terms of privacy, the 1-2-1 reverse herringbone configuration in this cabin is still sufficiently private, especially if you can secure a window seat when flying solo.

For couples the middle pairs certainly don’t have the allure of the rear-facing E/F seats on the Qsuite (which convert into a double bed), but are still a good option.

Of course that doesn’t change the fact that if you booked or redeemed purely to try the Qsuite, this alternative simply won’t cut it for you – so keep your fingers crossed for no operational substitution on your flight!

How to redeem the Qsuite

In November 2020, Qatar Airways cut its award rates, bringing redemption prices on its flights back to pre-May 2018 levels (when an unannounced and significant devaluation occurred).

No fuel surcharges are passed on to its own members redeeming Qatar Airways flights since 2015, though unfortunately award surcharges are now back since Privilege Club adopted Avios as its currency.

Nonetheless the Avios programme is now among the cheapest redemption options from Singapore to Europe in Business Class, with the excellent Qsuite now offered on all Singapore flights (and many flights beyond Doha too).

Here are some example redemption options using the programme, showing miles rates and taxes payable for redeeming on Qatar Airways flights one-way from Singapore using Avios, against some other programmes (careful of those fuel surcharges!).

Qatar Business Class redemption from Singapore
FFP	Doha	London	Athens	New York
	50k +S$158	75k +S$298	70k +S$298	95k +S$350
	61k +S$422	70k +S$482	70k +S$482	90k +S$605
	75k +S$422	119.2k +S$482	90k +S$482	159k +S$605
	82k +S$422	131k +S$482	131k +S$482	165k +S$605

As you can see even though you’ll pay slightly less to fly in Business Class from Singapore to London on Qatar Airways using Asia Miles, the fuel surcharge payable through that programme significantly increases the cash outlay to nearly S$500, compared to S$298 using Privilege Club or BA Avios.

How to check your flight has Qsuite

Before you book or redeem, check the seat map at ExpertFlyer. A free account is sufficient. If your flight has the Qsuite it will look like this, with seats shown staggered from one another:

The Qatar Airways website also labels flights planned with Qsuite aircraft in its flight search results listing.

If the flight is operated by an A350-900 with the Super Diamond seat it will look like this:

If you’re flying on the Boeing 777-300ER, again it’s pretty obvious using ExpertFlyer whether your flight has Qsuite (left) or the older 2-2-2 layout (right):

Note that there are also some new Boeing 777-300ER layouts thanks to ex-Cathay Pacific and ex-Virgin Australia aircraft now operated by Qatar Airways, but none of them look like the one on the left above when searching the seat map.

Once you have a booking, you can select your seat on the Qatar Airways website using your PNR (booking reference), even if you book through another airline (e.g. BA Avios or American AAdvantage).

There the seat map makes it obvious if you have the Qsuite (some of the seats face backwards, plus it actually calls them ‘Qsuite’):

You can keep checking the seat map this way once you have a booking to make sure your flight still has a Qsuite configuration.

Also – “double confirm”!

Finally if you’re flying from Singapore to Doha in Business Class on Qatar Airways, you can put your mind at ease (or accept your fate) and find out for sure by checking whether your flight will have the Qsuite around 9-13 hours before departure, by looking at which aircraft has departed from Doha to Singapore to operate your flight.

You can do this using a site or app like flightradar24.

• SIN-DOH QR943: Check QR942 from 01:00 SGT (9h 45m notice)
• SIN-DOH QR945: Check QR944 from 13:20 SGT (13h 20m notice)
• SIN-DOH QR947: Check QR948 from 07:40 SGT (13h 20m notice)

If the aircraft is on its way from Doha is an A350-1000, you’ve got the Qsuite. If it is an A350-900 or another type, check the latest list of aircraft registrations which have the Qsuite installed below (click to expand).

For example if I were flying on QR945 tonight at 2am, I can already see prior to 2pm today that an A350-900 will be flying the flight:

Referencing the registration list above shows that this aircraft, A7-AME, does have the Qsuite.

There’s a new Business Class lounge in Doha

As we reported last week, Qatar Airways has practically doubled its lounge capacity for Business and First Class travellers passing through its Doha hub, with the opening of a new Al Mourjan – The Garden facility in the terminal’s latest northern extension.

We reviewed the product in September 2019 on an A350-900 flight from Athens to Doha.

While the main benefit will be a significant reduction in crowding during the carrier’s two primary peak connection banks each day, facilities here include a gym, a spa, and à la carte dining, in addition to some upcoming paid brand collaborations.

It should be a great complement to the Qsuite experience and the carrier’s fantastic Premium Lounge here at Singapore Changi Airport, which we rate as one of the best Business Class facilities worldwide. Unfortunately it currently only operates between 6pm and 3am each day, for QR945 and QR947 passengers.

What about 29th October onwards?

Qatar Airways is currently listing its non-Qsuite equipped Airbus A350-900s on all three daily Singapore services from the start of the next northern winter season, which starts on 29th October 2023.

Don’t read too much into that at this stage.

The airline usually makes final adjustments to its network schedule and aircraft type allocation only around two months before the next season starts.

For example, Qatar only switched its Singapore aircraft type allocation for the May to October 2023 period in late March 2023 – with initially rostered Boeing 777-300ER and Boeing 787-8 operation changed to the usual all-A350 services.

We strongly suspect the Qsuite will remain on all three flights on this route from 29th October 2023 onwards, as it did before COVID-19, with the older Collins-equipped aircraft effectively listed as a ‘placeholder’ for now.

It is no coincidence that Qatar showcases its Qsuite on the Singapore route where possible – directly on the home turf of a tough competitor!

We would therefore be very surprised given the rollout of more Qsuite-equipped aircraft if the Singapore route now downgrades again, so don’t panic about a booking on or after 29th October 2023 just yet.

All three daily Qatar Airways flights between Singapore and Doha are now operated with aircraft fitted with the popular Qsuite Business Class seats, a situation that’s planned until at least the end of October, and one we believe will effectively be permanent.

This follows a rapid return to service for a dozen of the carrier’s A350s, following a spat with Airbus over peeling paint.

Unfortunately, Qsuite is never guaranteed due to the possibility of operational equipment swaps right up to day of departure. The only aircraft that definitely has it is the A350-1000, so if that’s the type operating your flight and it’s still showing the same the day before or on the day itself, you’re almost 100% safe.

Checking the seat map is another way to make sure your flight is scheduled for the new product. Keep checking right up to the day of departure, as you may want to change to a different flight or cancel the ticket / redemption if a swap occurs.

Happy Qsuite-ing!

(Cover Photo: Qatar Airways)