Nathan's Insights

Jetstar AU
Date: 5 April 2024
Flight Number: JQ7
Gate: 10
Seat: 30F & 31F (Economy Class Seat)
Plane: Boeing 787-8
Boarded: 12.32
Pushback: 13.13 (Scheduled 13:05)
Arrived: 17.55 (Scheduled 18:00)
Duration: 7 hour 42 minutes
Distance: 6,025 kms

This flight was from Tullamarine (Melbourne, Australia) International Airport to Changi (Singapore) International Airport.

The Cost

I purchased this economy flight as part of a reward ticket that covered Melbourne to Singapore (Jetstar), Singapore to Helsinki (Finnair), Helsinki to Berlin (Finnair), Split to Helsinki (Finnair), Helsinki to Singapore (Finnair), and Singapore to Helsinki (Jetstar). For each passenger (I am travelling with my niece) it cost 139,800 Qantas points and AUS $361.37.

To use point just for this flight it would have cost 21,500 Qantas points and AUS $140.00. To purchase this flight it would have been AUS $299.00 on Jetstar Starter Fare but this does not include a checked bag which costs AUS $70.00 per bag for 15 kilos so total cost is AUS $369.00.

Check In / Bag Drop / Border Control

Included with the award booking was checked bag up to 23kgs and 7kgs for carry-on. Seat selection, entertainment, and meals costs extra and are not included with the ticket.

We arrived at 10:00 which was just over 3 hours before the flight, 5 minutes later check in opened and we attempted to use the Self Service Kiosk. However we got a ‘seek staff assistance’ message likely due to our bags needing to be checked though to Helsinki and we needed a bag connection tag.

Border Control in Melbourne is fairly easy to use as an Australian citizen living the country. Before leaving my sister said an emotional goodbye to Darby. We entered the clearance area around 10:15

Once you clear Border Control in Melbourne you walk through a huge Duty Free shop (you can’t avoid it) and then past a lot of luxury high end shops before coming across food outlets. The airport is setup for you to spend as much as possible.

Lounges

While I was travelling in Economy Class on Jetstar as a Qantas Lifetime Gold Member, I’m allowed in Qantas operated lounges in this case the Qantas Melbourne International Business Class Lounge.

Boarding

This flight boarded from Gate 10. Jetstar boards their business class passengers first.

Economy class passengers were then boarded in different row groups, first rows 10-13, then rows 44-57, next up was rows 30-43 (our group) and finally all remaining passengers.

The first boarding group was called at 12.15 and the last group was called at 12.36.

The Seat

This 787-8 aircraft operates in a two-class configuration with 21 seats in Business Class and 314 seats in Economy Class with economy class seating in a 3 – 3 – 3 layout. I paid the $11.00 AUD x 2 to select an aisle seat for the middle 3 seats on the right side (seat 30F) for myself and I selected the same for my niece in the row in front (seat 31F).

The economy seats are leather and are 17 inches (43 centimetres) wide and have a pitch of 30 inches (76 centimetres). They can feel confining unless you are a smaller person. There is also in seat power via a USB port which I used. The seats were better than I expected and just big enough for me to be comfortable / okay.

Amenity Kit

As a low-cost carrier, no amenity kit is provided. However if desired you can purchase an amenity kit (which I didn’t).

Meals and Drinks

As a low-cost carrier there is no included meals or drinks. You can purchase a meal before the flight or onboard for slightly higher cost. For this flight there were two meal serving times, the first 1 hour after take-off and the other 1 hour before landing.

There were 11 options all with a hot drink (prices are for pre-booking high once on board); Classic beef lasagne ($15.50), Vegetable teriyaki noodles ($14.50), Bacon & egg ciabatta ($13.50), All-day quiche and roll ($13.50), Cheese & tomato relish toastie ($12.00), Ham & cheese toastie ($12.00), Banana bread ($6.00), Homestyle sandwich duo ($12.00), Gourmet beef duo pack combo ($12.00), Chicken wrap ($12.00), Chocolate loaf cake ($6.00).

We only selected one meal serving, the first. For me I was the first served on the plane around 15 minutes after take-off the service was then briefly suspended for everyone else. Darby was served about 15 minutes later. I choose the Chicken Wrap which was very tasty, while Darby choose the Cheese & tomato relish toastie which she said was the best meal on both flights we flew today.

Service

The service was relatively attentive. Purchased meals were served very quickly after take-off. All announcements were made in English only.

Entertainment System

You can purchase access to seat back entertainment system for $10 AUD per passenger. I had my iPhone setup with music and videos so did not brother purchasing the entertainment service and neither did Darby.

The Flight

This was a smooth flight with only a few minutes air turbulence during the flight. The cabin temperature was comfortable.

Arrival

We arrived 5 minutes early at 17:55 at Terminal 4. We then took transit bus option from Terminal 4 to Terminal 1. The bus seemed to be waiting just for us and we were the only ones transiting terminal and then we had a 15 minute slow drive around the airport and various airplanes. You only really understand how massive they are when you a looking up at them.

On arrival in Terminal 1 we went in search of our departure Gate for our next flight and then headed to the Qantas Business Singapore Lounge.

Summary

I was pleasantly surprised on this flight. I had low expectations about the seat, the service and even the noise but everything went well despite being an almost full flight. The plane was clean, it left on time, the plane temperature was fine with no on board issues.