“Ushering in a never-before-seen standard in business class travel, the customisable private suites, named ‘QSuite’, introduce a host of firsts to premium class travel, reshaping expectations for global business travellers,” Qatar Airways said.
The new seat design was first unveiled by Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker, before the airline’s annual press conference at a “spectacular” reveal ceremony, on the opening day of the ITB Berlin exhibition, at the Qatar Airways stand.
Attended by an audience of notable VIPs, including Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Qatar’s ambassador to Germany, with the Mayor of Berlin, Michael Müller, as special guest of honour, guests were captivated as a life-size cross-section of a Qatar Airways aircraft featuring the new QSuite was unveiled to rapturous applause.
Launched at ITB Berlin, the “unique and patented” seat has been two years in the making.
QSuite features the industry’s first-ever double bed available in business class, with privacy panels that stow away, allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room. Adjustable panels and movable TV monitors on the centre four seats allow colleagues, friends or families travelling together to transform their space into a private suite, allowing them to work, dine and socialise together. These new features provide the ultimate customisable travel experience that enables passengers to create an environment that suits their own unique needs.
Al-Baker said, “Today I am proud to unveil the future of premium travel with our new QSuite Business Class. Our unique and patented design is a world first in many ways and challenges industry norms by offering passengers more privacy, more choice and more personalisation. With these innovations, Qatar Airways has revolutionised the way we serve our business class travellers, enabling our passengers to enjoy a first class experience in business class. This is truly business class as never seen before and is entirely in keeping with our Premium product and service philosophy.
“On Qatar Airways, you choose when you dine, and the menu options are varied, with something for everyone. You choose when you rest, and when you want entertainment; we offer more choices than any other airline. It only makes sense to give you the choice to make your own cabin-within-a-cabin, creating double QSuites or quadrants.”
Each seat is “crafted with thoughtful and luxurious” details such as hand-stitched Italian leather and satin rose gold finishing, bringing an unprecedented level of luxury, privacy and style to Qatar Airways’ business class offering.
To further complement the customisable on-board seating experience that passengers will now enjoy, Qatar Airways is also launching a new food and beverage concept, introducing a menu that offers a host of new dining choices.
In addition to the existing decadent ‘dine on demand’ service, the new Business Class menu will now offer a selection of snack ‘sharing dishes’ available throughout the flight, allowing travellers to turn dining at 35,000 feet into a social experience. A wake-up ‘Express Breakfast’ will also be available for those who choose to sleep a little longer by making the most of the ‘Do not disturb’ option available on the door of their private QSuite.
Al-Baker also announced that starting this summer, Qatar Airways will begin offering best-in-class inflight connectivity, with more announcements to come in the weeks and months ahead.
This extensive and ground-breaking refresh comes as the airline celebrates its 20th year of operations marking two decades of growth, industry leadership and innovation. The new QSuite concept will be retrofitted on to the existing Qatar Airways fleet starting from June 2017, at an estimated rate of one aircraft a month.
Known for introducing industry firsts, the airline is Qatar’s national carrier and is one of the fastest growing airlines operating one of the youngest fleets in the world. Qatar Airways has a modern fleet of some 194 aircraft flying to more than 150 key business and leisure destinations across six continents.
