Qantas to upgrade economy class in 10 A330s

Qantas has unveiled a new economy class seat for its Airbus A330-200 aircraft that serve regional destinations in the Asia-Pacific.

The upgrade will see the economy class of 10 aircraft receive the same economy seats that Qantas will deploy on its future fleet of A350-1000s, says the carrier.

The seats feature an improved touchscreen display, USB-C charging, as well as the ability for passengers to use their own headphones.

In addition, cabin lighting and other cabin elements will be improved.

The aircraft mainly serve key international destinations such as Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo.

The business class of the aircraft will remain unchanged. Work will commence in mid-2025 and be completed by the end of 2026.

“We’ve used our fleet renewal program to completely rethink the inflight experience and these cabin upgrades mean we can bring next-generation features and designs to our existing aircraft,” says Qantas International chief executive Cam Wallace.

“Customers can look forward to brand new economy seats that have been specially created to maximise comfort and provide features that our customers want for international travel. They’re the same seats that will feature on our ultra long haul A350-1000ULR aircraft, so it will be a preview of the Project Sunrise flying experience.”

‘Project Sunrise’ refers to Qantas’s plans to operate the A350-1000 on ultra-long-range services to cities such as London and New York from Melbourne and Sydney.

From the carrier’s 2027 financial year the A330s will be gradually phased out in favour of A350s and new Boeing 787s.

In a market update, the Qantas Group says that operational performance in the first half of its 2025 financial year, which runs to the end of 2024, is in line with expectations.

During the first half total group capacity is set to rise 12% year on year.