Another airline closes the First Class door. In an interview with the Bloomberg news agency, Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker confirmed that the cabins of its future aircraft would be equipped with only two classes of service: business class and economy classe. The announcement was made during IATA's annual meeting in Istanbul.
The company is currently still offering Airbus A380 eight seats in first class. This offer will disappear with the delivery of the Boeing 777X.
For the CEO of Qatar Airways, the future lies in its business class product, which, it is true, is comparable in luxury to the current first classes of many airlines. The Q Suite offers passengers complete privacy. The only difference with a Première is the number of seats.. The Q Suite is located in a cabin offering less privacy.
Qatar Airways' decision goes against the trend of European mega-companies. Air France or Lufthansa. The latter are bringing their First Class product up to date. But it's true that these First Classes offer a huge difference in comfort from their respective Business Classes...
Visa and Privilege Club credit cards
In another announcement, the company has decided to link its loyalty programme to credit cards. Le Privilege Club is introducing a new feature to integrate Avios, the Privilege Club loyalty 'currency', for members with a Visa credit card.including those registered with Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay. The latter now offer the option of linking their Privilege Club account to their bank card. Thanks to this link, members can collect and use Avios when making their daily purchases from a network of partners in Qatar.
