Emirates sued over seat on Boeing 777, where expectations did not meet reality
Been seduced by images of an aircraft cabin with spacious seats filled with smiling people that didn't quite gel with reality? Who hasn't, but when that happened to a New Zealand couple, they decided to get even.
Anticipating luxurious, lie-flat seats, the latest in in-flight entertainment systems and a minibar, Mark Morgan and his wife ponied up for business-class seats from New Zealand to the UK. Those images showed the business class seats aboard Emirates' Boeing 777-200LR and A380s, featured lavishly on the airlines' website images.
Upon boarding their flight however, the Morgans discovered they were flying aboard an older Boeing 777-300ER with a rather different product. Instead of a lie-flat seat what they got was a seat that reclined to semi-flat. The promised minibar was missing and the entertainment screen was an older version from what was advertised..
The Morgans were not going to take this lying down. After complaining to the airline and being offered a partial refund of $NZ786 ($734), which the Morgans deemed inadequate, they took the matter to court, accusing Emirates of false advertising in violation of New Zealand's Fair Trading Act 1986. Emirates' legal team argued that the airline's conditions of carriage allowed it to substitute aircraft according to operational requirements.
Aha, countered the Disputes Tribunal referee, this was not a one-off. Emirates was flying the same aircraft type with the same seats routinely on this route. The upshot was a decision in favour of the Morgans and Emirates was ordered the airline to pay compensation of $NZ13,555 ($12,590).
We've all been there, haven't we? On one sector, the seat is hunky-dory, then the next – same class, same airline - and it's not. Or maybe there's a change of airlines due to a code share flight. I just flew economy from Colombo to Singapore with SriLankan Airlines, followed by a Qantas code share flight from Singapore to Sydney and I lost 25 millimeters of legroom on the overnight Qantas leg.
You can check these stats on SeatGuru or Traveller's own comprehensive airline reviews, but especially when you're flying business or premium economy the seat differences are often subtle – and you're paying heaps for a premium experience.
On Emirates, you'll find a similar problem between A380s and 777s in economy class as the Morgans found in business class. Both have a 3-4-3 layout in the economy cabin, but the smaller width of the 777 means each passenger gets half an inch less space.
So how do you make sure when you buy your seat you're getting what the airline's shows on its website and not some antiquated product? Expectations are high when you book with a premier airline, as is the price, and age matters. The newer the aircraft, the better the chance of scoring a class-leading seat; though despite it being heralded as the future of air travel, you'll often find in economy class, that airlines, using the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, have shaved a few millimeters of width, and sometimes legroom too, on these newer aircraft.
How old is the aircraft you're flying?
This takes some detective work. For example if you're booked to fly Qantas QF7 Sydney to Dallas. Go to flightradar24 and the aircraft Qantas flies on this route is a 787-9 Dreamliner, but not always the same aircraft, as shown by the different registration numbers. There are at least five different Qantas Dreamliners operating this route, starting with VH-ZNA and running through to VH-ZNI. To check the age of the aircraft, go to FlightAware, type in the registration number, scroll down to "Aircraft Details" and click on "Registration". That tells you these Qantas aircraft were certified between 2017 and 2019. That's a reasonable indication their seats are going to be up to date.
There's also a simpler way. Google "Qantas 787-9 reviews" and you'll find be a swag of online appraisals, images and YouTube videos. The images tell the story but most of the video reviewers are turgid nit-pickers, especially when it comes to business class reviewers, and likely travelling on the airline's tab as a self-certified "influencer". Do I really want to know the quality of the brioche in the Qantas business lounge? There's no way of telling which genuine hands-off reviews are, but they give you a good idea of what you're getting.
Had the Morgans done that they might have found a YouTube video by flight reviewer Nonstop Dan titled "Emirates CONTROVERSIAL 777-300ER Business Class". That might have inspired caution, but really, should you have to go this far? When an airline shows you enticing images of its fancy-schmancy business class – and even includes an image of that product on the ticket, as if did for the Morgans – that's what you expect.
Aircraft that require a closer look
Any aircraft more than 10 years old might have seats that fall short of expectations. The Boeing 777-300ER, the aircraft that offended Mark Morgan and his spouse, entered service in 2004. The Airbus A330 is even older, making its commercial debut in 1994. Some airlines are operating that aircraft with business class seats devoid of in-flight entertainment systems and only limited recline.
Even after an airline upgrades its premier class seats it's not instantaneous. Cabin upgrades are progressive; it takes many months for an airline to install new seats across an entire aircraft type in its fleet. In the meantime all those aircraft are still operating, and during the upgrade there's a chance of copping an old-version seat. Without insider knowledge telling you precisely which aircraft you'll be flying aboard, that's impossible to predict.
As a postscript to the Morgans' story, since early March at least, Emirates has replaced the Boeing 777-300ER on its flight between Auckland and Dubai with an A380. That could be due to increased demand, or an airline paying attention.
Source; The Traveller
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