Qatar Airways 777-300ER Business Class

The ex-Virgin Australia frames keep Virgin's cabin: a Collins Super Diamond reverse herringbone, open shell, no door. 37 business seats in 1-2-1, every one with direct aisle access.

Spot it

• Open shell with no door, so this is not a Qsuite frame
• Only eight business seats along the right side of the cabin
• One business cabin of 37 seats, an odd count for a 1-2-1 layout

Qatar Airways Qsuite on the Boeing 777-300ER is a fully enclosed private suite in a 1-2-1 staggered configuration, giving every passenger direct aisle access. Each suite is fitted with a sliding full-height privacy door that seals it from the aisle and neighbouring suites — the defining feature of the product.

Spot it

• Sliding door panel alongside the aisle side of every suite — the defining visual identifier
• Alternating forward/rear-facing orientation row-by-row in the staggered 1-2-1
• Moveable centre console between middle pairs that folds flat into a double bed

The ex-Cathay Pacific frames still wear Cathay's cabin: a Safran Cirrus II reverse herringbone, open shell, no door. 53 business seats sit in 1-2-1 across rows 11 to 26, split between an eight-seat mini cabin at the front and the main cabin behind, plus one standalone seat at row 15.

Spot it

• Open shell with no door and no movable centre divider, so this is not a Qsuite frame
• Business starts at row 11, behind a six-seat First cabin
• An eight-seat mini cabin at the front, then the main cabin behind it

Qatar Airways' older MiniPod business seat, a 2-2-2 lie-flat that predates the Qsuite retrofit. It survives on two 777-300ER cabin sizes: the 42-seat version (AeroLOPA `qr-77i`), seven rows of six abreast, and a 24-seat two-class version (`qr-77n-2`) of four rows.

Spot it

• Six seats across in business (2-2-2), not the 1-2-1 Qsuite
• No sliding privacy doors
• Window seats (A, K) require stepping over the neighbour to reach the aisle