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Qatar Airways premium products have been made famous by its iconic and acclaimed Qsuite. However, the carrier has begun accepting deliveries of new jets that do not offer this famous product. Instead, these new jets have a business class cabin based on the Adient Aerospace Ascent seat. This seat is narrower and lighter, making it more appropriate for the Dreamliner’s thinner cabin than the Airbus A350.
Simple Flying contacted Qatar Airways about the absence of Qsuite from its 787 business class. “Qatar Airways continues to invest in enhancing the customer experience across its fleet… the Boeing 787-9 Business Class cabin has been designed to deliver an elevated onboard experience, combining privacy, comfort and the airline’s award-winning hospitality,” says the carrier’s Global Communications and Media Relations team.
What Is Available In 787-9 Business Class?
The Qatar Airways Media Relations team summarized what passengers can expect from the bespoke business class. “The Boeing 787-9 features a Business Class cabin with 30 suites in a 1-2-1 configuration, each offering direct aisle access and privacy doors. The product includes lie-flat beds, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity, high-power USB-C charging ports, customizable in-suite lighting, and electro-dimmable windows designed to provide a comfortable and private travel experience,” it said.
The Ascent seats are laid out in a herringbone configuration. A privacy door measuring 48 inches (122 cm) maintains the exclusive nature of the experience. The Ascent seat will be familiar among business class regulars, as many other airlines use it. However, Qatar Airways was its launch customer.
The Ascent seat is both narrower and lighter than the bulky Qsuite platform. A narrower seat is necessary on the 787-9 because the fuselage is comparatively narrow at 18 feet (5.49 meters). For comparison, the A350, a Qsuite workhorse, has a cabin width of 18 feet, 5 inches (5.61 meters). The difference sounds minimal. However, it is enough to say that running Qsuite in a 1-2-1 configuration aboard a 787-9 would result in incredibly narrow aisles. The lighter platform also makes for substantial fuel savings.
What Is The Ascent Seat?
When the Ascent business class seatfirst arrived on the market in June 2021, it was highly disruptive to the giants Collins Aerospace and Safran, despite following the conventional herringbone configuration. The product was Adient Aerospace’s first business class seat.
Previously, the company had made its mark as a luxury automotive seating supplier, and Adient Aerospace was formed in partnership with Boeing. Since April 2025, the company has been called Elevate Aircraft Seating. The name change reflects that the seating brand has now made its own mark and can no longer be seen merely as a vassal of Adient’s automotive arm.
However, many of Ascent’s strengths stem from its connection to the automotive seating industry. Trystan Parry, Vice President of Sales & Product Support, told The Design Air about how the brand used craftsmanship and luxury automotive seating standards to offer something new: “Craftsmanship is the process we employ to improve the quality and value of the product throughout the design and manufacturing of Ascent. It’s not only functional, but comfortable, consistent, and provides harmonious surfaces for the ultimate passenger experience.”
What Is The 787-9’s History In Qatar Airways?
The first we heard of Qatar Airways and the 787-9 was an announcement from Boeing in October 2016 that the carrier had ordered 30 of the aircraft, alongside ten 
Boeing777-300ER planes. The list price for this order was $11.7 billion, although the true amount paid by Qatar Airways remains unknown. At the time, Qatar Airways had long been an effective operator of the Boeing 787-8. The jet had struggled with Qsuite from the start, with its entry into service delayed while the carrier continued to finalize the Qsuite seat. The first seven jets finally arrived in Qatar in 2020. By this time, the COVID-19 pandemic was widespread, so the airline couldn’t put its new planes into service.
The table below shows the specifications for the 787-9, including its comparatively narrow cabin width that has forced Qatar Airways to avoid Qsuite on the jet. It uses claims made by Boeing of its aircraft’s capabilities:
Seats (two-class) | 250–325 |
Maximum takeoff weight | 571,500 lb (259,220 kg) |
Range | Up to 8,300 nautical miles (15,370 km) |
Length | 206 feet, 1 inch (62.8 meters) |
Wingspan | 197 feet, 3 inches (60.1 meters) |
Height | 55 feet, 10 inches (17.0 meters) |
Engine | GEnx-1B by GE Aerospace or Trent 1000 by Rolls-Royce |
The 787-9 debuted with Qatar Airways in June 2021, with a flight from Doha to Milan. The planes debuted in a two-class configuration with the 30 Ascent business class suites. Qatar Airways Group CEO Akbar Al-Baker said, “We are pleased to introduce this much-anticipated Business Class Suite on Qatar Airways’ newest widebody aircraft, the Boeing 787-9, which will debut onto a number of key routes within our network,” as reported by Simple Flying’s Jake Hardiman.
The Qsuite Guarantee Protects Passengers Who Can’t Access The Qsuite Product
Qatar Airways clearly stands by the quality of its Ascent business class seat product. Yet it also acknowledges that the product is no match for Qsuite. The airline is using a service it calls the ‘Qsuite Guarantee’ to pay off customers who have been pushed away from this world-leading business class product. Booking a Qsuite ticket does not guarantee that you will always have access to the product. An example is an aircraft swap, such as to one of the carrier’s new 787-9s.
If this happens, you can use the Qsuite guarantee. The policy gives you a free date or flight change if you want to move onto a Qsuite-equipped aircraft. You’ll need to book onto a flight on the same route that departs within 21 days of your original booking.
There are additional rules to be aware of when using the Qsuite guarantee. Firstly, tickets booked using Avios are also eligible for this policy, not just upgrades or tickets purchased with cash. Secondly, you can only use the Qsuite guarantee when your entire travel itinerary has been issued directly on Qatar Airways ticket stock for services operated exclusively by them. Partner airline bookings and services will not qualify for the guarantee.
Why Qsuite Is Better Than The Ascent Business Class
The Qsuite guarantee is necessary because of the gulf in class between it and the Ascent business class. The most obvious difference is that the Ascent seat has to be narrower than Qsuite. That’s because it is used on the narrower 787 compared with Qsuite’s position on the wider 777 and A350. Qsuite also has higher doors and dividers than the Ascent seat. Passengers in Qatar Airways 787-9 business class won’t be able to enjoy as much privacy as a result.
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Qsuite also has the advantage in terms of storage and customization. The additional space available to the product allows it to include significantly larger personal storage compartments. Qsuite passengers can also use a large side table next to their seats. Finally, Qsuite bookings can be customized depending on who you are flying with. Solo travelers can keep to themselves, while couples can book a double suite. Meanwhile, the “quad” cabin is ideal for families or colleagues. Businesspeople can work and dine together, before putting up their privacy dividers when it’s time to sleep.
However, there are some similarities between the products. Both products serve food based on the dine-on-demand concept. The menus are identical, and passengers have access to proper cutlery. The level of service, along with the amenities, bedding, and more, should also be identical. Loungewear provided by The White Company is also available in both cases.
What’s Next For Qsuite?
The divide between Qsuite and Ascent business class could grow further, with Qatar Airways set to introduce Qsuite Next Gen. The product is based on the original Qsuite but offers notable improvements, aiming to create a boutique hotel experience in the skies. Passengers have a private suite with a door, with privacy enhanced by higher, digitally controlled dividers that are customizable via the touchscreen. This product was initially slated for introduction with the Boeing 777X. However, delays with that jet’s certification and introduction have led Qatar Airways to plan for an A350 introduction instead. It’s a sign that Qatar Airways doesn’t want to pin its next business class product on Boeing’s unreliability.
Qsuite Next Gen also improves on the original Qsuite’s group-traveling concept. Qatar Airways is introducing the Companion Suite, bringing the couple’s suite to the window seats. Couples will now be able to dine in a Qsuite facing each other. Similarly, Quad Suite 2.0 makes improvements on ‘The Quad’. A solo suite is available for passengers traveling alone. Onboard WiFi improvements are also coming. All suites will be paired with Starlink Wi-Fi. That will allow business travelers to work in the skies as if they were back in the office, while leisure travelers can keep up with their social media or stream their favorite shows.
