Canadian Airlines: My experience so far

Real World Aviation
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In November, I spent ten days in Canada.

I visited Montréal, Toronto and Vancouver. To travel between those cities, I used the plane.

Flight 1
Montréal - Toronto City, Porter Airlines, Dash 8

I really was surprised. I know the Dash 8 of Austrian Airlines and the product they’re offering with their Economy class. But Porter brought that to the next level. Their cabin is very bright, they have an amazing legroom and they have an amazing service as well. Not only they offered 2 drinks on a 1 hour flight, they also offered a little snack. The crew and ground staff were extremely friendly and the ticket price wasn’t high at all. I really enjoyed them.

Flight 2
Toronto Pearson - Vancouver, WestJet, Boeing 737-700

I booked that flight 2 hours before departure. My original plan was to fly stand-by with Air Canada on their 787. Sadly (or luckily) there was no space left and the next opportunity for me was on the next day. So I decided to switch to WestJet. Two hours before departure, I literally paid HALF the price I’d have paid for the same flight with Air Canada. The service WestJet is offering was amazing. I’ve never seen such a friendly crew before. The In-Flight entertainment is amazing. You download an app onto your portable and you can enjoy a wide selection of movies, and even live TV. They charged less then 20€ for WIFI on the whole 5 hours flight. That’s almost the same price you pay for 50MB with SWISS on their 777-300ER. I was really surprised since I thought WestJet was a Low Cost airline. Great Job!

Flight 3
Vancouver - Montréal, Air Canada, Airbus A330

Wow. That was disappointing. I flew in Premium Economy on that flight. Where do I start: The cabin was dirty, the crew was stressed and the IFE wasn’t working well. At least the food was ok. I can’t tell more here because there wasn’t anything special about that flight.

Summary
Personally, I’d use Porter and WestJet again when I come back to Canada for another visit. I think that SWISS, Austrian and Lufthansa can learn a lot of those airlines, their IFE concept, their service, …

What is your experience with Canadian or North American airlines?

Marc

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Fascinating. I’ve never thought about CA in this sort of light.

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Yeah usually the domestic Air Canada flights are somewhat disappointing but their international flights are pretty good.

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AC is Air Canada

Air Canada operates A330 to Europe. So it is their long haul product. 3-4-3 seating in their economy with a 31’ pitch in their 77W is good service, not for me

In general yea Air Canada and the US big 3 are pretty bad. Take smaller cheaper carriers gives you better service

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That’s weird. Last time I flew air canada, their crew was really helpful and the service was great! I flew back in westjet and it felt like I was on SWA. Maybe because it was less crowded when I went.

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Uhh Canadian airlines?

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Air Canada is amazing. Their domestic/North American services are amazing. 31"+ of pitch with thick cushioned seats. When I flew Lufthansa short-haul, I was so used to the cushioned seats from AC that my butt hurt the entire flight. ALL short haul flights in mainline carrier has IFE, even some regional planes like the E75 and CRJ900. The IFE on the 7M8 has MASSIVE screens. The long-haul (with the exception of the 333s and remaining 763s) is amazing. Stunning cabin (lots of toothpaste vibes), very sleek and modern. The IFE is updated and modern with larger screens in Premium Economy (PY) and Business (J). The crew is extremely helpful especially when I tell them that I am deaf and wear Cochlear Implants.

I must admit though that the 333 is very outdated. The outdated IFE and cabin do not compare to the others in the fleet. Even the recently added PY seats look outdated compared to the ones on the 787s and 777s.

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