7635 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

Haha! I’m here now! As sparky would say, this place is delightful.

[Victoria Watcher]

An airline which ejected at least 25 passengers from a Heathrow-bound plane without telling them why has admitted that some were 'mistakenly removed'.

 

Air Canada has confirmed that some passengers had done nothing wrong before its staff accompanied by armed police ordered them off the plane.

 

Officials have been contacting the innocent passengers to apologise for the blunder and are believed to be discussing possible compensation with them.

 

https://www.dailymai...ht-MISTAKE.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A couple from Victoria, B.C. say they've yet to receive an explanation about why they were escorted off a plane from Montreal Trudeau Airport overnight Tuesday.

 

Josh Slatkoff and his wife, Tara Sharpe, were left stranded in Montreal, banned from boarding another Air Canada flight for the next 24 hours after the captain of the plane made the order, he said.

 

They had been on their way to the U.K. for a memorial service, Slatkoff said.

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...orted-1.6496539

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 27 June 2022 - 03:36 PM.

[Nparker]

Air Canada: We're not happy until you're not happy

[Missed Approach]

Had to pick up Mrs ASE at athe Arrivals gate at 5:30 today....naturally her flight was delayed - that flight from Regina via Calgary to YYJ is ALWAYS delayed for some reason - must say its a pretty dead and sad place out at YYJ. Clearly traffic is still well off and nowhere near pre-pandemic levels.

 

The Tim Horton's closes at 3pm, the White Sport apparently has 'no plans' to re-open soon, if ever, according to a YYJ employee I spoke to. The only other food service operation 'this' side of the departure lounge is a small rather underwhelming outlet called the Fickle Fig cafe which has extremely limited offerings in terms of food. I was so hungry I very momentarily considered one of their veggie sandwiches which didn't look very appealing so I went with the one soup they had - fairly tasty but the experience was diminished by the fact it was lukewarm. All in all it was pretty depressing out there.

 

Mike K,

Is it worth a interview of Mr. Dickson and ask what the future of food services looks like for the contractor service providers? 

Everything is operated by Compass Group, except the Fig, so is there any contract requirements for their level of service?

This coming from the CEO who was/is very very very against vending machines in the terminal when I worked there.

Edited by Missed Approach, 27 June 2022 - 09:26 PM.

[Matt R.]

I wonder if the union pay rates are stagnant, non union restaurant jobs have never paid better and competition is obviously fierce.

[Victoria Watcher]

Travellers flying out of Victoria International Airport are being urged to arrive early enough to get through security amid extended pre-boarding waits that are also happening at airports across the country.

 

The busiest times are early in the morning and between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., when multiple flights are leaving, airport community relations director Rod Hunchak said Monday.

 

Between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. on Monday, the maximum wait time to get through security was just over one hour, he said, while from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. it was about 20 to 30 minutes.

 

“It has to do with volume of passengers as well as the number of CATSA security staff available to be assigned at each of the screening lanes,” Hunchak said. “This morning, for example, there was only one lane open first thing in the morning and that is why the wait times were that long.”

 

https://www.timescol...g-waits-5524591

[Victoria Watcher]

Sara Formel's family vacation last week to Scotland for a friend's wedding was supposed to be one of those trips of a lifetime. But instead, she said, it turned into "a trip from hell."

 

That's because the family's luggage — including wedding attire and a car seat for Formel's nine-month-old — didn't make it on their June 18 Air Canada flight from Toronto to Edinburgh.

 

The family spent much of their week-long vacation shopping for necessities and trying to get answers from Air Canada. 

 

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...ief_6905_584804

 

 

 

 

Alright, it's not great that you lost your wedding clothes.  But it might not be the end of the world.  "A trip from hell?"  Come on.  A sunnier outlook might have made things better.

[Kilo95]

Having gone through a trip with lost luggage (arrived the day before I was supposed to be returning home), I can understand their frustration. However, I've since learned to travel with carry on as much as possible, or when required to check a bag, make sure you put all the necessities in your carry ons. 

 

For any VV'ers travelling this summer I'd highly recommend investing in a carry-on sized suitcase and using that whenever possible to avoid checked baggage issues. With all the delays and cancellations happening (primarily Toronto and Montreal), bags are being routinely delayed for days.

[Victoria Watcher]

People travel with too much junk.

Every city/country has a pharmacy with stuff most people need. Leave your $50 worth of crap at home and just buy on the go.

[Kilo95]

People travel with too much junk.

Every city/country has a pharmacy with stuff most people need. Leave your $50 worth of crap at home and just buy on the go.

 

I meant more for clothing wise, but yes I agree. I understand that the ancillary revenue airlines get from checked baggages fees are $$$ for the bottom lines, but I've always wondered if they instead made checked bags free and charged heavily for the carry ons if it would increase operational efficiencies. It's amazing the full size travel trunks that people haul onboard and then try to jam into the overhead bins, which eventually lead to delays. 

 

If checked bags were free (or cheaper), it would incentivize less carry ons which would speed up the boarding and de-boarding processes overall. 

[Mike K.]

It used to be the other way around. Free carry-ons became a thing as airlines tried to get more people to stop using checked luggage.

[Mike K.]

“…before its staff accompanied by armed police ordered them off the plane.”

As opposed to police carrying sticks?

[Missed Approach]

Interesting read about what AC is doing to fix the current problems

 

 

https://canadianavia...sport-minister/

[spanky123]

^ I think that the real story is that airlines/airports are trying to manage demand while recognizing that much of it is short lived. Lots of folks using up travel passes, points, and vouchers before they expire, but from what I am hearing demand later in the year is way down. 

[Mike K.]

A Swoop arrival for 8:35AM this morning is showing a delayed arrival of 7:15PM, from Edmonton.

[Redd42]

E-mail from AC to Aeroplan members today:

 

  At Air Canada, we know how important travel plans are. This is even more the case today when many are taking their first trip in years following the pandemic. Whether for long‑anticipated vacations, visits with relatives and friends, or for business, we are grateful and recognize our responsibility when people like you entrust your travel to our airline.

Regrettably, things are not business as usual in our industry globally, and this is affecting our operations and our ability to serve you with our normal standards of care. The COVID‑19 pandemic brought the world air transport system to a halt in early 2020. Now, after more than two years, global travel is resurgent, and people are returning to flying at a rate never seen in our industry.

This surge in travel has created unprecedented and unforeseen strains on all aspects of the global aviation system. Around the world, there are recurring incidents of flight delays and airport congestion, resulting from a complex array of persistent factors impacting airlines and our partners in the aviation ecosystem. Similar effects are being seen in other industries too, where companies and suppliers are struggling to restart, unclog supply chains and meet pent‑up demand.

At Air Canada, we anticipated many of these factors and began taking tangible action during the depth of the pandemic to be ready for a rapid restart. Yet, despite detailed and careful planning, the largest and fastest scale of hiring in our history, as well as investments in aircraft and equipment, it is now clear that Air Canada’s operations too have been disrupted by the industry’s complex and unavoidable challenges. The result has been flight cancellations and customer service shortfalls on our part that we would never have intended for our customers or for our employees, and for which we sincerely apologize.

In response, we took a number of important steps, including introducing flexible ticket policies, new travel self-management tools, improvements to airport operations, as well adjustments to our schedule ‑ all to strengthen operational resiliency and to give customers more options. However, to bring about the level of operational stability we need, with reluctance, we are now making meaningful reductions to our schedule in July and August in order to reduce passenger volumes and flows to a level we believe the air transport system can accommodate.

This was not an easy decision, as it will result in additional flight cancellations that will have a negative impact on some customers. But doing this in advance allows affected customers to take time to make other arrangements in an orderly manner, rather than have their travel disrupted shortly before or during their journey, with few alternatives available. It will also enable us to more reliably serve all customers.

I can assure you Air Canada is also working in close cooperation with airports, government, and its third‑party service providers, who all are striving to return our industry to pre‑pandemic standards of operation.

We are convinced these changes will bring about the improvements we have targeted. But to set expectations, it should also be understood the real benefits of this action will take time and be felt only gradually as the industry regains the reliability and robustness it had attained prior to the pandemic.

On behalf of all of us at Air Canada, please accept my sincere apologies for any disruption you have experienced or may experience with your travel plans during this unprecedented period. I also assure you that we very clearly see the challenges at hand, that we are taking action, and that we are confident we have the strategy to address them. This is our company’s chief focus at every level.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We certainly look forward to future opportunities to serve you and regain your loyalty at a time when we can better demonstrate our commitment to taking good care of customers such as yourself.

Sincerely,

Michael Rousseau
President and Chief Executive Officer
Air Canada     

[Victoria Watcher]

If you don’t want to read the entire book, here is the important part:


However, to bring about the level of operational stability we need, with reluctance, we are now making meaningful reductions to our schedule in July and August in order to reduce passenger volumes and flows to a level we believe the air transport system can accommodate.

[Nparker]

Reducing service to improve service. How Orwellian.

And if I never hear the word "unprecedented" again in my lifetime, it will be too soon.

[vortoozo]

A Swoop arrival for 8:35AM this morning is showing a delayed arrival of 7:15PM, from Edmonton.

 

It's been like that on the board for a few days.

Swoop changed the flight time a few days ago. As far as they're concerned, it's operating on time.

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Edited by vortoozo, 29 June 2022 - 06:12 PM.

[Mike K.]

Ah, I see.