Just flew some AC flights after a gap (of about 6 months). Based on some of the posts/threads here I was quite apprehensive and was debating about changing to another carrier. But I was most pleasantly surprised.
My first flight was the 1300 LHR-YYZ in J. Inflight service, food, and crew attitude was outstanding. Way better than comparative day flights on LH/BA Business. Almost as good as BD The Business. Some of the reasons why I felt the AC service was superior:
-I was always addressed by name.
-The FA at the door decided to escort me to my seat, despite the fact that I told her that I knew quite well where 1K was. She replied saying it was her duty and it would be a pleasure to walk with me anyways! :eek:
-Jacket collected within 30 secs of me reaching the seat.
-Offered a choice of 4 newspapers and also told that I could keep all 4 if I wanted.
-Choice of juices (orange and mango) as well as champers prior to takeoff.
-Food was outstanding. Delicious beef fillets and great dessert.
-4 types of freshly cut moist delicious cheeses. And all the trimmings including dried prunes, figs, dates, celery, carrots, crackers etc.
-Freshly baked cookies and ice cream. That smell of cookies baking wafting thru the cabin was way too enticing!
Throughout the flight the crew seemed to be really enjoying themselves and geniunely seemed to be happy to be there.
And for once even CIC @ YYZ were pleasant with me! Almost welcoming!! :eek:
I took some Rapidair flights too and was most impressed with the service in J. The breakfast seems to have improved a lot IMO. That plated hot omlette dish which is now served separately and after the main tray with fruit etc is really quite filling and tasty.
All in all, well done AC. ^ I'd certainly be quite happy to choose AC J for a transatlantic daytime flight.
P.S.: I hope I won't be accused of being "too compliant" now. ;)
Good to hear the service was very good. I will join this list of the compliant. I especially don't mind being booted out of J from time to time. I would surely never complain about that. ;) And would certainly not expect any compensation.
Happy to report that the awful greek salad thing is finally gone from what I heard. Had a great omellette with sausage yesterday.
Also, didn't want to start another post but signs are posted after security at YYZ T1 of Tim Hortons opening soon. Looks like quite a large restaurant.
Good to hear the service was very good. I will join this list of the compliant. I especially don't mind being booted out of J from time to time. I would surely never complain about that. ;) And would certainly not expect any compensation.
Happy to report that the awful greek salad thing is finally gone from what I heard. Had a great omellette with sausage yesterday.
Also, didn't want to start another post but signs are posted after security at YYZ T1 of Tim Hortons opening soon. Looks like quite a large restaurant.
As of late for the starter I've been getting some sort of couscous dish... never asked the FAs what it was but didn't think it was too bad... I've had this YYZYVR, YYZDEN, and DENYYZ as of late.
-The FA at the door decided to escort me to my seat, despite the fact that I told her that I knew quite well where 1K was. She replied saying it was her duty and it would be a pleasure to walk with me anyways! :eek:
Maybe she found you cute. :eek: :o ;) :D
Oh, they all find that to be true.. :D :p ;)
I've almost always found the Executive/First product to be more than adequate. In my experience a Trans Atlantic or South America flight with bad service is more of an abberation than the rule. Domestic J is a bit more hit and miss, but I can stand almost anything for up to 5 hours :D
The longhaul routes attract some of the more senior crews, who actually bid for the flights so they really want to be there. Now that AC is backing them up with improved food and amenities, the combination is pretty potent. I couldn't imagine flying any other carrier to GRU or LHR unless I had to.
DF
I agree with the comments posted above.
I just returned from EZE and was in J class. The experience was seamless and the 11 hour flight felt like 4.
Way to go AC FA's!
Cheers ;)
But I was most pleasantly surprised.
Time to bump this thread that I started to commend AC almost exactly a year ago. In the interim, I have had about a dozen flights on longhaul AC J, which were all about par, not really worth either commending or berating.
And then I flew last week LHR-YYZ on the 1500 departure. (I was originally booked on the 1300, and I was keeping track of the equipment which changed that morning from a 330 to a 340. A quick call to the TA and I was changed to the 1500 which was still a 330! (One of the joys of paid J I guess.) And it was rather exciting (;)) to be checked in by the now-familiar Kelvin, who I had a rather pleasant chat with.
At the boarding gate, I was amongst the last to board, and the 4 pax ahead of me all had upgrade certs to hand over to the GA. :eek: (Sorry, but as someone born and bred on European carriers, this still makes me go " :eek: ". :o )
Anyways the "fun" started right after boarding. One of the FA'a came with a tray of OJ and sparkling wine. I requested a glass of still water only. Her reply was, and I quote: "Just use the bottle of water in the seat pocket then." :eek: I was a little speechless, but decided to just ignore it. I did go to the galley to ask for an empty glass as I prefer to drink water from a glass, particularly when I need to swallow some pills.
A couple of minutes later the purser came with the menus. I had a quick look at it, and then she came back about 5 minutes later asking for the menu back. The reason being that they only had about 5 menus onboard to share among the entire J cabin. :rolleyes:
And it took about 30 minutes to find a (rather soiled, dog-eared) entertainment guide that I could use.
Lunch was quite good, and afterwards I asked for a cup of earl-grey tea.There wasn't any on board. Peppermint tea? Nope. All they had was the normal tea and some vanilla herb tea. And the now familiar scenario of no more ice-tea onboard as well.
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When it came to the 2nd meal service, I asked the FA what the choices were. I got a rather snippy response stating "I should look at the menu". Arrrggghhh, if only I had a menu to look at!!
Oh and the warmed nuts were not back! It was still that horrid little pack of olives or a packet of almonds.
All in all a rather poor performance by AC. I have long felt that AC made up (atleast on daytime flights) for it's inferior seating in J with it's superior inflight service. I find this deterioration in standards rather sad from a carrier that I have enjoyed flying with for many years.
P.S.: The Rapidair segments that I've done last week and this week have been great however, and I have been most impressed with the hot breakfast offering in J. ^
.
-4 types of freshly cut moist delicious cheeses. And all the trimmings including dried prunes, figs, dates, celery, carrots, crackers etc.
-
That's my favourite part of the service. In fact, on the late flight to LHR last month that's all I had. (And some port!)
I wonder if AC is trying to step up their service in international J Class to make up for the fact that they do not have sleeper beds, which everyone
else seems to have.
wob :rolleyes:
That's my favourite part of the service. In fact, on the late flight to LHR last month that's all I had. (And some port!)
It was mine too!
All the cheeses were great, but the Wensleydale with cranberries was quite out of this world. ^ Even superior to the "Stinky Bishop" we used to be served at college in Cambridge. ;)
That's my favourite part of the service. In fact, on the late flight to LHR last month that's all I had. (And some port!)
Me too. On late flights I often have the salad and the cheeses. Its nice to sleep without being full.
Flew YVR-LAX-YVR in J/D this week. Very gracious FAs, excellent service, fantastic main course for the meal, a salad that looked like regurgitated whale sperm and tasted as bad as I would imagine it to taste, ontime departures, early arrivals, clean plane. Perfect service.
well I did YVR/SFO/YVR a few weeks ago and the salad was just fine;fresh looking and tasty.
I often throw just hand back this excuse for food. It's a disgusting insult to even serve it. In spite of all the things that AC is doing right, this goat sh*t in a clear purple bowl is just so very very wrong.
I tried it on the ride down and handed it back as soon as I was given it on the ride up. I warned my seatmate about it, he handed it back as well after one taste.
I wonder if AC is trying to step up their service in international J Class to make up for the fact that they do not have sleeper beds, which everyone
else seems to have.
Do you mean "sleeper beds" as in the UA F int'l type pods, or "sleeper beds" as in horizontal life flat seats?
My only experience in J lately has been AC down to SXM in D. The flight was OK, the salads were disgusting, the main course Chicken or Beef (same in both directions) were OK. Dessert in both directions was a single chocolate. and no cheese and port. Considering they expect people to pay over $3000 for a J seat on these flights I would expect better.
On the rare occasions where I get to fly in a J section of an aircraft(BGI-LHR-MUC-SFO-LAS-and YVR) this year,the food and service have all been quite acceptable,IMO. :)
Try paying $900.00 on a RT YSB/YYZ where there is no J service (or all J service :p )and the inflight still wants $3.00 for some kind of breakfast thingy.
still wants $3.00 for some kind of breakfast thingy.
Would this be the whale sperm cereal? :D
, a salad that looked like regurgitated whale sperm and tasted as bad as I would imagine it to taste.
I often throw back this excuse for food. It's a disgusting insult to even serve it. In spite of all the things that AC is doing right, this goat sh*t in a clear purple bowl is just so very very wrong.
I agree that the service has improved. On a recent flight from Santiago to Toronto that was delayed, they presented us with a letter faxed from some AC VP offering an explanation, an apology and 4000 points. Although some thought the 4000 points was chintzy, I was very pleasantly surprised by their proactive attitude and action. That meant more to me than points.
Same here. The inflight service in J is unbeatable
Fresh looking and tasty? Oh, they didn't tell you? That wasn't salad. ;)
Flew YVR-LAX-YVR in J/D this week. Very gracious FAs, excellent service, fantastic main course for the meal, a salad that looked like regurgitated whale sperm and tasted as bad as I would imagine it to taste, ontime departures, early arrivals, clean plane. Perfect service.
Just flew some AC flights after a gap (of about 6 months). Based on some of the posts/threads here I was quite apprehensive and was debating about changing to another carrier. But I was most pleasantly surprised.
I wonder if AC is trying to step up their service in international J Class to make up for the fact that they do not have sleeper beds, which everyone
else seems to have.
Everyone... geezuz.
Ok, from someone who has flown AC J the last 40 flights (and not once or twice), it's pretty good. Yes, there are times where there was a frowning FA, a plastic fork, a malfunctioning AVOD, etc. So far they haven't jammed a knife up my a$$, just yet.
Well, despite the occasional palate-offending salad :p I have to say AC's in-flight J service continues to impress.
Over the last 50 segments and 100K flown miles, I can't even recall the last time I had anything but smiling, courteous and proactive service up front in 1C when PB isn't trying to steal my seat from me :D
I must argue that the service in J is terrible; I just flew Montreal-Frankfurt last night, my first time in AC J class, and the service was almost non-existent. My seatmate and I were both passed over on drinks service; he was given a hot towel, while I was not. The food - don't even bother going there, the caterer was on strike.
I slept as late as I could before landing, and with more that 30 minutes left to go in the flight, there was no coffee available when I woke - not good on an overnight flight.
The seats were well worn, but did afford a good 6 hours of ambien-induced slumber. All in all, I'd choose UA C over AC J, but due to the seats, I'd choose AC J over LH C.
Same here. The inflight service in J is unbeatable
Unbeatable is an over statement. Service on AC is not exceptional as it is on many other carriers.
I do enjoy J on AC however and it is much better than from 2001 to 2004.
But, the aircraft are getting in worse shape than ever. The 763 that I was on yesterday was one of the newer ones, but the purser was getting writers cramp from making notes in the cabin log book of all of the broken things on the aircraft. This included no airshow on the PTV and once the leg rest on my seat came up, it would not go back down (maybe it had some of Parnel's Viagra).
"Inflight service, food, and crew attitude was outstanding."
Have to agree. Flight over YYZ-LHR was ok but flight back was outstanding. Of course the flight over was a late night departure so can't fault them there for staying out of the way a bit more. On the way back, it was almost as if they anticipated my next brain wave and were there to remove dirty plates, fill water or wine, etc etc. VERY friendly crew, not just one person.
The only thing I could fault was the condition of the seats on the A330, they ARE coming apart at the seams. I have written AC on this but can live with a few bits of foam showing until they get their financials totally back on track.
I wonder if AC is trying to step up their service in international J Class to make up for the fact that they do not have sleeper beds, which everyone
else seems to have.
And if they are, then so what? If this is the case, then at least they are trying to make up for it (them, as in the crew).
I think the servide for AC has alway been good, its the planes that are crap!
I am going to YVR in J this week.... Hopefully my 763 won't be switched... to domestic crap.
In 2007 when AC has replace the seats our flying should improve!
PS Zontar.... AC did try some lay flat seats on the 345's they just did ZERO testing and bought crap seats!
Maybe she found you cute. :eek: :o ;) :D
Oh, they all find that to be true.. :D :p ;)
"Inflight service, food, and crew attitude was outstanding."
Have to agree. Flight over YYZ-LHR was ok but flight back was outstanding. Of course the flight over was a late night departure so can't fault them there for staying out of the way a bit more. On the way back, it was almost as if they anticipated my next brain wave and were there to remove dirty plates, fill water or wine, etc etc. VERY friendly crew, not just one person.
The only thing I could fault was the condition of the seats on the A330, they ARE coming apart at the seams. I have written AC on this but can live with a few bits of foam showing until they get their financials totally back on track.
Agree with BB mostly, YYZ-LHR is not the same as LHR-YYZ. The LHR depature tends to be better serviced and yes, the food quality is superior to ex-YYZ. Don't ask me why, I have no clue. The ground staff in LHR are British based, from my experience, and their attitude towards Business Class pax is more in line with the British attitude and seriousness about premium pax. Some would say they are more nervous or serious about their jobs. For example, once my pre-assigned seat on the upper deck of a 744 was bumped by an unknown VIP, I didn't know it at first so I wasn't happy why my pre-assigned seat was taken away. I only raised my tone a little bit at check-in, the next thing the staff did was telling her colleague besides her to get the concierge. In the meantime, she was being courteous and friendly and apologetic. I wasn't angry, just upset and surprised.
I had similar positive experiences last month overseas to/from EZE and on the domestic run to/from YEG in the front cabins, as well as the month before to/from MUC/FRA in the back! But me, I've always been compliant...
...
In 2007 when AC has replace the seats our flying should improve!!
You thing RJ's on most domestic flights is an improvement?
Domestic J is a joke. Salad in a plastic bowl still sealed. Usually no greens, as they do not keep. Last flight was a pathetic attempt at Greek salad. Lots of oil and mushy tomatoes, more like soup. And those rice bowls are unimaginative, but easy to prepare, flash freeze and reheat. Plating is simple, just dump upside down in the bowl.
What's with the plastic fork? Might as well use plastic spoon to complete the cheesy effect.
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Quite impressive AC inflight J service