Took AC 3117 from YYZ to YYC yesterday.

Scheduled departure time 10:00, scheduled arrival 12:10 (MDT) actual departure 3:45pm actual arrival 5:35pm MDT)

Damage Toll

3 Tango A320 Airplanes

Plane 1: Malfunctioning computer. AC Mechanics blow slide when they attempting to enter aircraft parked on apron (Pulled out of taxiway). Return to gate move from 212 to 208. “New” Tango plane waiting

Plane 2: Both Air Conditioning units broken when plane boarded. Takes ~45minites to fix. Wait ~20minutes for ground crew for push back. Entertained by professional musician who was on board with here flute. As we approach taxi way captain reports the plane is unit for travel. Return to gate move to gate 203

Plane3: “New” Tango aircraft waiting. Captain reports this airplane is excellent, but there are delays loading cargo. Finally depart YYZ nearly 6hours late. AC announces that a complimentary hot meal will be served.

Over the intercom the captain indicated that he had never had a day like this in 28years of flying.

The most amazing aspect of the whole thing was the understanding of the entire flight crew and passengers. Given what transpired all involved were very calm, and took the day in stride. Having said that there was no mention from AC for any reimbursment for the delays, and no ground staff meeting the plane to help the poor soles with connecting flights (long since departed).

I felt sorry for a lady behind me travelling for the first time in Canada that asked "is this common for Air Canada?" Ouch...

Gee, AC has really got into this discount carrier thing, haven't they?

Are you sure that was Tango? Sounds more like the main line service to me.

1D

Before or after T/O? I wonder (doubt) if Tango would carry enough meals for every pax if it wasn't planned.

Can you clarify a couple of points:

From the flight number, I assume this was an AC flight on CP metal/repainted Tango aircraft. Was the configuration the standard J/Y? Or was this a one class aircraft?
[All three aircraft.]

Why were you surprised that a complimentary hot meal was provided. This is always the case on AC daytime/evening longhauls. Unless you were booked Tango.

Sorry your day went so poorly. AC usually has this sort of thing happen on the YYZ-YEG route, not YYC!

Not anymore. A friend on mine flew on AC mainline YEG-YYZ and return last weekend and was only offered cold meals.

I booked the travel on AC metal.

All three planes carried the Tango livery but were Canadian planes with both F and Y seating (very strange given I thought Tango was on class) Perhaps these planes were advertising Tango. Since we were going through the planes so fast I'm sure they were spare planes that were underutilized at YYZ (They were able to get a new plane up to the gate within 15minutes of departing the last plane).

As for the meals, AC125 for YYC was boarding at gate next gate as our departing 15minites later (the last attempt at 3:00pm). The gate agent announced for the benefit on those flying 3117 a hot meal would be served. This either indicated that on the earlier flights no meal was planned or I took it to mean that we would get a meal where as those on 125 would not.

There must be something with Aibus yesterday... AC 7 to HKG was delayed for 13 hours. Glad I travelled one week earlier, otherwise, I would be on that flight!

I think AC originally painted 13 A320 in Tango colours. As we all know, Tango did not do as well as they planned so they most likely just held off converting those planes to all Y config which is why you still see some J/Y Tango flying around. Also, some routes to Florida is not scheduled to start until early December so no need to convert aircrafts for those route this early.

The aircraft are painted on a schedule to make sure that they are done on time and to also make sure that the paint bay is utilised to potential. Since it takes one week to paint each aircraft, they will have to get a little ahead of themselves to launch all of the aircraft ontime for Dec 15th. It would not surprise me to see a Tango flight operated with an aircraft in the old paint job, but the all Y seating.

[lets see, Oct?? plus 13 weeks, minus start-up date, divided by destinatins.... oops just ran out of fingers]

The conversion of J/Y to Y seating would likely take about 24 hours and maybe just overnight once they rolling. It would not be the limiting factor.

Then I wonder how come AC doesn't just reconfigure their aircraft before each flight. So if the flight is overbooked and J is wide open, they can just take some J seats out and put more Y seats in.

I know... stupid idea.

Empress:

I have worked with more than a few fresh minted MBA types who thought that way. The prize that we had to deal with regularily was Route Controllers that would want for example:
"I want a flight downgraded from B767 to A320 on YYZ to YUL". We would then ask what they wanted downgraded on the return? The reply more times than I could count was "Oh nothing, the loads are good coming back"

I believe Lufthansa has their inter-European fleet set up so that they can adjust C and Y seating capacity to meet the demands of the particular route the aircraft is flying. I'm not sure how often the seats are adjusted on each aircraft.

Easy to answer - they move the curtain further back.

On the left hand side of the plane, they try to keep the middle seat (3 + 3 configuration) "compressed" and seat just two passengers in them. Invariably, the flight is full and it is full three wide on both sides.

The seats are the same from back to front, just the people at the back of the bus don't get the sandwich.

Or the chocolate with the little plastic car!!

Ah, you remember the Audi TT offer? I think I still have a couple of "kits" from that. One of the fellows I was visting in the U.S. was buying a TT for himself, so he was tickled pink to get a little one for his desk.

The small tins of chocolate for Christmas are nice, too.