Originally Posted by
canadiancow
But anyway, to reiterate, I'm willing to pay a premium on AC because AC rewards me. I know that if I want to fly somewhere in a few weeks, I can buy a Flex fare, and probably upgrade it. And as long as that remains true, AC can have all* my business, including premium products (flight passes, paid J, etc.).
Originally Posted by
ridefar
AC has had plenty of opportunity to reduce the amount of J domestically. In addition to the wishful thinking of millions of FTers, there must be good evidence within AC to show that offering flyers the possibility of upgrades drives lots of incremental revenue, or they wouldn't do it.
I think you are engaged in very wishful thinking. AC is most definitely going to smaller J cabins (probably wisely) and has calculated the incremental rev from FFers isn't worth it - hence the effective removal of international upgrades from E50s/E75s:
- The 787 J cabins are significantly smaller than the 767s they replace.
- IMO the 777s will be cut from 42J to around 30J when the new business class seat is installed
- Increased "Rogueing" of routes effectively further reduces J as a % of capacity
Canada is (with a few exceptions) a low yield market and AC will continue to shrink J cabins and shrink the ability of FFers to upgrade. All FFers other than SEs have largely given up on any hope of upgrading. AC has obviously not been hurt financially - the next logical step is to do the same with SEs