BlondeBomber

Well I decided that yesterday would be another normal flying day.

I had a 7:30 AM flight, YYC-YEG. I had rearranged my day after a cancelled meeting and left home early (5:45) to catch a 6:30 am flight. Got to the airport at 6:10 and checked in at the kiosk, standing by for next flight (which appeared to be 7:00 am). Security line was normal (1 person ahead).

Asked at the AC desk about the 6:30 flight and they said there was no 6:30 flight (monitors showed 6:30 flight left on time but no staff could find out where it was).

They took my 7:30 boarding card (yellow) and immediately gave me one for the 7:00 am flight (no standing by) without checking my photo id. That gave me lots of time to go to the MLL. Was greeted with a friendly hello Mr. Wallis as I opened the door (nice to be recognized). We discussed operations and it seems that it is very hit and miss. Some flights are very full while others are ghost ships. The common wisdom was that bookings will continue to decline short term (I hope they are wrong).

Had breakfast. Usual good selection--good juices (not fresh but not canned either--good concentrate); yogurt; cereal; french pastries; bagels and cream cheese/jam; fresh fruit that tasted fresh.

Ran into an old friend from a Chamber of Commerce committee who said life was back to normal, continuing to travel all over. Feeling much better, back in the groove.

Boarded flight at 6:45 am (Dash 8-300), no request for photo id. Flight was pretty full like normal, only a few empty seats, including one next to me in the first row where they put the newspapers for people to pick up on the way in. 2D is great on this plane as there is tons of leg room. Flight left on time but we got stuck in a long line of flights all taking off at same time. Finally airborne at 7:30 AM (this is often the case at Calgary). Catch a little shut eye. Smooth ride. On the ground in Edmonton at 8:10 AM. Do the long walk from the old terminal over to car rental counter. Check in with Hertz Gold Counter and, as usual, I am out of there in less than a minute.

Spend a productive day in Edmonton. Head back to the airport and arrive 3:15 pm. Drop my car off at Hertz, head to kiosk. I am booked on 7 PM flight so request standby on next flight (4 PM). Go to security. They say (as normal) that my flight (7 PM) leaves from other terminal--but they ask if I am standing by for another flight. I say yes. This time I am carrying a laptop. Passes through the xray machine but no one asks for direct inspection. I also discovered later that I had a metal rat-tailed comb in my briefcase (have been looking for that thing for a month) that had slid down into a hidden position. Nothing said about it either.

Go straight to the MLL with my yellow boarding card. They ask for photo id. Have a Big Rock Trad on tap and some cashews while I am catching up on e-mail at one of the 3 new black IBM NetVista computer stations in the bar area. Everything seems normal here (except for the new computers).

Get to the gate at 3:40 pm. They call my name. I go to the counter and they ask if I am standing by. I say yes and they request my boarding card. Flight starts to board children and assistance passengers first. They call all standby passengers to the podium. I get my card. They announce SEs, Elites, J class and I go to board. Obviously there is a flag on my card as when they scan it, they request photo id. The gate agent says that the lounge should have taken the reqest for photo id off. No problem, show my licence and off I go. Seated in middle seat in the back (I can live, its only a 35 minute flight). Flight is packed. I only counted 3 empty seats in the back of this 737.

Seems normal. One passenger is trying to defy the laws of physics (well at least of physical measurement) by trying to stuff an 18"x24"X18" case through a 16" opening (overhead bin). Others also try to help but eventually common sense prevails and FA takes the bag to the front cabin for stowage--now how did this guy get this big sucker on anyway?

Normal service for this short flight. Coffee or orange juice. Have another power nap. Land on schedule in Calgary at 4:45 PM. Off the plane and out to Park N Fly shuttle; home by 5:45 due to slow rush hour traffic.

Pretty boring huh (ie back to normal). If you have been thinking of flying (and like flying) and are holding back--don't! I think there will be a few more inconveniences in the short run but, if yesterday was any indication, there are no lengthy delays, no major restrictions on carryon etc. Security is as hit and miss as always but at least there some heightened awareness. Air Canada service seems OK, with no major reduction in quality, on-time performance etc.

If you want to keep the economy going, don't retrench now. Get out and spend. Don't blame someone else 3 months later. The less your life is normal now, the more abnormal it will become months down the road.

BlondeBomber

I should add. This is normal for domestic (Canada) flying but understand transborder may be different--I am giving that a shot at end of October and hope that it too will be "normal" by then.

International should be OK from what I hear.

InTheAirGuy

I dunno what the heck you are talking about. I'm in YYZ domestic MLL...and there ain't a ****ed cashew, peanut or pretzel in site.

I mean, there's apples, bananas and other ilk. But I can't find the baggies of pretzels or cashews or almonds or anything anywhere!!!!

What are they doing, hiding these things?
(-'

Old Flyer

Flew YVR - YEG on Saturday, back Monday. Like BB, found everything almost normal. No lines, no baggage searches, photo ID at check in and a question about electronic equipment (razor, camera, cell phone). Both a/c had about a 40% load, lighter in J. There were only 3 in J on the 737 and one of those was a CA.

A very relaxed check-in agent at YVR suggested I go to the "Empress" lounge. She was obviously not from AC lineage. Both lounges were well supplied but the YEG lounge was a little unkempt. The staff members remained "behind the door", probably discussing the future of AC.

The only surprise was that the priority luggage tags worked. My bag was waiting for me in YEG, along with 3 other red tags. In YVR my bag was #2 to hit the carousel.

catgirl

Just returned Sunday from a 6-day jaunt through the American Midwest - Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. I flew out on the 18th, exactly one week after the terror attack. I must admit that I was anxious about this trip, and I've flown regularly for years (grew up with a pilot father!) And I must share what many of you are relating as well - I really didn't have anything to worry about! Yes, security was tighter - Ft. Wayne IN actually made me remove my belt before I went through security, and then they ripped the "file" off my nail clippers - but I'm okay with greater security. I also had to renew my visa in Toronto (I travel under a TN visa that lets me conduct business in the US and it needs to be renewed annually), and that took me longer than usual - instead of the usual 20 minutes, it took me 1-1/2 hours, but I spent most of that time waiting for them to get to me. Taking that trip was the best thing that I could've done for myself, it allowed me to confront my fears head on - sometimes dusting yourself off and getting right back on that bike is the way to go! The people I worked with all the cities I visited were the same warm, friendly people I've always worked with. I didn't do anything differently than I would have done pre-September 11.

So for those of you hesitating (as I was), don't let the events of September 11 stop you from doing what it is that you have to do! Get back on that bike!

BlondeBomber

Now that's the kind of story I love to hear catgirl!!

InTheAirGuy

Well, I'll admit when I got to YYZ today, I could smell the jet-fuel in the air from the parking lot -- and it was a positive smell! I liked it. It was reassuring...part of the process in coming back to normal.

And there were almonds in the MLL in Ottawa! And pretzels! Joy to behold!

InTheAirGuy

Ok, so I'm over my almonds hangup.

In any event, YYZ-YOW today was quite uneventul, with the exception that my 12:00 was cancelled. I really didn't have anything different in security here or there (I travel with a laptop; no suitcase since it was a day trip); no standy problems; indeed, I wouldn't have thought that things had changed had I a) not had those horrid memories in mind and b) noticing that a few AC seemed down in the dumps with today's announcements.

The point is -- I think that travel is going to come back quicker than people think. All one needs to do is one flight, and much of the concern dissipates.....and I think people will recover quickly.

Shareholder

Just got off the phone with AC. Call picked up on first redirected ring. Told agent destination [YEG], dates for going and returning, and that I wanted a V-class fare. In less than a minute I had my confirmed booking, gave my Aeroplan number, and the upgrades processed and seats assigned. Ticketing arranged automatically for the 4th, travelling on the 11th October. The fare, just $150 more than the Q-class fare quoted on the web site. Things are back to normal: fast, efficient, and beneficial for elites.

Andrew Yiu

You're right Shareholder... I called the SE desk this afternoon to make a change to my ticket and everything seems back to normal except that the agents seems to be more friendly now... or I was just lucky to get a good one today.

SimonC

Speaking of friendly - I was on a flight from SFO to YYZ this morning and had to compliment the Exec Class flight attendants on their attitude - they were happy and smiling and made the trip a real pleasure - I made sure they knew I thought that their attitude was refreshing given so many other FA's these days.

On the other hand SFO was a mess - AC only had 3 staff on the desks to check in - lineups were long ... even Exec Class took 1 hour for about 15 people. They finally had more staff added about 1/2 hour before flight time (maybe they realized flyers would not get on the flight?) - then to security where the lineup was down the South Terminal - but at least that was fast.

But wow - those FAs on this flight were fantastic - I hope it is a sign of things to come - but I am hesitant to get too optimistic.

SimonC

Chiangi

I took AC 2 from Tokyo to Toronto on Friday. The business class was fairly full with only four or five seats vacant. One of the crew told me she was surprised to see it rather full.

I am not a frequent AC flyer so I cannot tell how exactly the load was. The economy cabin was fairly empty, a check-in agent told me. A guy who took AC 1, the other way around just after the attack, said the business class was close to empty, he and a few others.

I was pleasantly surprised their Airbus aicraft was equipped with on-demand video. Pity that they don't have a noise cancelling head phone. The Japanese food was better (but not good enough) out of Tokyo, rather than out of Toronto, which was horrible. I took AC 1 in August.

At Pearson, immigration control was tight. They seem to have caught all Japanese male adult passeners travelling alone. (Profiling was easy from the line in which I was, too. ) We were all guided to another room after we passed the passport control. After this another room, the luggage pickup area and then further line for some 'select' people, me among them, for thorough luggage check. Surprised to see they were also doing this thorough checks on some cabin crew from AC.

As a result of the schedule reduction, AC2 lost legal connections to NYC and ORD, at least, one of the two locations I wanted to get to on the day. Naturally, with all these procedures, I did not make it. We arrived 30 minutes early, so if it were normal, I am fairly certain I would have made it to one of the flights.