Infidel, Traitor.
Mar 7, 2012, 4:40 pm
#1
Original Member
Original Poster
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Vancouver, Canada
Posts: 6,222
Infidel, Traitor.
Loyalty.
Or the lack thereof.
When I first started flying CP, I always got the impression that they were truly loyal to me, both as a company as well as individual employees. I reciprocated. But in the early days of the new millenium I was assimilated into Air Canada. Loyalty? Not so much.
In fact I quickly came to realize that to Air Canada loyalty meant that if they thought they could make a few extra dollars by throwing passengers under a bus they'd quickly run out and buy a fleet of new busses.
But I was OK with that. So long as they offerred me my preferred perks (read: "upgrades") that I could reasonably expect to use in the future, I'd continue to fly them.
But I would still reciprocate. Which is to say that if I could guarantee an upgrade by throwing Air Canada under a bus, if not buying a new fleet of busses, I would at least try to rent one.
That's not to say I wouldn't pay to upgrade, and pay handsomely. In fact, I'd even pay outside of the flight in question, as I did last year between Christmas and New Year's Eve. I paid about $1300 for a 10K mileage run. That wasn't for status. No, it was for eUpgrade credits. I was at just over 50K, so 10K more does nothing for status. (Besides, if I was going for status, a 50K mileage run is NOT out of the question. For that matter, neither is a 100K mileage run.)
Rather I paid to fly an additional 10K to get me to 60K, and another 15 eUpdgrade credits. I suppose I could have waited until the new year. But as a lowly Elite, I have to get all the way to 20K, and then still only "earn" 10 eUpgrades. By doing it in December, I earned 3x as many eUpgrade per mile flown/dollar spent as I would in 2012. So yeah, I'll pay and pay handsomely, to upgrade. Or fly in J. Whatever. As long as it's a big seat.
But Air Canada had other plans. On my normal YVR-SYD run, I'm quite flexible in the quest for upgrades, in both directions. My dates are flexible, I'll pay a change fee or 3 (or 7) if I have to, and I'll even pay >$4000 for an M fare. Hell, I'd even pay over $6000 for a B/Latitude fare, so long as I could lock in upgrades.
But none were to be had. Sure, with J9 C9 D9 Z9 showing on some days, and J9 showing on lots of days (notwithstanding all the R0) I probably could have played Aerolotto, and I probably would have won. Probably. But for 6 grand, "probably" don't cut it. Homey don' play dat game. (And remember, with Aerolotto, you can't lose if you don't play.)
I suppose they might have instead earned a couple of LMUs, maybe even at the $1498 each way they had been going for. Maybe they might even sold them to someone who paid $3000 or more for their ticket. But if not (and that seems more "probable" than "if") they are money behind the over $6000 I would have paid.
Did I say "would have paid"? I should have said "did pay." I just didn't pay it to Air Canada. In fact I paid well over $6000 to rent a bus, figuratively speaking. I would have paid even more, maybe $7000 or even $7500, even though some of it would have come from my own pocket.
I flew a competent comfortable airline. I had a big comfortable seat. I had good IFE, meals, and all round experience. I arrived on time, rested and happy, in both directions. And my luggage arrived moments after I did.
Best of all, a mere 5 days after lamenting my last days of status as Super Elite, I get to contemplate my first days of status in a brave new world. Low, first tier status to be certain. But after only a single trip. And I have a minimum of 2 more identical trips, with the possiblity of a 4th trip this year. That's 100K easy. Combined with a minumum of 3 trips in the US, at about 8K each, that's about 125K. Add in one or two trips to Europe, and maybe one or two to NZ, well, the sky's the limit. Soon I'll once again be at the top of the heap. Not with Air Canada mind you. Not even with Star Alliance. Not even with oneworld, though I had considered it.
It will be Skyteam. Now I'm certain many will scoff and rant and rave and claim that Skyteam/Delta/et al are worse than an eternity in hell. I don't care (and I care even less about what others think.) What I do know is that I'll still be travelling to strange and distant places, in a seat of suitable size for my suitable girth. And that's all I really care about.
That $6,000 ka-ching $12,000 ka-ching $18,000 ka-ching ka-ching ka-ching could have easily been Air Canada's. It wouldn't really have cost them anything. All they had to do was either loosen up on the "R" reigns a bit earlier, or at least been transparent about the entire upgrade process.
Apparently they were busy shopping for busses.
Or the lack thereof.
When I first started flying CP, I always got the impression that they were truly loyal to me, both as a company as well as individual employees. I reciprocated. But in the early days of the new millenium I was assimilated into Air Canada. Loyalty? Not so much.
In fact I quickly came to realize that to Air Canada loyalty meant that if they thought they could make a few extra dollars by throwing passengers under a bus they'd quickly run out and buy a fleet of new busses.
But I was OK with that. So long as they offerred me my preferred perks (read: "upgrades") that I could reasonably expect to use in the future, I'd continue to fly them.
But I would still reciprocate. Which is to say that if I could guarantee an upgrade by throwing Air Canada under a bus, if not buying a new fleet of busses, I would at least try to rent one.
That's not to say I wouldn't pay to upgrade, and pay handsomely. In fact, I'd even pay outside of the flight in question, as I did last year between Christmas and New Year's Eve. I paid about $1300 for a 10K mileage run. That wasn't for status. No, it was for eUpgrade credits. I was at just over 50K, so 10K more does nothing for status. (Besides, if I was going for status, a 50K mileage run is NOT out of the question. For that matter, neither is a 100K mileage run.)
Rather I paid to fly an additional 10K to get me to 60K, and another 15 eUpdgrade credits. I suppose I could have waited until the new year. But as a lowly Elite, I have to get all the way to 20K, and then still only "earn" 10 eUpgrades. By doing it in December, I earned 3x as many eUpgrade per mile flown/dollar spent as I would in 2012. So yeah, I'll pay and pay handsomely, to upgrade. Or fly in J. Whatever. As long as it's a big seat.
But Air Canada had other plans. On my normal YVR-SYD run, I'm quite flexible in the quest for upgrades, in both directions. My dates are flexible, I'll pay a change fee or 3 (or 7) if I have to, and I'll even pay >$4000 for an M fare. Hell, I'd even pay over $6000 for a B/Latitude fare, so long as I could lock in upgrades.
But none were to be had. Sure, with J9 C9 D9 Z9 showing on some days, and J9 showing on lots of days (notwithstanding all the R0) I probably could have played Aerolotto, and I probably would have won. Probably. But for 6 grand, "probably" don't cut it. Homey don' play dat game. (And remember, with Aerolotto, you can't lose if you don't play.)
I suppose they might have instead earned a couple of LMUs, maybe even at the $1498 each way they had been going for. Maybe they might even sold them to someone who paid $3000 or more for their ticket. But if not (and that seems more "probable" than "if") they are money behind the over $6000 I would have paid.
Did I say "would have paid"? I should have said "did pay." I just didn't pay it to Air Canada. In fact I paid well over $6000 to rent a bus, figuratively speaking. I would have paid even more, maybe $7000 or even $7500, even though some of it would have come from my own pocket.
I flew a competent comfortable airline. I had a big comfortable seat. I had good IFE, meals, and all round experience. I arrived on time, rested and happy, in both directions. And my luggage arrived moments after I did.
Best of all, a mere 5 days after lamenting my last days of status as Super Elite, I get to contemplate my first days of status in a brave new world. Low, first tier status to be certain. But after only a single trip. And I have a minimum of 2 more identical trips, with the possiblity of a 4th trip this year. That's 100K easy. Combined with a minumum of 3 trips in the US, at about 8K each, that's about 125K. Add in one or two trips to Europe, and maybe one or two to NZ, well, the sky's the limit. Soon I'll once again be at the top of the heap. Not with Air Canada mind you. Not even with Star Alliance. Not even with oneworld, though I had considered it.
It will be Skyteam. Now I'm certain many will scoff and rant and rave and claim that Skyteam/Delta/et al are worse than an eternity in hell. I don't care (and I care even less about what others think.) What I do know is that I'll still be travelling to strange and distant places, in a seat of suitable size for my suitable girth. And that's all I really care about.
That $6,000 ka-ching $12,000 ka-ching $18,000 ka-ching ka-ching ka-ching could have easily been Air Canada's. It wouldn't really have cost them anything. All they had to do was either loosen up on the "R" reigns a bit earlier, or at least been transparent about the entire upgrade process.
Apparently they were busy shopping for busses.
Mar 7, 2012, 4:53 pm
#5
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Charlottetown, PE YYG
Programs: AC*SE, Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium
Posts: 303
Show Delta your Air Canada Elite Status - and you will be Gold immediately. Not even a challenge... PM me if you need details on contact info.
R space is beyond annoying - I've said my rants over and over. Next week I'm still waitlisted for flights to/from YVR (which I might not even be able to take because we are being held hostage by the Union on March break)... J, C, are all 9's... R is 0 and I'm still waitlisted as an SE. Like you - I would have bought a Latitude fare - but even 2 weeks prior to the flights R was 0.
R space is beyond annoying - I've said my rants over and over. Next week I'm still waitlisted for flights to/from YVR (which I might not even be able to take because we are being held hostage by the Union on March break)... J, C, are all 9's... R is 0 and I'm still waitlisted as an SE. Like you - I would have bought a Latitude fare - but even 2 weeks prior to the flights R was 0.
Mar 7, 2012, 5:00 pm
#7
Join Date: Dec 2010
Programs: UA MP
Posts: 768
You're comparing non-stop vs. one stop. Yes AC 33/34 commands a premium for having the non-stop flight and in this case, AC lost you as a customer. No argument here.
On the flip side, BA lost me as a customer by trying to charge a ridiculous amount for SEA-LHR non-stop. BA's loss was AC's gain.
On the flip side, BA lost me as a customer by trying to charge a ridiculous amount for SEA-LHR non-stop. BA's loss was AC's gain.
Mar 7, 2012, 5:10 pm
#8
Original Member
Original Poster
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Vancouver, Canada
Posts: 6,222
Mar 7, 2012, 5:25 pm
#9
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: YVR
Programs: AC*SE MM, Marriott Lifetime Titanium
Posts: 4,604
Mar 7, 2012, 6:54 pm
#14
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: YVR
Programs: AC*SE MM, Marriott Titanium, National Executive
Posts: 1,586
Mar 7, 2012, 7:09 pm
#15
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2000
Posts: 12,068
Just to add a little of my own noise,I am 8/8 on E upgrades for 2012. Two ultra long haul flights opened at 7 day window,transcons were good at day 7,recent Florida r/t was at day 7 ,with mom^, and rapidair flights no issue.
I was even able to upgrade 2 nominees at 7 day window on TPlus fares YYZ/YVR and they are non status holders with AC, Late February
I have yet to fly YVR/SYD r/t (cannot do so until Mrs.acysb87 comes with me) but appreciate OP making seat available for me
I was even able to upgrade 2 nominees at 7 day window on TPlus fares YYZ/YVR and they are non status holders with AC, Late February
I have yet to fly YVR/SYD r/t (cannot do so until Mrs.acysb87 comes with me) but appreciate OP making seat available for me