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Air Canada rouge Flight Report and Feedback Thread

Old Aug 14, 2014, 5:11 pm
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This thread is for Air Canada rouge flight reports and feedback after flying rouge, not a general debate thread about the rouge brand, staff, equipment, etc. which should be directed to the master rouge thread which is here.
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Air Canada rouge Flight Report and Feedback Thread

Old Sep 26, 2018, 8:16 pm
  #136  
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Toronto
Programs: BA Exec Club - Demoted to Bronze and re-promoted to Silver alongside AC Elite 50K (gold) in 2022
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I admire the sentiment of the author in soliciting (free) (and) critical feedback on the Rouge product. In the suggested template of things to feed back on, the seat comfort is conspicuously absent! I assume this is as Rouge know the pitch and width in coach (in particular) is poor AND they're not going to do anything about it.
The reality (and hard dollar facts) are a mainline 767 seats and a rouge 767 are 24/187 = 211 vs 24/36/219 = 279 or 32% more seats on rouge, On a A319, 14/106 = 120 vs 12/8/116 = 136 or 13% more on rouge, and on a A321 14/169 = 183 vs 16/21/163 = 200 or 9% more on rouge. Neatly, only the 767 needs one more crew member and so the sums for AC clearly add up. Add the other ingredient of lower cabin crew costs (lower wages and T&Cs) AND then assuming the occupancy is as high as mainline AC then the company are real winners. I accept that this not a match for match comparison on the 767 where Premium Rouge seats are not pods.
I had to add I have never used rouge and actually steer clear. I have flown to europe twice hubbing via london that take a direct flight with Rouge - bloody minded, probably! Its also puzzling how a route from Vancouver (say to Dublin) is Rouge but is mainline from Toronto.

In terms of un-rouging, I think Bernuda was first where the governement objected to the service to Bermuda being downgraded. Dublin has gone back mainline (and put onto a A330) which I suspect is to match Aer Lingus.

I know from friends who work in AC that the company thrilled with Rouge - it's a shame the customers don't always see it the same way
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Old Sep 26, 2018, 8:30 pm
  #137  
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Originally Posted by j2simpso
Just thought I'd post this quick write up before it escapes my memory (I flew this nearly 2 weeks ago) - to summarize:
  • Ground Service : Surprisingly, AC treats Rogue flights like any other AC flight for the purpose of *A status. I was able to check in my 2 bags at the J pavilion at YYZ thanks to my UA Gold status (each bag was tagged priority as well). Upon clearing security I was able to get into the MLL and eat something, take a shower, and do some work prior to the flight. Similarly, I was granted priority boarding (Zone 2) allowing me to cut into the kettles just before they were to board!
  • In Flight Experience:
    • Aircraft : The flight was serviced by a 767 which was probably delivered to AC before the Cosby show was on the air!
    • General : Cabin crew consisted of mainly teenagers many of whom appeared to have one too many red bulls!
    • Meals: No booze (fortunately I pre-drank in the MLL before boarding) and meals seemed to be on the light side with limited variety (i.e. 2-3 options to choose from)
    • Seat : Easily the biggest drawback of the flight. At first they didn't feel or look that bad to sit on. After an hour of sitting on them I felt a pain in the rear I haven't felt even on long-haul flights in Y with UA (i.e. my 14 hour flight to NRT). It's not really a case of not enough leg room as I always find a way to stretch my legs out one way or another, it's just that the seats are plane nasty to sit on for long periods of time. They make the Ricaro slimline seats feel like they're made out of real Corinthian leather.
    • AVOD : There was a decent sized touch screen entertainment system which had some recent films and TV shows (i.e. Season 5 of Silicon Valley). However, I spent most of my time using my iPad or working on my MacBook
    • Wifi : No wifi service was offered on this flight
  • Other: An interesting quirk of flying Rogue is you earn a 25% class of service bonus on RDM when crediting miles to UA (totalling 75% milage on my K fare)
Would I fly them again?
Depends on the length of the flight and alternatives. For these short haul flights (i.e. < 7 hours) it's fine, but I couldn't stand flying this thing medium-long haul (i.e. YVR to KIX)! If this were operated by another non-*A airline (i.e. WS) then the answer would be hell no regardless of distance or price - the *A Gold perks made up for much of the suckiness of the flight! The additional RDM thanks to the UA glitch certainly made this whole experience a slightly less bitter pill to swallow. One thing that escapes me is that in spite of it being a discount brand of AC, the fare I paid for YYZ -> MAN on Rogue was about the same as the fare I paid for the return (LHR -> YYZ) on AC mainline. Furthermore, I managed to snag an open jaw LHR -> LAX, EWR -> LHR for $515 CAD on UA mainline which gives me access to E+ seating and all the other benefits that befell a UA elite (which was around $200 CAD less than I paid for this YYZ -> MAN, LHR -> YYZ open jaw).

It should be noted that this route offers PE called Premium Rogue. The main difference here is supposedly the seats are more comfortable to sit in and they'll offer you booze. Unfortunately, the cheapest upgrade option I saw was over $340 CAD via BidUpgrade which IMHO is too much to pay for such a minor upgrade on a short flight (that was also the least you could bid, so there was also a chance that you'll not win the bid!) To give you some perspective on upgrades, I spent $500 USD last year to upgrade a ORD -> HNL flight to F on UA. For that money I got to be seated on a lie flat seat for 10+ hours, be served a couple of meals and earn double PQM to boot! Similarly I spent $700 USD last year to upgrade FRA -> YYZ on LH which allowed me to sit upper deck on a 747 with lie flat seats and 5 course meal service, access the LH lounge (I was *A Kettle then), earn double PQM and RDM for a 8 hour flight!

Apologies for not having any photos to share. I suspect if you Google tacky aircraft interiors you'll likely find numerous photos of the Rogue 767

Safe Travels,

James
I had no idea booze was only available in Y on North American flights.
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Old Sep 27, 2018, 8:11 am
  #138  
 
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Originally Posted by j2simpso

It should be noted that this route offers PE called Premium Rogue. The main difference here is supposedly the seats are more comfortable to sit in and they'll offer you booze.
PE Rouge is more than a free booze and more comfortable. Seat is similar to NA Business Class; you get one NA Business Class quality meal and free booze; free iPad. While it's not that much and the price someone is ready to pay for that is quite debatable, I personally think it was a reasonnable offer.

...and let's call it by its name it's ROUGE not ROGUE. I get the joke and it's all over this forum. However, I don't think it's appropriate to just change the name and act like it's normal given the signification of the word.
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Old Sep 27, 2018, 8:27 am
  #139  
 
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Location: Toronto, ON
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Originally Posted by j2simpso
Rogue


Originally Posted by j2simpso
Meals: No booze (fortunately I pre-drank in the MLL before boarding) and meals seemed to be on the light side with limited variety (i.e. 2-3 options to choose from)
Booze is available in Y on rouge, you just have to pay for it. 2 options for a Y meal is standard on most airlines, if you had 3 options, that's pretty good

Originally Posted by j2simpso
AVOD : There was a decent sized touch screen entertainment system which had some recent films and TV shows (i.e. Season 5 of Silicon Valley). However, I spent most of my time using my iPad or working on my MacBook
rouge does not offer seatback IFE Did you confuse their ipad as AVOD? or did the aircraft actully have seatback IFE - which would mean they never fully reconfigured that FIN.
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Old Sep 27, 2018, 10:53 am
  #140  
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Originally Posted by ChrisA330
Booze is available in Y on rouge, you just have to pay for it. 2 options for a Y meal is standard on most airlines, if you had 3 options, that's pretty good
Actually, after his post, I went to the rouge site to check it out, because it seemed odd to me too.

Enjoy a complimentary hot meal, non-alcoholic beverages and tasty snacks when travelling to Europe, South America, Africa or Asia. On our flights within Canada, to the U.S. and to Sun destinations, a selection of snacks, hot and cold meals and alcoholic beverages are available for purchase. And of course, non-alcoholic beverages are always on us.
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Old Nov 30, 2018, 2:24 pm
  #141  
 
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[searches FT emoji for loudly crying face]
[doesn't find it]
Just rolled the dreaded "butter" chicken in the Rouge lottery.
I wish that item would go away.


(Why did I not have the other entree? Because it had more allergens in it.)
On the other hand, the tiny plastic bottles of wine were gone and glass bottles were back.


Last edited by flyquiet; Nov 30, 2018 at 8:24 pm Reason: add picture
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Old Dec 24, 2018, 5:38 pm
  #142  
 
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On the ground, a FA approached me to speak at me without any notes (recall I am deaf) and from the context, I surmised she was confirming that, and I caught her asking if I wanted a safety briefing, and I said no, and she said "have you flown with us before?" (Seriously, I do not expect fawning and thanks for being an Altitude member or anything, but can't you familiarize yourself with the manifest to see if you have any FF? There were only FOUR people in J - to start. See later.) I said, only 60,000 miles this year, and she said okay and departed.

No PDB (just water these days, but I was thirsty and wanted it) until I asked for it. There were just a couple bottles left on seats from the inbound flight. No menus for anyone until I asked this.

Then the senior FA came around also just talking at me without notes and asked me something, which I guessed was food but in fact it was drinks. I said red wine and she (without notes) named a bunch of varieties she expected me to lipread. I just guessed something I thought she might have and off she went.

One or the other of them made a round of the cabin handing out cold foil packs of nuts. No proper warm nuts.

Well then, she went back to Y and brought up a family of three people, and proceeded to feed them drinks and the meal. They looked familiar to each other but that was just my impression. I had half a mind to say, why don't you bring up my Mr FQ and FQ Jr from back there too? Prior to these folks, there were 20 empty seats. I mean, my family isn't entitled to J seats (I passed on the $160/person USD LMU) but neither were they. If these people were entitled, why didn't the GA give them J boarding passes?

Meanwhile, my drink (ordered earlier) did not get delivered until my meal tray arrived and I said "do you have my drink?" (The family, meanwhile, is kicking it with mixed drinks and meals.)

I received a stale and not warm bread roll (no choice of white or brown) and although my tray was eventually removed, I was not offered any more beverage. The glass was left on my tray table until the aircraft landed, and nobody checked if any seats were upright or the trays retracted. They were just hiding in the galley the whole way.

All in all NOT a stellar outing with me for ACr today.
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Old Dec 24, 2018, 5:45 pm
  #143  
 
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Originally Posted by flyquiet
[searches FT emoji for loudly crying face]
[doesn't find it]
Just rolled the dreaded "butter" chicken in the Rouge lottery.
I wish that item would go away.
I agree with you because sometimes I would like to enjoy something other than the pasta.
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Old Dec 24, 2018, 6:38 pm
  #144  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
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YYZ-MIA the FAs got into an argument because one of them seemed to have screwed up meal selection (half of whom she wrote had wanted fruit had ordered omelette and vice versa, making the FA delivering look disoriented). It was pretty uncomfortable to watch them bicker and the second FA was getting pax to read what the first FA wrote on the list.

But when the movie selection sucks, it makes for good in flight entertainment.
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Old Dec 25, 2018, 7:50 am
  #145  
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
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Originally Posted by flyquiet
On the ground, a FA approached me to speak at me without any notes (recall I am deaf) and from the context, I surmised she was confirming that, and I caught her asking if I wanted a safety briefing, and I said no, and she said "have you flown with us before?" (Seriously, I do not expect fawning and thanks for being an Altitude member or anything, but can't you familiarize yourself with the manifest to see if you have any FF? There were only FOUR people in J - to start. See later.) I said, only 60,000 miles this year, and she said okay and departed.

No PDB (just water these days, but I was thirsty and wanted it) until I asked for it. There were just a couple bottles left on seats from the inbound flight. No menus for anyone until I asked this.

Then the senior FA came around also just talking at me without notes and asked me something, which I guessed was food but in fact it was drinks. I said red wine and she (without notes) named a bunch of varieties she expected me to lipread. I just guessed something I thought she might have and off she went.

One or the other of them made a round of the cabin handing out cold foil packs of nuts. No proper warm nuts.

Well then, she went back to Y and brought up a family of three people, and proceeded to feed them drinks and the meal. They looked familiar to each other but that was just my impression. I had half a mind to say, why don't you bring up my Mr FQ and FQ Jr from back there too? Prior to these folks, there were 20 empty seats. I mean, my family isn't entitled to J seats (I passed on the $160/person USD LMU) but neither were they. If these people were entitled, why didn't the GA give them J boarding passes?

Meanwhile, my drink (ordered earlier) did not get delivered until my meal tray arrived and I said "do you have my drink?" (The family, meanwhile, is kicking it with mixed drinks and meals.)

I received a stale and not warm bread roll (no choice of white or brown) and although my tray was eventually removed, I was not offered any more beverage. The glass was left on my tray table until the aircraft landed, and nobody checked if any seats were upright or the trays retracted. They were just hiding in the galley the whole way.

All in all NOT a stellar outing with me for ACr today.
This needs reporting to AC. Aside from the treatment you received being inexcusable, upgrading friends from Y is a big no-no, and ignoring cabin checks cannot be allowed to go unreported.
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Old Dec 26, 2018, 2:04 pm
  #146  
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Originally Posted by fin 645

This needs reporting to AC. Aside from the treatment you received being inexcusable, upgrading friends from Y is a big no-no, and ignoring cabin checks cannot be allowed to go unreported.
The one time I reported an onboard upgrade, the response was "everyone in J was entitled to be there". I'm amused how they knew who was in J given that this person clearly wasn't on the manifest.
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Old Dec 27, 2018, 8:32 am
  #147  
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I am booked on ACr 1724 on 12/29/18 from YUL to BGI. AE tickets for both Mrs.acysb87 and myself
Booked way back (July) and seats confirmed. Re-confirmed seats November 21st when schedule changed on return portion ,YYZ/YSB
Confirming seats before check in today(tomorrow flights to YUL) and note that AC 1724 has now had an aircraft change from a 763 to a 763. (AEs words)
My original 4A-C window aisle seats are now 4D-F center aisle for both.

Best laid plans gone for naught.
A copper lining ,still in premium scRouge

P.S. 1st of 8 scRouge flights booked in next 8 weeks.
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Old Jan 7, 2019, 11:42 am
  #148  
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ACr did not disappoint. Filthy seats
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Old Jun 7, 2019, 3:03 pm
  #149  
 
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Surprisingly nice AC Rouge Business - a decent premium economy service

My wife and I were looking for a relatively inexpensive but comfortable way to fly to Venice and back for a vacation -- foodie trip in the Veneto and Trentino and then 3 days for her to see the Biennale. Searching for fares, I found a very low fare on AC premium economy. When we ticketed, I saw that it was AC Rouge Business. I haven't flown Rouge but have seen quite a few complaints, so I was ready for the worst. I only flew the return as I living the life of a consultant, I had to fly to Stockholm on the way to Venice and met my wife in Venice. The return was a very nice premium economy service. There was enough leg room. 2-2-2 configuration on a 767. My wife said on the way over it was 2-4-2 and obviously less nice if you were in the middle of the 4. The roundtrip airfare was low $700 or $800 USD. My expectations were exceeded by quite a bit. I'd fly again.
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Old Jun 7, 2019, 3:09 pm
  #150  
 
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Getting cold frosty and popcrorn to enjoy this...been a long time since I heard or read that someone liked rogue....in Canada...freinds don't let friends fly Rouge....
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