CloudsBelow

And if you could, would probably cost a couple hundred dollars.

WestonC

I tried so hard not to reply to this thread but I will to your first paragraph. I have no idea what part of the city of Fort McMurray you live in to know this but there WAS a life or death need to depart early. The city was filled with toxic smoke and people need to get out. The highways were packed. The city has elderly people and disabled people. This alone made it life or death. To tell me that it was not life or death as I drove my family out which included a 2 year old and my parents of 78 and 79 year olds is an absolute insult. I don't know if you were there when the flames were on either side of my vehicle or as we watched my dear friends house erupt in flames right beside me. I don't know if you were there as I watched a mother in the vehicle next to me giving her son a puffer so he could breathe while the black smoke filled the car. I don't know if you were there the first couple of days when I pulled my handicapped friend from her home as she nearly suffocated from smoke. I was! And it was a life or death to get out of the situation right from the beginning. Perhaps you were there or you weren't. But don't insult those people who were in a life or death situation even before thé official evacuation.

About pricing. Well. A few days after I got out from this hellish ordeal I had to ring both WestJet and Air Canada to change some flights for myself and relatives.

WS - " no problem sir, where would you like to depart/arrive from?" And the flights were changed on the spot with the option of a full refund if I wanted to cancel and no other fees. When told I also needed to book 2 flights for the next day "no problem sir, and we will give you 25% off the fare since you are departing Alberta."

AC - "of course I can make those changes for you sir but there will be a change fee and difference in price". When indicating that YMM is closed. AC - "I am sorry sir but those are the rules for the airfare purchased". That is the différence between AC and WS.

And I know I must apologize ahead of time for sounding angry but please stop the insults to us evacuees; to all of the airlines who helped or were chartered by oil companies to get people out and to each other in this forum. There are always great discussions in here and I know we also like to rant. But how about acknowledging some of the good in the world for just a day or two. The fire fighters and the nurses and first responders are being called heroes. My heroes are the people giving me discounts, the flight attendants comforting us onboard, the volunteers all across Canada who are helping us. And the people who just give an ear to hear our stories. A hug goes a long way and I have personally received hugs for. Both WS and AC employees. The world is actually a really good place.

CloudsBelow

Are bus/train operators lowering fares?
Rental car companies offering reduced/free car rentals to people who need to evacuate but don't own cars?

Gas stations offering cheaper gas to fill the cars evacuating the city?

How about in the arriving cities? ... Hotels offering free rooms to evacuees?

superangrypenguin

Glad to hear you and your family evacuated safely!

WestonC

VIA rail is offering free tickets to all YMM residents to anywhere in Canada. I don't know about busses. Rental car agencies are setup at evacuation centres and are provide discounted rates. My brother has a rental for $15 per day. I don't know about all gas stations but Petro-Canada (Suncor) is giving petro points to many evacuees. Many people drove the highway with cans filled with gas to help the many vehicles that ran out of gas while escaping. Many hotels offered free or highly discounted rooms. Stores offered up to 75% off, restaurants offers high discounts or free food, pharmacists offered free medication filling; the list goes on and on.

MSPeconomist

In network news in the USA, Canadian North is getting excellent PR for their willingness to transport evacuee pets for free, including animals that normally wouldn't be accepted.

Clipper801

There is nothing illegal about what AC has done. It is perhaps morally wrong.

While I appreciate the duty to maximize shareholder's value, any good company cannot, when planning for profit, disregard both its social responsibility and the reputational risk to the brand on any business decision.

It seems to be a case of poor management not able to react swiftly and fast enough to fast changing situation.

Now they are in a damage control mode and WS has won some accidental goodwill.

smallmj

I agree that AC has lost another chance at creating some goodwill. It is yet another PR blunder. Perhaps they just don't care.

For those wondering what fares out of YEG have to to with FortMac fires, lots of displaced FortMac folks have roots/homes out east. Lots of people split their time between the oil patch and the family. After they were evacuated (by road), they still need a place to stay. Given the choice between an emergency shelter, a couch somewhere, and home with Mom or the Wife in the Maritimes, I think that the choice is clear. Thus YEG fares have a lot to do with the FortMac evacuation.

AC was slow to adjust to the situation and just let their profit maximizing pricing system do its thing without regard to the dire situation of its customers. It reminds me of the Federal election that was called in the middle of the Red River Flood of '97. They deserve all of the bad press that they get for this.

Northern Canuck

It's not about just not being able to control their computer system but as Weston says, even their front line staff were not advised of a change in cancellation/itin change policy (if there even was a change) because of the situation... not to mention the 25% discount. WS managed to do all of that....

ProudEdmontonian

You might want to turn on your TV or read a newspaper to answer all of these questions....

The general response to the AC situation in Edmonton was "What did anyone expect?"

flybit

what will it cost AC to fix the mess it created by cheating passengers. ?
I suspect a lot more than $100

WinnipegJet

Clearly some think "maximizing shareholder value" means Air Canada should just send out a press release with the words "WHO IS JOHN GALT?" in 72 point font and then refuse to help any evacuees because self interest is the virtue that will deliver us all. Luckily, most people (including most consumers who, in the end, deliver the revenue necessary to "maximize shareholder value") gain a bit more perspective when they live in the real world.

montezume

I have been feeling for a long time that this forum is heading towards maximum Ayn Rand individualism. Bravo ^

RCyyz

If I were a shareholder, I'd be pretty pissed with AC for not doing what's morally correct. AC (and other companies) need to come back with much more than PR bits.

To quote Franklin Roosevelt, "The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little."

As it turns out, much of YMM was spared. Obviously this is a good thing. But just a week ago, the situation was much less clear. People were on the verge of losing all of their possessions except what they could pack in the car and that's assuming they could drive through a wall of flames. Some people did in fact lose everything. So in a situation like this, those who can help, should help. It's not always about making profit; it's about doing what's right because you can.

To the credit of AC, they have added a fair bit of capacity and (I believe) held the line on fares. That's as it should be.

yulred

Indeed. And no shortage of oddities in that list:

http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/news/blog.html?b=news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/free-lap-dances-free-drugs-free-gorilla-scenes-from-a-province-refusing-to-let-evacuees-pay-for-things&pubdate=2016-05-11

It's amusing how disconnected some of the sentiments expressed on this thread are with the values and generosity on display in AB right now.