Nov 20, 2017, 2:16 pm
Last edit by: Argonaut1000
Click here to go to a picture of the White Compensation Form and its stub
View Deflated Seat History Here (Database for submitted occurrences)
Enter New Deflated Seat Occurrence Here (Submit one if you have experienced deflated seat and it will show up in the database above)
----
From post #49 in this thread, here's one potential way to (re)inflate an AC seat:
A better method is for a crew member to use the reset switch under the seat, on the aisle side.
Compensation offers (green/white sheet completed)
40K AE- Apr 18 (50% back of the J class one way redemption)
2018 Jun - $500 coupon
2018 Sep $1,000 eCoupon or 40K AP (P fare TPAC)
2018 Sep $500 eCoupon (P fare TPAC) (no change on protest- update - 6 months later the $150 was increased to $500 - admitted they had made an error)
Compensation offers (no green/white sheet completed)
100K - May 5 (C$150 eCoupon; was moved to a functioning seat after meal service)
2017 Sept - 8,000 AE miles - reported via complaint web page after realizing it was a faulty seat, not standard discomfort; Asked for return of eUps but they declined.
2017 Nov & 2018 Feb - $500 coupons both times (second time on protest that $500 had been offered the previous time)
2018 Sep. $250 coupon (on a paid J TATL).
2018 Nov - $500 eCoupon (J TATL)
Standard eCoupon compensation offers (no haggling; following a recurring pattern)
~10+ hours: $1000
Long TPAC (TPE-YVR)
~6 to ~10 hours: $500
Short TPAC (NRT-YVR)
TATL
South America: YYZ-GRU
less than ~6 hours: 300
TCON
Have a Service Director (SD) That Is Giving You the Case of the Shrugs? Like the real life version of this ASCII emoji -> Ż\_(ツ)_/Ż ?
No success with the SD and/or crew rectifying your deflated seat and you can't be/aren't accommodated to another J seat? If you asked for a compensation form and the SD says they have no idea what you are talking about, you can use the below picture of the stub portion to help freshen their memory (better than nothing)...
Please note that for the longest time, the "Green Compensation Form" version was used, and there have been recent reports of the "White Compensation Form" replacing the Green version. Reports here have indicated that the two forms are virtually identical except for the colour.
There is now an even newer White Form which explicitly lists "deflated seat" and "deflated seat and fixed", among many other items.
Here is a snapshot of the NEWEST full form (as of August 2019), courtesy of lallied
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/31421855-post2093.html
This is only the stub portion, courtesy of lallied
Mattress pads purchased and listed in this thread
View Deflated Seat History Here (Database for submitted occurrences)
Enter New Deflated Seat Occurrence Here (Submit one if you have experienced deflated seat and it will show up in the database above)
----
From post #49 in this thread, here's one potential way to (re)inflate an AC seat:
- Go the home screen "Your Seat". (find this on the seat side panel; not the main video screen)
- Hold the top left hand corner "Air Canada" (with AC logo) for 3 seconds. Updated (Apr 9 18): may need to hold for as long as 45 seconds for key pad to appear
- Dial pad shows up - hit 3-2-1.
- Press "Reset Lumbar Support"
A better method is for a crew member to use the reset switch under the seat, on the aisle side.
Compensation offers (green/white sheet completed)
40K AE- Apr 18 (50% back of the J class one way redemption)
2018 Jun - $500 coupon
2018 Sep $1,000 eCoupon or 40K AP (P fare TPAC)
2018 Sep $500 eCoupon (P fare TPAC) (no change on protest- update - 6 months later the $150 was increased to $500 - admitted they had made an error)
Compensation offers (no green/white sheet completed)
100K - May 5 (C$150 eCoupon; was moved to a functioning seat after meal service)
2017 Sept - 8,000 AE miles - reported via complaint web page after realizing it was a faulty seat, not standard discomfort; Asked for return of eUps but they declined.
2017 Nov & 2018 Feb - $500 coupons both times (second time on protest that $500 had been offered the previous time)
2018 Sep. $250 coupon (on a paid J TATL).
2018 Nov - $500 eCoupon (J TATL)
Standard eCoupon compensation offers (no haggling; following a recurring pattern)
~10+ hours: $1000
Long TPAC (TPE-YVR)
~6 to ~10 hours: $500
Short TPAC (NRT-YVR)
TATL
South America: YYZ-GRU
less than ~6 hours: 300
TCON
Have a Service Director (SD) That Is Giving You the Case of the Shrugs? Like the real life version of this ASCII emoji -> Ż\_(ツ)_/Ż ?
No success with the SD and/or crew rectifying your deflated seat and you can't be/aren't accommodated to another J seat? If you asked for a compensation form and the SD says they have no idea what you are talking about, you can use the below picture of the stub portion to help freshen their memory (better than nothing)...
Please note that for the longest time, the "Green Compensation Form" version was used, and there have been recent reports of the "White Compensation Form" replacing the Green version. Reports here have indicated that the two forms are virtually identical except for the colour.
There is now an even newer White Form which explicitly lists "deflated seat" and "deflated seat and fixed", among many other items.
Here is a snapshot of the NEWEST full form (as of August 2019), courtesy of lallied
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/31421855-post2093.html
This is only the stub portion, courtesy of lallied
Mattress pads purchased and listed in this thread
Deflategate; new executive pods deflating in-flight
Feb 8, 2019, 3:57 pm
#931
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: YVR - MILLS Waypoint (It's the third house on the left)
Programs: AC*SE100K, wood level status in various other programs
Posts: 6,213
MY HUMBLE OPINION:
Think long and hard about spending money in mainstream or social media. No one really cares. A full page open letter to AC in the Globe might get a few raised eyebrows and I think many would not want their names listed publicly in a newspaper etc. Or maybe some would. And I would absolutely never bother with the likes of the CBC or similar. All of them only have reporters and bloggers and very few real journalists and since no one died from the deflated seats, no journalist is going to care.
There are a couple of possible approaches:
1. Letter to the heads of the institutional investors/ firms who hold a large amount of AC stock
2. Individual letters to AC with examples of tickets purchased on other airlines.
3. A group letter to AC, where everyone would have to sign their name (include status) and it would make it clear to AC that the problem remains unsolved for this length of time, and what those who sign this letter intend to do.
4. Stop paying for AC J
Think long and hard about spending money in mainstream or social media. No one really cares. A full page open letter to AC in the Globe might get a few raised eyebrows and I think many would not want their names listed publicly in a newspaper etc. Or maybe some would. And I would absolutely never bother with the likes of the CBC or similar. All of them only have reporters and bloggers and very few real journalists and since no one died from the deflated seats, no journalist is going to care.
There are a couple of possible approaches:
1. Letter to the heads of the institutional investors/ firms who hold a large amount of AC stock
2. Individual letters to AC with examples of tickets purchased on other airlines.
3. A group letter to AC, where everyone would have to sign their name (include status) and it would make it clear to AC that the problem remains unsolved for this length of time, and what those who sign this letter intend to do.
4. Stop paying for AC J
Suggestion #3 is intriguing although I would suggest adding recent AQD and BIS stats for each pax. But figuring out who to send this to and making sure that they see it could be a challenge.
Feb 8, 2019, 4:35 pm
#932
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: YVR
Programs: Bottom feeder Star Gold
Posts: 2,652
It's not that journalists (and there are plenty of first-rate ones still actively employed in Canadian media) don't care about the deflating seats issue, it's that their readership doesn't. The comment about the detachment of the average flyer to the plight of those in the business cabin is a good one; most people who fly on their own dime can't understand the premium paid between an economy seat vs a business seat, even for a 10-12 hour flight. Sure, they'd all like to fly up front, but not for 4-6x the cost. "For the price of one J seat, I can fly my entire family plus cover accommodation costs for the duration. And I arrive at the same time, a dozen rows back." Resentment towards those who purchase things we can't or won't afford is real, even if the only barrier to flying up front is internal.
Go ahead and buy a glossy full-page national ad. It won't move the sympathy needle, nor prompt a faster resolution by the airline.
The great Y unwashed also share another common sentiment: bewilderment that people who know better persist in buying these seats. For repeated customers, the importance of status, the benefits of shorter travel time & connections and/or the perception of better inflight service all seem to outweigh the desire to guarantee a comfortable seat on a long haul journey. There is nothing wrong with making such a decision. We all have options, and just need to weigh the pros & cons of using other airlines. If AC comes out ahead despite the chance of a $5000 nap on a park bench while picking at frozen melons, fine. But how many complaints over how long a time period are reasonable?
Only #4 above: Stop Paying for AC J, will have any hope of timely success. Not: "achieve my 100k and then move to different alliance partners for the balance of the year". Not "I'll only pay for P fares". Not "I'll purchase AC J on just narrowbody flights". Unless your employer is bound to a corporate contract, or the price differential is beyond what your travel department will reimburse, why not go cold turkey on Skytrax's Best Damn Airline in North America? Today.
Go ahead and buy a glossy full-page national ad. It won't move the sympathy needle, nor prompt a faster resolution by the airline.
The great Y unwashed also share another common sentiment: bewilderment that people who know better persist in buying these seats. For repeated customers, the importance of status, the benefits of shorter travel time & connections and/or the perception of better inflight service all seem to outweigh the desire to guarantee a comfortable seat on a long haul journey. There is nothing wrong with making such a decision. We all have options, and just need to weigh the pros & cons of using other airlines. If AC comes out ahead despite the chance of a $5000 nap on a park bench while picking at frozen melons, fine. But how many complaints over how long a time period are reasonable?
Only #4 above: Stop Paying for AC J, will have any hope of timely success. Not: "achieve my 100k and then move to different alliance partners for the balance of the year". Not "I'll only pay for P fares". Not "I'll purchase AC J on just narrowbody flights". Unless your employer is bound to a corporate contract, or the price differential is beyond what your travel department will reimburse, why not go cold turkey on Skytrax's Best Damn Airline in North America? Today.
Last edited by CZAMFlyer; Feb 8, 2019 at 4:44 pm
Feb 8, 2019, 7:14 pm
#934
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
MY HUMBLE OPINION:
Think long and hard about spending money in mainstream or social media. No one really cares. A full page open letter to AC in the Globe might get a few raised eyebrows and I think many would not want their names listed publicly in a newspaper etc. Or maybe some would. And I would absolutely never bother with the likes of the CBC or similar. All of them only have reporters and bloggers and very few real journalists and since no one died from the deflated seats, no journalist is going to care.
There are a couple of possible approaches:
1. Letter to the heads of the institutional investors/ firms who hold a large amount of AC stock
2. Individual letters to AC with examples of tickets purchased on other airlines.
3. A group letter to AC, where everyone would have to sign their name (include status) and it would make it clear to AC that the problem remains unsolved for this length of time, and what those who sign this letter intend to do.
4. Stop paying for AC J
Transient rates mean no discount or corporate rate etc.
Full page on the left column
Think long and hard about spending money in mainstream or social media. No one really cares. A full page open letter to AC in the Globe might get a few raised eyebrows and I think many would not want their names listed publicly in a newspaper etc. Or maybe some would. And I would absolutely never bother with the likes of the CBC or similar. All of them only have reporters and bloggers and very few real journalists and since no one died from the deflated seats, no journalist is going to care.
There are a couple of possible approaches:
1. Letter to the heads of the institutional investors/ firms who hold a large amount of AC stock
2. Individual letters to AC with examples of tickets purchased on other airlines.
3. A group letter to AC, where everyone would have to sign their name (include status) and it would make it clear to AC that the problem remains unsolved for this length of time, and what those who sign this letter intend to do.
4. Stop paying for AC J
Transient rates mean no discount or corporate rate etc.
Full page on the left column
If you really want to make a dent in AC to the point where they'll start to notice, get your corporate TAs involved in the issue, have them think twice about booking AC J for their passengers. If several of the largest corporations in Canada choose CX J over say AC J to Asia, the effects will be bigger than all of us collectively boycotting AC J.
Point 4 is also another approach that an individual should consider. In particular if you fly other *A airlines in J, crediting those trips to Aeroplan, how long do you think it'll be before data scientists at AC start to realize a trend of disgruntled AC passengers moving their business elsewhere? Of course this is assuming AC has data scientists who comb this type of data.
Safe Travels,
James
Feb 8, 2019, 7:26 pm
#935
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: YVR
Programs: AC SE100K, Bonvoy Platinum Elite, IHG Gold, Hertz 5*
Posts: 2,132
I feel treated well despite the fact that we actually ARE a dime a dozen. 
Depends. If AC "data scientists" are just a collection of Audrey's, they'll figure it sometime around 2027. If AC "data scientists" are actually the same people as their "IT" team it will be sometime around never.
Depends. If AC "data scientists" are just a collection of Audrey's, they'll figure it sometime around 2027. If AC "data scientists" are actually the same people as their "IT" team it will be sometime around never.
Feb 8, 2019, 8:37 pm
#938
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2014
Programs: AC SE100K-1MM, NH, DL, AA, BA, Global Entry/Nexus, APEC..
Posts: 18,877
I love @Bohemian1's "Stay-flat Seats for Dummies". It's always amusing when the SD is watching those of us with pancakes play the rondelle reset game
Last edited by tcook052; Feb 8, 2019 at 9:51 pm Reason: edit quote
Feb 8, 2019, 8:41 pm
#939
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
It seems to me that the stay-flat issue is due to a design defect on those seats. Others have pointed that AC may be replacing those seats once regulatory approval has been granted. However that is speculation and given the several years this has been an issue, it's just as likely that AC is aware of the issue but doesn't care. At this point as a community we have to decide, how do we ensure that AC gets the message that:
(a) this is a real issue people keep suffering and that no amount of resets fixes the problem since it is a fundamental flaw in the seat design
(b) vouchers are not an acceptable form of reimbursement for this continued issue and uncertainty it causes the passengers
(c) if this persists, more passengers will move their business elsewhere or gladly fly in Y or PY where this issue is not present
It's all fine and dandy to discuss the lie-flat issues people have and work-arounds but long run AC needs to know full well that us loyalist aren't gonna put up with it for too much longer. The fact that this thread exists for so long points out that the discussions so far haven't resulted in any resolution (other than perhaps temporary reduction in discomfort thanks to a reset here or there). We've waited months and months (some of us even years) and still don't have a resolution as of yet.
Safe Travels,
James
(a) this is a real issue people keep suffering and that no amount of resets fixes the problem since it is a fundamental flaw in the seat design
(b) vouchers are not an acceptable form of reimbursement for this continued issue and uncertainty it causes the passengers
(c) if this persists, more passengers will move their business elsewhere or gladly fly in Y or PY where this issue is not present
It's all fine and dandy to discuss the lie-flat issues people have and work-arounds but long run AC needs to know full well that us loyalist aren't gonna put up with it for too much longer. The fact that this thread exists for so long points out that the discussions so far haven't resulted in any resolution (other than perhaps temporary reduction in discomfort thanks to a reset here or there). We've waited months and months (some of us even years) and still don't have a resolution as of yet.
Safe Travels,
James
Last edited by tcook052; Feb 8, 2019 at 9:50 pm Reason: edit quote
Feb 8, 2019, 9:03 pm
#940
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: YVR
Programs: AC SE100K, Bonvoy Platinum Elite, IHG Gold, Hertz 5*
Posts: 2,132
I love @Bohemian1's "Stay-flat Seats for Dummies". It's always amusing when the SD is watching those of us with pancakes play the rondelle reset game
Feb 8, 2019, 9:05 pm
#941
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2014
Programs: AC SE100K-1MM, NH, DL, AA, BA, Global Entry/Nexus, APEC..
Posts: 18,877
Feel free to ask any questions though.
Feb 9, 2019, 4:35 pm
#944
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: YVR
Programs: Bottom feeder Star Gold
Posts: 2,652
Originally Posted by j2simpso
If you really want to make a dent in AC to the point where they'll start to notice, get your corporate TAs involved in the issue, have them think twice about booking AC J for their passengers. If several of the largest corporations in Canada choose CX J over say AC J to Asia, the effects will be bigger than all of us collectively boycotting AC J.
Originally Posted by 24left
It's always amusing when the SD is watching those of us with pancakes play the rondelle reset game
Originally Posted by j2simpso
It's all fine and dandy to discuss the lie-flat issues people have and work-arounds but long run AC needs to know full well that us loyalist aren't gonna put up with it for too much longer.
Feb 9, 2019, 4:51 pm
#945
Join Date: Jan 2001
Programs: AC SEMM
Posts: 724
Can you share a link?
I found this, but it is too big to pack in a carry on.
I found this, but it is too big to pack in a carry on.
I bought the . Was $40, sorry not $30. Folded size:8" x 3.5",inflated size:73" x 21.6" x 2.2" per their claims. Didn't measure it myself, but seems right. Mind you, when I repacked it, it ended up being closer to 11" long rather than 8" but still small. You wouldn't think twice about putting it in your carry-on. Squeezes in to any little gap. Very light. Seatguru has AC seats at 80" pitch and 21" width, so I am hoping it is an OK fit if and when I have to use it in anger.
If and when I do use and share, I think the trick is to use humour. Anything else will come across as entitled and whiny, but a post with #AirCanadaCamping as the tag might get some chuckles.