Olympian not happy with economy seating
 

Interesting that his Olympic status is actually noted on the file, and shows on the BP

Fortunately there is a super easy way to fix the problem (I bet AC would be very accommodating): pay for a PE or J ticket. Problem solved.

The op-ed in the Globe and Mail today about Canada's entitlement at the games is becoming more and more real... ugh.

If he doesn't like it he can pay to upgrade. He's an Olympic athlete, not a soldier who is returning from an active military conflict, or a veteran, or something that is also considered a "noble" profession. Yes, some of you may believe that Olympic athletes hold a noble profession or that Air Canada should have "stepped up" and upgraded all Olympic athletes because they are an official partner, but I suspect the eupgraders on this board would lose their collective cool if they were bumped.

Cue the usual 10 people in the AC forum with what an entitled pax comments, and how if you want to fly J, pay for J.

Surprised a E75 doesnt get an exit row for free.

Also, Delta wouldn’t upgrade the gold-winning US curling team’s seats

Maybe he can go to a furniture store and complain that they won't give him a free mattress. Why do people think airlines should give away thousands of dollars as gifts?

Well, since I was on that AC 62 flight, I can tell you that there wasn't an empty seat in the house. The gate area was jammed, the pax crowd looked to include athletes, families, coaches, many media people based on their visible tags and jackets with logos. IMHO, J cabin was packed with people not normally seen on the average TPAC.

I would offer the opinion that there may have been limited options for seating based on the load for our flight and perhaps, his Olympic status may have been a ticket where there was blocked seating. Only AC knows how seat assignments were handed out.

Isn't the medal its own reward?

He is probably (and I am just guessing) flying on a Tango fare, paid for by the COC, the Snowboarding federation, or sponsorship money. Which entitles him to bupkus.

Indeed, thus my hint in my post (9)

On those flights, J is likely packed with people who actually paid there. What would you have AC do, kick out someone who actually paid for J so that this guy can sit there? What if the women's hockey team had won gold, would you have given them the entire J cabin?

Right, so AC isn't doing any worse than the US Olympic team's airline. But next you'll probably tell us how wonderful UA is and how they would have let all these nice Olympians fly in J.

It might well be that there is simply no room in the front of the bus for an "Olym-up".... :)

Looking at AC 062 tomorrow, you cannot buy a PE or J seat (nor on 064 to YVR)

CC

Which AC62 were you on? It appears that he's in the air right now.....

I looked at the date on his tweet, Feb 25, so I assumed he was on my flight on Feb 25.

If he is in fact flying today, I would still suggest the load would be the same or worse as yesterday was the closing ceremonies. Since not everyone who attends the Olympics departs from the event on the same day or even after their events, I would assume all flights from ICN back to YYZ or YVR are full for quite a number of days at this time.

Either way, it really doesn't matter whether he was annoyed at his seat or perhaps he was just joking. It is fantastic that he won a gold medal but since he did not pay for his seat (I assume) then well, blame those who did.

As for some of the snarky comments in this thread, seriously people.

In 2002, I was at a convention in Salt Lake City. I flew home and was on a UA flight SLC-ORD. The Paralympic USA hockey team had won gold. They were all wearing their medals and they were mentioned at boarding and boarded first. All were in economy.

Probably using the in-flight wi-fi that is now available on many of the wide-bodied aircraft. It was available on 061 on Saturday.

I was most surprised transiting through ICN yesterday that there was nothing visible in the airport that would have made you realize that Korea was the host country for the Olympic games. The KE lounge had three TV's - none tuned to the games.

Check out the snarky comments in the discussion on Twitter.

Yes, but, did he also get assaulted in his hotel room in Korea ? Maybe that is what it takes.

This "athlete" just ruined the possibility of any sponsorship income he might have been contemplating if they see this.

The entitlement culture permeating our society is disgusting.

Hmmmm, these are some of the photos I took yesterday, Feb 25 at ICN.

Also, many of the large flatscreens in the OZ lounge were tune to Olympics events. Some Germans sitting near me were watching the German hockey team.

My only observation is that Olympic stuff at ICN was perhaps more low-key or less boastful than the kind of stuff you'd see n the U.S. or Canada or maybe some other countries who host the Olympics. Wo knows.


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ad55c6a2e8.png


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https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...701a97157c.png


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This is just one of the many screens tuned to live events.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8724bb3377.png

Tweet was 8 hours ago and he said "today", so it would seem he's flying now.

I agree that plane is likely 100% packed.

As for snark, the tweet itself was pretty snarky and snark tends to beget snark, so what do you expect?

Should have heard the whining from the athletes when Air Canada reduced the athlete's status a few years back.

In defence of this particular athlete, Air Canada will maximize his gold medal to Air Canada's best advantage.

Probably just a special rate .

Does he really believe that he won the medal "for Canada"? No, he won it for himself. Sure, he has every right to be proud of his accomplishment (as does every other person who works hard and accomplishes something such as graduating from college or getting a job promotion), but it doesn't mean Canada owes him anything. I think he should be happy that someone was nice enough to give him a free flight to and from Korea instead of making him pay his own way to pursue his goals (like the rest of us).

Over on the DL board, the Americans who won curling gold tried to get DL to give them an upgrade. Didn't work for them either.

He will actually get paid $20K as a bonus for winning the gold.

As for his ticket, no, AC didn't give it to him, the COC or, more likely, his sporting federation paid for it, although I believe there's a reduced rate of some sort. But it's not free.

So, if he could part with some of that $20K, maybe he could have bought an upgrade

Fair enough, some organization paid for it, but he still got a free ride.

By that definition, 98% of AC SEs are getting a free ride because "some organization" pays for their tickets.

Nothing wrong with receiving a free ride; however, like all elite/super elite members, each has their own upgrade currencies to use to upgrade said ticket, whether or not they be eUpgrade credits, cash, or Aeroplan miles provided an eligible fare was purchased for the latter.

Not surprised to see the conversation quickly turn to the athlete's "entitlement." Truth be told, it's probably the best explanation for Sebastien's tweet.

But:

This is the first thing that I thought of. My Instagram and Facebook feeds have been plastered with Air Canada ads depicting people proudly waving the Canadian flag. AC is milking their Olympics support like crazy, and yet they can't find a way to do a little something for a gold medal winner. We've had 11. Eleven. That's it. Give the guy a preferred seat if you absolutely can't upgrade him, but give. him. something.

Roger Federer gets a Rolex when he wins a Grand Slam, and he definitely doesn't need anyone to buy him a wristwatch. Rolex wants to promote their star athletes (ambassadors) and puts their money where their mouth is when the athletes perform. Same with many other brands.

Why is it so unfair to expect the same of AC?

I think they would fit in the PY cabin. Maybe put the goalies in J since they have oversized luggage ;)

So with the flight sold out, and with all the seats up front sold out, which paying passenger does he expect they should bump back to coach to accommodate his privileged freeloading rear end?

Eh?

True, but most of those organizations aren't flying their people around the world to play in the snow (Sorry - the Olympics always bring out the worst in me ;))

Competing in an event that promotes peace between countries is probably more noble than shooting people to secure cheap oil - we haven't had a war of self defense in a long time :)

About that E75 status
 

The sponsorship is organisational, not individual. IIRC, the indicated status came with the sponsorship so as to make accorded privileges, the steps of the journey, and any communication, clear and easy for athletes, officials, and AC employees to manage.
​​​​​​As for providing "something" well, just imagine how many tier passengers there are onboard that flight overall.

[QUOTE=ffsim;29460492

AC is milking their Olympics support like crazy, and yet they can't find a way to do a little something for a gold medal winner. We've had 11. Eleven. That's it. Give the guy a preferred seat if you absolutely can't upgrade him, but give. him. something.

[/QUOTE]

This is where the conversation needs to move towards. Not just what does AC 'get' for its sponsorship investment, but what does the COC or Sports Federation 'receive'- laying odds that senior admin are on a different travel class than the actual field hands- but would love to be proven wrong...

Is everyone else failing to see the #sarcasm tag on his post?

How exactly does the Olympics promote peace? As far as I can see it promotes athletics and partisanship. I'll not get started on the financial cost of the games and the other negative aspects.

That hashtag relates to the "what a great Olympic partner" statement, not the gist of his gripe.