sweden05

Aaargh... So I'm on 8047 today BOS-YOW, scheduled to depart at 2pm. We board and everything looks great, then the pilot announces that due to air traffic volumes nearby (influenced by storms in the NYC area) we will have a 1hr delay. He kindly arranges for us to deplane but says "please be back at the gate in 20 minutes so we can board then be out of here on time." Great so far...

Then we deplane, and everyone is dutifully back 20 minutes later. Except for any and all Air Canada staff. There is no staff at or near the gate. The plane is still there. So we wait... New gate staff arrives to announce the cancellation of the Montreal flight, but when asked about the Ottawa flight they say "huh, we don't know anything about that one, is it still here?" Then they begin rebooking the Montreal passengers, ignoring the Ottawa folks.

The AC website lists the revised departure time as 3:05 (ten minutes ago).

Don't get me wrong -- I totally understand weather and air traffic delays. What is so so irritating is the lack of communication.

Ok, I had to get that off my chest. Thanks for listening.

stinger

I believe, as many here can attest, that this makes all the difference in the world. Two weeks ago my flight was delayed for a couple of hours and I didn't mind since I was kept in the loop the entire time. This is the most frustrating part and it should be the easiest thing the airline does. All they have to do is tell you what is going on. I have never understood what is so difficult. Hopefully you get to YOW eventually.

sweden05

They have just now (3:35pm) announced a revised departure time of 4:15. The first communication in 1hr30mins...

stinger

Truly pathetic. Something should have been communicated every 20 minutes or so, even if there is nothing to update, it doesn't hurt to tell people that.

Hopefully your revised time sticks.

Sebring

It may work out for some that the flight was delayed. There was a terrible tragedy in Boston - the road to Logan, part of the Big Dig, suffered a collapse of the Tunnel's inner wall, killing a motorist on her way to meet relatives to the airport. I imagine some travellers were delayed by the ensuing chaos.

Clipper801

In fairness to senior management at AC, they have set down clear directive that passengers must be provided with an update every 15 minutes and this policy is posted at www.aircanada.ca (http://www.aircanada.com/en/travelin...dflights.html).

If the line employees fail to adhere to this policy and procedure, it is an HR (personnel) issue that AC senior management must follow up.

FlyerAl

If the gate agents at BOS are UA employees, that would explain the lack of communication.

Stranger

I have long argued that that is the real issue with AC nowadays. The top having good intentions, a real customer focus. But a disconnect with the actual culture, so the nice intentions often don't go anywhere.

This is typical of people parachuted from elsewhere, for whom wishful thinking is nicer than hard to change real issues. So they convince themselves the tools they have at their disposal (often $$$ related) will work. When the problems are elsewhere. (OK, extrapolating from the organization of which I am an employee here. I see our president dealing with some mythical entity disconnected from the real thing. So much easier.)

sweden05

Well, after my last post the communication did get more regular, and they eventually cancelled the 2pm flight altogether at around 4:45pm. We were rebooked onto the 8pm flight and that went uneventfully...

On the upside, the FA on the 8pm flight (8049) was truly fantastic, with a terrific positive attitude and enthusiasm. She had a planeload of delayed people, and even had to tell some PAX enroute that their connecting flight to Toronto had itself been cancelled, but everyone stayed positive because she was setting the tone. After I post this I'll be hunting for the customer feedback mailbox for AC to pass on some appreciation.

Oh yeah, re a couple items above:

Yes the big dig ceiling collapse was truly tragic. Happened Monday evening at around 11pm and killed a motorist. 12 tons of falling cement... As of this evening the Ted Williams tunnel is still closed in BOS which means all airport traffic is being sent through the old Callahan/Sumner tunnels. At peak times this has proven to be very messy. It wasn't too bad when I headed across at lunchtime.

And the ground staff at BOS is AC, not UA.

stinger

The policy set be senior management is good, but it is only as good as you can get your employees to follow it. I luckily don't work in a union environment so I don't have to deal with a lot of the headaches that AC does.

My harsh words are more for all employees who don't follow guidelines which lead to terrible service. Which was what happened in this case.

Glad to hear the OPer finally got to YOW.

Ken hAAmer

My experience and observations are the almost the exact opposite. I think the "top" pays lip-service to the concept, but they don't really care about their customers except as represented by dollar signs. They may "talk the talk", but when it comes to customer service the top seems to just lie in bed all day.

On the other hand, the staff I deal with on a face to face basis almost always seem to be willing to go the extra distance as far as top management will allow them, and in fact do have a customer service perspective. There are the occaisional exceptions of course, but they are rare.

I also disagree with the oft expressed comment that service from employees has recently gotten better. I've found it to be good since before, during, and after CCAA.

Ken hAAmer

Correction: "...only as good as you will allow your employees to follow it."