Air Canada/Aeroplan Chat.....
 

First of all, thanks to those members who have contributed to the idea of the next program chat from this forum.

The good news is that both Air Canada and Aeroplan have agreed to be co-guests on an upcoming live chat on FlyerTalk. The idea of both the airline and the frequent flyer program on FlyerTalk Live! at the same time was viewed as "...a great idea."

As some of you might know, Air Canada is in the process of an IPO and these can be delicate times for both a public and legal perspective. As a result, they have asked us to be patient and that as soon as the IPO is finalized and in the market then they will be able to speak far more easily about them and of course Aeroplan. So be patient and we'll announce a more formal date as soon as possible.

Again, thanks for the ideas and as well, thank you for your support of FlyerTalk.

Thanks Randy. Good news.

Nothing we want to know will change the IPO....

More SSWU at 45,000 miles
More J seats on planes
Faster Re-furb of the fleet
No more cutback to AP program!
A new computer system that works!

:D :D :D

How about an improvement by AC to the AE program for their best customers?

I assume you mean high rev. Es and Ps as well as the already pampered SEs :)

Guess what... you are wrong... PS just wait till AP give the new redemption program... :rolleyes: you are going to love it :p heheheheheh

After 5 years of cuts and you expect what... ;) guess what upgrades will be cut next year! Buy J class... on YYZ-HKG it just went up $4000 did AC apologists say anything about that ;) Would you pay $4000 more for AC J today on broken down AC Airbust.... ^ CX is $4000 less

Couldn't agree more. I sat next to an SE last night on the first leg of my YYZ-YUL-LHR. I was shocked, he was very approachable and actually quite a nice chap - no lofty expectations opinions or anything.

You see I always expect SE's to arrive with a clucking AC Concierge in tow, stroking their ego, constantly picking tiny flecks or hairs off their suit, straightening their ties for them followed by a quick shoe polish once they get gently lowered into their seats. Then I assumed I would be lectured by the Concierge on how the SE expected me to behave on the flight, ie only speak when you are spoken to etc.

Like I said, this SE seemed quite normal though.

That would be the day.I have over 100 segments to date in 2006 on AC.I can remember of no instance where a concierge met me or delivered me to a gate.

I have met the concierges at the SE check-in at YYZ and said hello,stopped at office to say hi as well.
At MLL yesterday,concierge noted my status and asked that if there was anything that could be done by her to make my travels more enjoyable.I thanked her for asking(she was very pleasant with a lot of traffic at counter).


You must be thinking of politicians or the Holleywood crowd.

The typical SE I am familiar with does not resemble your observations.

They would need a large wagon for that! :)

Were you in YYZ T1 MLL between 16:00 and 19:00 yesterday?

What this says to me is the IPO will come very early in 2007 if this is getting in the way of having Montie on FT. A bit of insider information, me thinks...

However, the other good thing about early next year is that we will actually know what the new benefits packages will be for 2007/8 and ready to blast whomever comes for further deminishing the elite tiers. Having the session before the end of this year would mean once more we'd be talking abstracts and about things that have long been implemented and not redressed.

So I for one look forward to having a go at these guys shortly after we know the worst we're in for as Es and SEs...

Noon :)

As a newly minted SE, I kinda hope that I get that pampering, but I'm not treated any different (no "thanks for your service", first selection of meals in J, or anything like that...)

Lets add the Lifetime Status issue to the agenda. Remember, Milton promised to look into it but we have heard nothing about this since. That was at least 2 yrs ago.

This chat is really great news. Thanks to Randy et al for setting it up. The one question I would really like to know is when StarUpgrade awards will finally be available???

Actually, I believe that we have heard that they intend no such thing.

Simon

Probably true enough, but perhaps bringing it to the forefront as something that would bring frequent flyer loyalty isn't a bad thing. :)

I am one of those "pampered" SE's with 48 segments and 146,000 miles on AC this year on top of 29 segments and 39,000 miles on CX. 90% of those miles were in the back, and I try to never travel in a suit ;) . Like everyone else here, I'm just trying to get a job done.

I have had two Concierge events. The Concierge at HKG tried to do the right thing and find me a window seat - in hospitality - there are seldom upgrades available YYZ-HKG-YYZ. Another post on this site says that seat 29A on the 345 is the best seat - don't believe it. Galley, washrooms, extra narrow seats and the emergency slide, among other things are the "perfect storm" of discomfort for 15 hours! She did not follow me onto the plane! The purser did come and thank me for traveling with AC and that was a first.

In Ottawa recently, I was running late and noticed it was quite foggy. I called the Concierge from the car to check delays (none) and as I came to the check-in area she was waiting with my Boarding Pass already printed - not bad - in fact pretty darned good. Again, did not accompany me to the plane - and no purser "thank you" this time. He was too busy with the politicians and Buzz Hargrove up front.

Contrast that to my colleague who is Diamond on CX. He barely gets into his economy seat when the purser shows up to thank him and remove his jacket for storage with the Business Class garments. Nice touch.

Also contrast this with a pre-SE experience this year with ANA NRT-TPE on a very cheap ticket. I miss-judged the time to NRT from Tokyo and arrived with baggage with about 30 minutes to flight and a very long check-in line. I flagged an agent and they opened a separate check-in for me, escorted me through crew security, waited at immigration and escorted me to the door of the aircraft which virtually closed on my foot. I love flying in Asia!