juddstreet

This, this, 100x this. Totally agree with you, Sunny Day.

If WJ status isn't recognized and if Swoop fares don't count towards earning status, then it's a totally separate airline. That's okay - I'll treat it like any other airline (weighing three factors: fare, status renewal goals, and investing my travel $ in improving competition in Canadian air travel). Given they don't help at all on status renewal, and I'd rather support Flair or Porter to help increase competition in Canada, I'm not likely to fly Swoop much if ever.

But, if that's the case, it's a loss to the WJ frequent flier every time a route gets Swooped. I'll use the same example I have before, but I used to live in Phoenix and commute every other week to Calgary. If WJ Swooped the route, it's exactly the same as if they dropped the route entirely given the calculus above. At best, every flight that gets Swooped is a loss of potential WJ frequency; at worse it's a loss of a route entirely. Compare that to AC 'Rouging' a route - sure, FF can be peeved at service quality or first class seats or whatever... but at least they can still earn status, burn miles, and be acknowledged for their loyalty on the route.

And I get it... there are a bunch of fliers who consider only one factor - fare - rather than loyalty or supporting competition. I get that Swoop is (a) designed for that, and (b) aimed at beating Flair and others out of the market. And, I get that it would add a cost - however small - to offer WJ elite earn/burn/service benefits on the flights. I just wish there was more acknowledgement of the cost this has to WJ frequent fliers.

WR Cage

So you feel punished for being an Edmontonian??? I get that angle.

You could always connect in YYC and stay on WS mainline. But then I have a feeling you will gripe about the tarmac to tarmac service.

"It's like, Deja Vu all over again"! Yogi Berra

Altaflyer

YXUFlyboy

I too value direct flights over connecting ones, but you're in YEG so you have limited options. It's the same reason I almost always avoid Air Canada since they route me through YYZ for everything. If it's transborder I'd rather go thru a U.S. hub and I rarely do international (non-US) flights - and if I do Europe I have lots of options in YYC and Asia is accessible via the two routes we have plus YVR is a quick jump. By all means vote with your feet

tcook052

Previous poster appears to have voted with both his feet and his wallet.

mxqisit

I'm calling this a win for Swoop.

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/low-cost...lton-1.1118898

Frequentlander

That didn't take long.

Altaflyer

Frequentlander

That didn't take long either......

aerobod

The seat assignment charges have changed, likely based on demand and the introduction of the transborder flights. Some have stayed the same, for example $5 plus taxes for back standard seat at time of booking. In the future I would expect to see more dynamic pricing based on demand factors where the price can move up or down with the aim of optimising revenue, especially ensuring all the extra legroom seats are filled at flight time. This is very much in line with the Ryanair anciliary philosophy for ULCCs. This is one of the ways to move towards a zero cost base fare and still make a profit, a true and complete unbundling - something Ryanair has been touting for a number of years.

tcook052

Waiting for the spin to call the price increase an "enhancement".

Rad456

Maybe the baggage handlers will wear white gloves and call it "White Glove Service"

Altaflyer

aerobod

I've flown on Ryanair 3 times in the past and have another flight with them in Aug from LPL to BCN and in Sep from CIA to STN. I would say that Ryanair gets about 50% of my business for my intra-European flying now due to a combination of price, on-time performance and predictability. They are an excellent flying bus service if you take the following into account:

- there is no ticket flexibility, use credit card or other insurance to cover ticket refund in extenuating circumstances, don't plan on ever changing the Ryanair ticket;
- if you can't fit in the standard seats at 30" pitch with no recline, upgrade to the seats with more legroom or look elsewhere;
- don't try and game them with your luggage, make sure you meet their criteria exactly in dimensions and weight, otherwise you will be dinged considerably;
- always have the boarding passes printed ahead of time as a backup to the boarding pass on your phone, I take their seat selection option to allow 60-day prior to flight boarding pass creation;
- ensure you understand the document check requirements for non-EU residents and get the boarding pass stamped as necessary;
- have no service expectation, as their processes are designed for their convenience and efficiency, not yours;
- arrive at the airport with plenty of time before the flight, they will enforce cut-offs 100% with no exceptions;
- ensure you have credit card or insurance coverage for cancellations due to weather or anything deemed out of the airline's control from an EU261 perspective, as all flights are point-to-point and provide no passenger recovery options;
- make sure you have your own food and entertainment fully organised.

Overall the reason why a ULCC can offer cheap flights and still be profitable is ruthless process efficiency with no exceptions, people who don't understand that are the ones who almost exclusively complain and generate the bad reputation for the airline, you can already see this on Skytrax for Swoop and it is the common theme for Ryanair. I know lots of friends and relatives in the UK who are quite happy to use Ryanair, as I am.

Frequentlander

Agree with this 100%. For people on a beer budget and expect to get...beer, Ryanair and the like are very good, but don't show up without the expectation that they will attempt to extract more $$$ from you at every possible turn of events. Don't use these guys if you have Champagne tastes.