Sadly with Air Canada the plane doesn’t even matter. Air Canada is a 2nd class airline to WestJet no matter how you cut it.

I disagree Summit. I see Air Canada as a first class airline & I will only fly Air Canada. That being said, I am also an Aeroplan points collector and use them every year to fly for free flights with Air Canada. I used to collect Air Miles which can be used on WestJet, but they just don’t accumalate a fast as Aeroplan. I like Air Canada & prefer Aeroplan so the two work excellent for me.

Scare Canada. Enough said…..

Westjet is fine on shorter flights. Air Canada has more legroom on the longer flights.

Check the seatpitch on any flight here

http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Air_Canada/information.php

I think its sad that they charge us as much to go to Vancouver as Vancouverites pay to go to Florida yet we get a smaller turboprop plane. So they increased capacity by 23%? These things fly for a fraction of the operating cost of a 737 or equivelant. Will that translate into a better rate for us flying to Vancouver? I doubt it.

I suspect that the next announcement will be that West Jet will go to a turbo prop plane, and we will not have any 737’s landing in Prince George.

Seems like we are going backwards in the airline business.

The Q400 takes 9 more minutes to get Vancouver compared to the 737 you won’t notice the difference

Only 9 more minutes isn’t a big deal! The big difference being cruising altitude when comparing to a 737. I believe it’s 10000 feet lower with the Q400, which means right in the weather systems and possibly bumpier rides…if there is a pilot on here correct me if I’m wrong.

I agree with oil. Not complaining about 9 minutes. The old Dash 8’s used to vibrate and hum and buck and kick. On a positive note, you could land one on the highway easier than a 737.

Westjet are acquiring the same aircraft, the Q400.

Land on a highway?

At least its Canadians flying in planes made in Canada. That’s a good news story.

What we really need is a connection that makes other routes want and need to feed into PG.

Maybe it would be cheaper for the big Canadian airlines to fill up a bunch of small planes from Calgary, Edmonton, Kelowna, Victoria, and Vancouver once a week for a flight to Sydney Australia, or Tokyo direct from PG? If slots available and cost was an issue at the bigger airports. It would bring in travelers as well as increase local demand thereby enabling the extra options.

Maybe a big international airline has slots in those cities that Air Canada can’t get… Manila (market of 130 million people) would be a great example.. and yet the foreign airline is only allowed a single spot in a congested Vancouver airport.

With the greater draw in PG could become more of a direct option for other cities in the North becoming a true hub.

Australia in a Q400?

Australia in a 747 on the accommodating runway and low cost service stop. Q400 for the feeder routes into the hub to service the domestic demand for the international flight. In all likelihood the Canadian airlines would make more on the feeder seats into and out of PG than they would on the international flight whether it was theirs or not.

Posted by: pgreddevil on April 18 2013 8:18 AM
The Q400 takes 9 more minutes to get Vancouver compared to the 737 you won’t notice the difference

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The big difference is that WestJet staff treat you like a person while Air Canada staff treat you like you’ve interrupted them while they were doing something very important.

“The big difference is that WestJet staff treat you like a person while Air Canada staff treat you like you’ve interrupted them while they were doing something very important”

Over the past few years I’ve flown both West Jet and Air Canada and I’d say they both had good service, better than the US airlines that I’ve also flown.

The main difference is that I found Westjet to be more relaxed and cheerful, whereas Air Canada I found to be more “professional”. Neither was bad, just different approaches.

For long flights across the country, I prefer Air Canada.

Speaking of Air Canada, has anyone noticed if they are enforcing this new rule:

“Effective April 10, 2013, check-in and baggage acceptance for flights within Canada will close 45 minutes prior to departure “

They don’t enforce the carry on limits so I was wondering if they will enforce this one?

axman: “They don’t enforce the carry on limits so I was wondering if they will enforce this one?”

One of my many flight pet peeves. I wish airlines would start enforcing this.

Like NMG’s observation, I fly both Air Canada and WestJet and have found the service to be comparable. The old stereotype of the grumpy Air Canada employee just doesn’t exist anymore… not in my experience anyway.