Things I like:

1. Flight frequency
2. AVOD
3. Access to MLL
4. Aeroplan miles
5. Ability to fly on wide bodied aircraft
6. Rapidair "desk" at YUL
7. Pre-reserved seating (on higher fares)

Things I don't like

1. Change fee if I'm at the airport slightly early and not on Lattitude fare
2. Variability of fares - seems you try to match with PD or WS but flight 1/2-1 hour different can be double the price
3. Although aircraft are often close to security, sometimes they are at distant gates
4. Large premium for a 1 hour flight to "upgrade" from Tango to Tango Plus
5. Rapidair passes are expensive

How would I improve / distinguish the offering?

1. Ability to stand by for a flight up to one hour earlier than scheduled without paying a change fee - automate the process with check in machines offering the no-charge option so we don't need to occupy the time of an agent to do so.
2. Dedicated gates at the airports that are close to Security.
3. Hot breakfast served on flights leaving 8:30 AM or earlier. Complimentary wine or beer and light snack on flights 4:00 PM or later.
4. Find a way to "fast track" people through the airport - YUL security can be a cauchemare. If you can speed this process, make cut-off 20 minutes prior to departure for people without luggage instead of 30.
5. Make Tango Plus a $20 premium each way
6. Out of the box thought: Limo chits for people who pay for a J ticket (not available for people upgrading, must be used that day)
7. Rapidair "lounge" with free newspapers and WiFi (I use the MLL, but less frequent travellers would appreciate it).
8. on-board Wi-Fi.

 

My understanding on this is that the problem (of course) is with the CRTC et al.

Simon

 

From an employee perspective based largely on customer feedback.

In-flight offerings need to be more competitive with Porter, and could perhaps more closely mirror what Delta Shuttle/US Airways shuttle offer south of the border.

In Y/Class:

*Proper breakfast snack until 0900. While serving a hot breakfast would be nice (and nostalgic), it would confuse a large segment of the traveling public if a full breakfast were to be served on a 1 hour flight, but B.O.B remained on a 5 hour flight. Perhaps a boxed quality muffin/pastry, individual OJ or smoothie and towelette would suffice.

*Complementary Beer/Wine during an established "bistro hour" with an upgraded bar snack.

*Complementary headsets

In J/Class

*Upgraded food service from bar snacks during current non-meal flights prior to 2000.

 

Andrew,
It would be helpful if Air Canada would position Rapidair as a special service recognizing that these are short commuter flights and people expect it to be "rapid" which it really isn't compared to the competition. By the way, does AC realize that you actually have real competion on these routes?

Frankly, you would have to take an entirely new approach to match the service of the upstart in the business which is Porter Air. I flew to Ottawa last week on Porter Air flying out of Toronto Island Airport and liked everything about their service from start to finish:

To be fair, Air Canada has to serve bigger crowds but I believe that the Rapidair product should be positioned as an option to Porter Air. Maybe AC needs to go back and look at what Rapidair used to be when they had their own zone at the airport and you didn't feel like you were fighting the masses when you were flying Rapidair. It just isn't special anymore!

Superstarry

 

So you're alleging the Gate attendent is just blatently lying to me when she/he gives me this explanation? Interesting.

Cheers,

 

If this is the case you should educate your gate attendents not to provide this explanation to passengers then. Otherwise, AC is providing very inconsistent messages about this.

Cheers,

 

No, I am alleging that s/he has no clue what s/he is talking about, much like many of the other rumours that FT members hear from crew.

We heard one last year or the year before that the D9S were coming out of retirement, for instance.

Simon

 

+1

 

I'd like to reiterate the free standby for earlier flights. We are constantly hammered with the instruction to show up at the airport early for our flights. Sometimes things go so well you are sitting at the gate more than an hour before your flight. Some of the flights depart within half an hour of each other. Institute a time window (one or two hours) so that there is free standby for an earlier flight. It's the little things that go a long way. Nothing worst than knowing that flight has emptly seats and you have to wait an hour or pay up to get on it.

 

I agree with all the points in lynchpin_yyz's excellent post.

Nothing worse than showing up at the airport early, being refused stand by for an earlier flight without the $50 fee (which I won't pay), and then having your flight cancelled! Yes, this has happened to me twice!

 

Andrew: As a frequent J-class Rapidair flyer, I would appreciate more consistency in the meal or snack offerings. Sometimes I have only received nuts on a noon flight(YOW-YYZ), but have had a sandwich wrap on a later flight the day before. One improvement I would like to have is the ability to purchase Rapidair upgrade certificates on-line. This would eliminate lining up at the airport.

 

The ability to standby for earlier flights easily at the check-in kiosks is an important addition to this reoccurring point. Delta LGA-BOS and LGA-DCA Shuttle routes allow you to do this, which is incredibly convenient and works well in practice.

Also, as many have previously stated, complimentary beer/wine and consistency in food really is standard practice in this market segment (Delta, Porter, etc), and Rapidair's lack of this is an important reason it fails to set itself out as a 'shuttle' product.

All of this should be irrespective of status or fare class. These tickets should, as others have implied, work like tickets for the train or a bus. We should be able to have some reasonable idea of how much the tickets should cost and get some consistent, standard, level of service, every time.

 

Too bad YTZ is reserved for Porter only. It would be interesting to see Jazz flying a CRA (70 seater JET) with IFE, inflight wifi, free lounge access, meals, beer & wine for everyone, Montreal/Ottawa to Toronto City Centre. This could be a standalone Rapidair Plus product offering only Tango Plus & up etc.

 

Linda, don't feel sorry about Jazz not flying into YTZ. Their predecessor, Air Ontario, DID fly into YTZ in the mid -90s...just long enough to put Vic Pappalardo and City Express out of business. Then, mission accomplished, GX having vanquished OU so that AC had a competitor out of the picture, they closed up shop and there was no longer any service from Dorval to the Island.
It is just sour grapes now when they cry about not having access to YTZ.

 

Jet aircraft are not allowed to operate at YTZ.

AC did have the airport to itself and they did nothing to improve the facilities. The service was horrible. They basically moved most flights to YYZ.

I see you are in YOW soon. I'd give PORTER a try and see what everyone is raving about