Air Canada review by Bess 2014-12-15

I took a flight from Ottawa to St. John’s December 12, 2014. It was supposed to be a direct flight with a short stopover in Halifax. The flight was delayed in Ottawa due to previous weather causing flight staff to require appropriate rest time. When the flight departed approximately four hours late, I expected to arrive in St. John’s four hours later, according to the flight plan. However, we were told we had to deplane in Halifax, as the plane would not continue to St. John’s (we were not advised of any reason), and were rebooked on later flights. I lined up and was given boarding cards with standby for six hours later and confirmed booking for ten hours later.
Here are my problems with the process:
1) Why did the flight not continue on the same plane with the booked passengers.
2 Economy ticket holders were given a $15 meal voucher, while business class holders were provided $30 voucher. This makes no sense and sounds class based, which is fine for seats but not for meals.
3) I knew about five other people on the flight, and several work with me. The people who were put on the earlier flights as standby were called in seemingly no order. When I asked customer service how they were selected (since I was almost first in the lineup to be rebooked), I was told they had been computer selected because they had higher status, or they lined up longer. In the case of two people I know who flew earlier, neither of these statements was true, and the apparent randomness upset many waiting passengers.
I also flew from Ottawa to St. John’s in November and on the direct non-stop return flight on November 28th, the flight was routed to Gander due to runway icing in St. John’s and we were told we couldn’t deplane but would return to Ottawa and return in early morning. Several passengers complained so we were allowed to deplane (this was after 1 a.m.) but received no benefits from Air Canada. I stayed in Gander at a hotel and shared a taxi back to St. John’s in the morning. I found out that the other passengers arrived back in St. John’s at varying times throughout the next day, some as late as 5 p.m.. This is very inconsiderate for people with health problems or who had small children with them, as was the case for a couple who deplaned in Gander.
My previous flights with Air Canada have been great in general, and I have flown many times until 3 years ago. However, I haven’t flown a lot in the past three years, and maybe the service has deteriorated. Even with the bad experiences above, the staff were very professional and helpful, and the actual flight experience was pleasant.