Flights home
 

I've started tweeting my annoyance at BA and Air Canada at the lack of competition regarding flights home. A flight to London on BA end of May is 1600 yet from Seattle its 1000. I'm so fed up at being ripped off by their lack of competition year after year. If anyone has the time could they join in. I'd love people to register their anger. Who knows, something might happen.

Yours natively,
Londonuck
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re: Flights home
 

$300 Vancouver (guessing, as your comparison city is Seattle) to London, WestJet May 27th.

Fastest direct flight is $838 sold by Lufthansa (AC operated) on May 28th, the 5 minute longer BA flight $742 overnight from Finnair.

re: Flights home
 

There are other choices than BA and AC, use them. That is how the free market works, and so long as AC and BA can sell tickets at the prices they ask, they will continue to do so regardless of any number of tweets. .... You might as well tweet about the price of Bentleys - if you can't afford one, buy a BMW, or a Kia. :nod:

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It might also be worth pointing out that $US 1000 is roughly $Cd 1350.

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You'd be surprised how tweeting works in some cases. I'm fully aware of this free market.

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We're going back to UK for a summer holiday. 2 adults, 3 kids. Cost via AC on the sole direct flight from St John's to London - $7800 for all 5. Cost going via Halifax with Westjet $4100. Much though I loathe travelling longer than I need to, it was a no brainer decision to go with WJ! No BA or nipping across the border option for us.

re: Flights home
 

We gave up on BA several years ago, after giving them 4 'last chances'! Will not now fly with them even if they are cheaper. Taking a trip back to the UK this summer, will fly WestJet to LGW. Did consider Air Transat. No problem with AC, their international services seem decent enough, although with a very large premium for the dubious pleasure of flying into LHR!

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Unfortunately when we checked they were all around the same price.

A year or so ago I had a family member suddenly die. We had flights already booked to go home and we explained why we needed to change them. Air Canada insisted that it would cost $800 to do so and wouldn't budge. I then started attacking them on Twitter and they eventually they gave in and gave me back my $800.

And Novo, that is quite a difference when there's more than one flying.

Look what happened regarding cable prices. As soon as the cords were cut, the prices came down and more deals were available.

re: Flights home
 

Might that be a 'local' thing?
It's something I keep my eye on regularly and the only deals I ever see are the ones that have been going in all the nearly 14 years here, where you get a discount of one to three years. And then that might be extended.

The only change I have seen was the introduction of the 'skinny' package and I think that was a government forced change. It also doesn't allow the add-ons for the stuff people do want to watch

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When you booked the tickets it probably said in the terms and conditions it would cost $200 to change them? While I appreciate people passing away is stressful and upsetting (we've been there), it's not necessary for the airlines to help you out. Of course they might oblige when being attacked in a Twitter storm, but really, it's not down to them to cover emergencies in your life. We've had the same scenarios and have mentioned why we need to change flights. Sometimes fees have been waived and sometimes not. I wouldnt have the energy or inclination to argue with them on this one. 😉

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I am Home.


Perhaps this would be better in the MBTTUK forum! :p

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I have booked with AC for 18th March $949 (about £550)

What are people's experiences with flying with AC in general?

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The food is atrocious, and I say that as someone who usually eats all that a transatlantic airline serves to its economy passengers.. :o

Between booking, last autumn, and flying at Christmas, the plane had been upgraded from an Airbus to a 787. The experience of flying on a 787 was totally underwhelming.

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They're a traditional full service Airline.

Last time I was on there, I had a two-month old plane, a row to myself (we basically all had lay-flat beds in economy ;)), excellent seat-back entertainment, freely dispensed liquor (offered often, and immediately followed up with 'double?'), normal airline food. Kindof a shame it was only from Montreal to London, not the extra few hours from Vancouver :rofl:

Realistically, you're likely to find the full range of experiences from any airline like AC. My enduring experience of BA is that the cabin crew were sullen and the seat-back system barely better than a book. Others will call them fantastic. I found Air France helpful and considerate, others will deliberately seek to route themselves to avoid Paris. Any airline like that, you've got the best chance possible of your plane making it to destination, and you're going to find some people had positive, some negative experiences inside the cabin.

Re: Flights home
 

From where to where? Assuming by your handle you are flying LHR-YVR then it'll be a 777-300. Economy is cramped, In Flight Entertainment is OK compared to others and you probably will have Wifi - which you have to pay extra for of course. AC are no better nor worse than most mainstream carriers. If you haven't done so already, and are choosy about where you sit, pay the fee to select a seat. Otherwise you risk ending up on row 50something in the middle which isn't much fun.

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I commuted to Chicago by car, through the winter, rather than fly with them.

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One word. Westjet. Even better, get the RBC Westjet credit card and spend lots of money on it and then use the points for flights back to the UK (not 'home', BC is my home now).
I just booked 6 flights (2 people, inc transfers) plus a rental car while in england in peak time school summer holidays, used westjet points and spent about $1000 in total.
Furthermore you get a companion voucher each year whereby you book one flght and get another the same at a huge discount.
And I find the service with Westjet better than any other airline.
Also a big fan of Air Transat but they dont have such a good points scheme.

Re: Flights home
 

Thanks everyone for your comments

Yes flying from LHR- Vancouver

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Where does Westjet go? not heard of them for UK flights

Have used Air Transat. On this occasion AC was best price

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They go to the UK more specifically London Gatwick from Vancouver.

https://www.westjet.com/en-ca/book-t...-flights/index

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Westjet were traditionally just within Canada, then branched out to the US and Mexico, and now travelling to Europe. We too used to use Air Transat. Westjet bought 4 old Quantas Airline planes to test the route across to Europe and obviously went well for them as they have ordered something like 30 Dreamliners to expand now. We fly into Gatwick currently when we use them.

Re: Flights home
 

The nice thing about Air Transat (and possibly Westjet) is that you can book a one-way for around half the cost of a return unlike BA or AC. This can give you quite a bit of flexibility which can save money and also be quite fun. e.g Fly in to London, fly out of Paris, Manchester or Amsterdam...

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I have heard West Jet are very competitively priced, but appears they only fly into Gatwick? that the only UK airport they serve? I hate Gatwick its in such a stupid location for an airport...so inaccessible for majority of the UK.

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It's handy for the Costa Geriatrica, where my Mother lives, and EasyJet fly out of there .. I just booked a return flight to Geneva for C$100 .. so it suits me fine.

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That is probably one rare example where it is of use...serving as a hub to the rest of Europe. Apart from that, its useless to anyone else in the UK....any advantage of a cheaper flight into there is eroded by further traveling costs and time wasted.

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Surely it's only markedly less convenient than Heathrow if you actually want to go to Watford or Hounslow, if you're going to, say, Harrow, it's about the same number of changes.

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I've found the direct train links to Bristol, Birmingham or Manchester via Reading make Gatwick far more convenient than Heathrow. One can avoid going into London completely.

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It's no more difficult to get from Gatwick to the parts of UK I need to go to than Heathrow. Both involve a slog around about half of the M25. Getting into London from Gatwick is more painful because it involves Southern Rail unless you want to go to Victoria on the Gatwick Express. On balance I prefer LHR Terminal 2 as a place to travel through than Gatwick, although Gatwick does at least, have shops one might actually use as opposed to Heathrow which is all Rolex and Gucci. But neither airport is bad enough to prevent me from flying through them if the price is right which is why we are (supposedly,) flying into Gatwick this summer as a family.

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On a less related note, but still relevant to this thread. Does anyone know which airlines still operate 747's on transatlantic flights to the UK....preferably from Toronto?

I know Air Canada doesn't have any in their fleet. I think British Airways may still operate a Toronto - London flight?

I have travelled since I was child on various aircraft, but never got the opportunity to fly on the "Queen of the skies"....a 747! Since many of the main airlines will be dropping them from their fleet in the next 5 years or so, its something personal Id like to do before they do dissapear.

Re: Flights home
 

Lufthansa have 19 747's - they fly to the UK (including to Manchester, Bristol etc.)
https://www.lufthansa.com/xx/en/flig...ingdom#Cabin=E
but you will need to select a flight that goes via Europe to get on a Lufthansa flight - for the direct ones they use Air Canada as their partner. It's not the cheapest way to go but for a bucket list item, why not! :D

British Airways also have 30 odd 747's, so might be cheaper. :)
http://thefullgull.com/flying-on-the...ive-operators/ - lists all the airlines that have them and the end date of using them. :)
also https://aeronauticsonline.com/queen-...7-fly-in-2019/
https://www.britishairways.com/en-ca.../boeing747-400
For the aircraft buffs :) https://www.airfleets.net/home/
https://britishexpats.com/forum/data...AAAElFTkSuQmCC

Re: Flights home
 

Thanks Siouxe, I knew Lufthansa had 747s, but as you say, it wont be a direct flight from Tornoto to the UK....that said if I am doing a bucket list maybe I should add a couple of days in Germany too (another bucket list item I have never done) I could do a flying visit (pardon the pun) to Germany and a ride on a 747 all in one, and still get my trip to the UK. You got me thinking now. The next hurdle is trying to get time off work.....and dont start me on that pet peeve again! lol

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Sadly the big two airlines have been controlling prices in Canada for several decades and the govt. caves in to them constantly.

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I hope nobody is booked to fly on WOW Air (Iceland) as they have ceased operations as of today.

https://wowair.com/travel-alert/

End of Operation of WOW AIR

Information for WOW AIR passengers

WOW AIR has ceased operation. All WOW AIR flights have been cancelled.