Good afternoon from Toronto-Pearson International Airport! My name is Alex,
and today, I’m flying with Air Canada home to Calgary on board their Airbus A320.
And yes, this is another… ancient trip report from December of 2019,
but this was a Business Class flight, so automatically it’s
already a bit more interesting and I think the footage still holds up.
I just landed here on my previous flight from Orlando, and this international to
domestic connection involved a brief bus ride with some pretty cool views!
From there, it was up another escalator to the domestic gates,
and an elevator to Air Canada’s Maple Leaf Lounge.
The domestic Maple Leaf Lounge in Toronto is huge, with plenty of seating,
food, and some great views of the airport.
However, upon entering, I saw this sign for the then-new Air Canada Cafe
and decided to go check it out. Anyone flying in Signature,
Business, or Premium Rouge is able to enter, as well as Air Canada status members.
The architecture’s actually very impressive, it feels pretty upscale, but also like a
convenience store without any price tags. You can basically just walk in and pick
up some food and drink off the shelf, and some of the food is identical to the food upstairs,
it’s just in packaged form instead! I’ve had many a tight connection here in Toronto before,
and I think this is a fantastic idea to get an abbreviated Premium experience.
There’s also free wifi and places to sit if you happen to stick around.
Overall, it’s not a bad place to sit for a while, and may almost be quieter than one of the actual
Maple Leaf Lounges. I still really like the idea of having someplace to quickly grab some
free food on a premium fare, and who knows, maybe AC will expand this idea to some other airports.
Over at Gate D37 is my aircraft for today’s flight to Calgary,
a then-28.5 year old Airbus A320-200, registered as Charlie Foxtrot Papa Whiskey Delta.
This A320 was first delivered to Canadian Airlines International in 1991, then moved over to Air
Canada, where it’s flown since. It did also fly with Air Canada Tango briefly and their charter
subsidiary Jetz. Sadly, since filming this, it has been retired, and left the fleet for good in 2021.
Now I’ve flown economy on Air Canada’s A320 countless times,
but never before in Business, so, let’s go see what it’s like!
Air Canada’s A320 Business Class consists of 14 seats in a 2-2 configuration.
My seat for this 4 hour flight is 2A, the bulkhead row on the left.
The legroom here is a bit restrictive when it comes to stretching, but knee-wise,
it’s fantastic. The engine view is top-notch too.
Shortly after sitting down, a cabin crew member offered to take my jacket,
which was a really nice gesture that I haven’t had on Air Canada before!
These seats all have adjustable headrests, in-seat power, and a small extendable table for drinks.
There’s also a larger one embedded in the center console, which I found to be very useful later on.
The same cabin crew member then came around handing out water bottles, as well as earbuds,
newspapers, and the menu for today’s flight.
The cabin service director then introduced himself personally,
and took our orders for the meal service.
As we push back and taxi out for de-icing, it’s clear that there’s no shortage of interesting
aircraft here at Canada’s busiest airport. Before we take off though,
it’s also worth mentioning that this, as well as other Air Canada A320-211s are equipped
with CFM56-5A1s, an older version of the CFM56 which sounds even better than the newer ones!
Please enjoy the CFM56 symphony as we depart runway 23.
Now, for a bit of backstory, this flight actually took place on New Years’ Eve, 2019,
and after takeoff, just as I’d hoped, we actually took off into the very last sunset of the decade.
At the time, it was a pretty poignant moment, but
a bit less so now that I’m uploading it over two years later!
Meanwhile, hot towels were handed out, and we prepared for the meal service.
The cabin service director addressed me by name, asked for my drink order, and handed out Air
Canada’s usual bowl of warm nuts. I opted for my usual cup of coffee with some cream and sugar.
I’ve talked about Air Canada’s old in-flight entertainment countless times,
so I’ll save you the trouble. Long story short, great selection, a bit of patience required.
The screens in the bulkhead row are also a little harder to reach, and they do feel a bit small.
Eventually, tablecloths were given out, as well as the tray for the appetizer.
The appetizer plate consisted of a salad with… many ingredients.
Air Canada’s salads can sometimes be hit or miss for me personally,
but this one was a really nice mix, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The bread roll they serve can also be hit or miss in terms of texture,
but today’s was still pretty fluffy.
For the main course, I ordered the flamed cod,
which came in a creamy shallot sauce with brown and white rice, spinach, and red pepper.
This main course was pretty good, though in my entirely uneducated opinion,
I think it could’ve used a bit more sauce and the rice was a bit bland.
Regardless, a great meal coupled with some of the extra Air Canada Cafe food!
For dessert, and I absolutely love that Air Canada does
this on these suppertime flights, they had a warm cookie and some ice cream.
The cookie was nice and soft, and ice cream was also at a good consistency and not solid ice.
Lots and lots of drinks were provided all throughout the
flight as well - the crew took very good care of us!
Meal service was complete just before reaching Winnipeg, and was that ever a
good meal! Of course, I’m not totally sure how it looks today on these suppertime flights,
but I know AC has brought back the plates and cutlery at the very least.
The front lavatory on this A320 is a bit cramped height wise,
but it’s roomy enough everywhere else.
There’s also wifi on board for purchase, though I decided against it today.
In the seatback pocket, Air Canada’s literature package was pretty light on this flight.
There’s the usual safety card,
… The current month’s issue of EnRoute, Air Canada’s inflight magazine,
… and a donation envelope for the Air Canada foundation.
Also, is passenger shaming still a thing? If so, I have a submission for seat 3A.
An hour before landing, the crew also came around with a huge basket of snacks,
and I opted for a can of Pringles.
The rest of the flight went by in the pitch black of December in Canada,
and we started our descent into Calgary for a windy arrival on runway 35R.
Well that was another thoroughly enjoyable flight with Air Canada! I find AC’s overall Business
Class experience is always top-notch, and it’s just such a nice way to fly.
Of course, this was back when the problem facing most airlines around the world was the 737 MAX
grounding, and so it was no surprise to be flying on an older A320 like this.
Even so, the seats themselves are still decent, they’re super wide and comfortable,
even if the backrests could use some new padding. And although the
inflight entertainment isn’t the best, it’s better than nothing.
All things considered, Air Canada’s done a great job keeping the cabin looking fresh
after so many years. The real stars of this flight though, were the crew.
They were so friendly and approachable, and like I said before took very good care of us.
Their colleagues on the flight deck also invited me up after landing,
and I had a great chat with our captain.
Once again, this was a wonderful flight to end 2019 on,
and Air Canada’s A320 Business Class is still a very nice way to travel!
Thank you very much for watching this trip report with Air Canada, and I’ll catch you next time.