Review of Air Canada Express flight Washington Toronto in Business

Airline Air Canada Express
Flight AC7069
Class Business
Seat 2A
Aircraft Embraer E-175
Flight time 01:30
Take-off 24 Mar 18, 06:00
Arrival at 24 Mar 18, 07:30
AC 54 reviews
JonathanL
By 1764
Published on 8th March 2020

Greetings and welcome to another flight report! Today I'll be flying on Air Canada Express for the first time from DCA to YYZ. I had found this flight via United MilagePlus and got it on a saver level of only 30,000 miles from DCA to PTY, connecting in YYZ. Compare that to the 40,000 miles flying nonstop from IAD in economy. Unfortunately, to snag that deal I had to catch a flight that had me getting up at an ungodly hour. After catching a taxi to DCA, I headed straight to into the check in area of Terminal A. The line for economy were impossibly long, whereas the one for business class was empty. After a seamless check in experience, headed to the security checkpoint. After clearing security, I went to the rotunda where the gates were housed. The historic building maintained the grandeur of the flying experience from a different era. 


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Before long, boarding was called and I was one of the first few to board thanks to my business class ticket. I was greeted by a relatively friendly flight attendant and found my seat, 2A. The cabin looked extremely dated, aided by the design and color of the seat covers and everything on the whole just looking old. 


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As could be said about the IFE screen. The resolution was dreadful and the touch screen response time slow, making it almost unusable. It almost worked like a computer as when you touched the screen, a cursor would appear. Thankfully, the selection seemed to be good. Earbuds were passed out before takeoff. Once I settled in, the flight attendant came over and asked what I wanted to drink after takeoff and if I wanted breakfast. Sadly, there were no pre-departure beverages, even though there was more then enough time. We had a slight delay, but soon enough the safety demo was performed and we pushed back. We took of into an incredible sunrise. 



Before long, my orange juice was served. It came in glassware branded with the Air Canada maple leaf. 


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It's nice that Air Canada uses glassware and mugs on it's regional subsidiaries-on US airlines, it's not a guarantee. Shortly after, my breakfast was served. It consisted of an omelette with a side of fruit and yogurt. 


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The omelette wasn't bad at all. It's nice to have hot meals on a regional jet as again, the US carriers don't always have this. When my tray was cleared, I ordered a coffee. I sipped it as I gazing out the window at the icy scenery. 


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Before long, we were descending into YYZ. We had great views of downtown Toronto as well as Mississauga. 


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After landing, I went to the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge to wait for my Copa flight to PTY. (The full review of this lounge can be found on my YYZ to PTY flight on Copa Airlines in business class).


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Verdict

Air Canada Express

7.0/10
Cabin6.5
Cabin crew7.5
Entertainment/wifi5.5
Meal/catering8.5

Washington - DCA

9.4/10
Efficiency9.0
Access10.0
Services8.5
Cleanliness10.0

Toronto - YYZ

8.8/10
Efficiency9.0
Access7.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness10.0

Conclusion

This flight was above average for one of its length. However, the cabin is in desperate need of a refresh.

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1 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 546997 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6658 Comments
    You're not kidding, those old AC cabins are looking super tired and that seat cover design is straight out of the 90s! Nevertheless, AC offer really good service for such a short flight,..better than you'd get on AA on the same route and J in 1-2 on an E-Jet is always a comfortable experience, especially on the 1-seat side. Somewhat inconvenient routings are always a tradeoff for saver mileage awards, but backtracking to YYZ to head down to PTY is just more fun and more time on a plane for an AvGeek! Haha

    Thanks for sharing!

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