Which one is better,,,, WestJet or AirCanada?

[Guest]

WestJet Vs Air Canada – Which Canadian Airline Is Better?

26 April 2020Canadian Aviation News

News /articel from Simple Flying – link to story

by Chris Loh ~ April 23, 2020

Continuing our series of airline comparisons, today we’ll look at the two major players in the Canadian aviation marketplace: Air Canada and WestJet. While there are a number of other airlines sharing the market including Air Transat (for now), Sunwing, and Porter, Canadians usually see Air Canada and WestJet as the main options for travel across the country. So which one is better?

Air Canada’s main hubs are in Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto while WestJet’s hubs are in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto. Photo: Getty Images

Destinations

According to FlightConnections.com, Air Canada serves 59 domestic destinations and 152 international destinations in 64 countries. On the other hand, WestJet serves 43 domestic destinations and 67 international destinations in 26 countries.

Clearly, Air Canada is the winner across the board, both internationally and within the country. WestJet has zero operations to Asia, Oceania, South America, or North Africa while its archrival does.Advertisement:

Featured Video:

Need to Know: Flying with Pets

The gap is further widened with Air Canada’s membership in the Star Alliance, giving the airline’s most loyal travelers status-recognition with 25 other member airlines around the world. While WestJet has a number of codeshare agreements with oneworld and SkyTeam airlines, the benefits and rewards vary greatly.

The Airbus A220 is the newest addition to the Air Canada fleet. Photo: Air Canada

Fleet

As far as their long-haul aircraft are concerned, both airlines include the Boeing 787-9. However, as Air Canada is the much larger carrier, it also uses quite a diverse fleet of widebodies including the Airbus A330 and Boeing 777. It’s low-cost subsidiary Rouge uses the aging 767 once operated by Air Canada.

WestJet is relatively new to the long-haul market. Its first widebody acquisition was a number of aging Boeing 767s from Qantas for its venture into Europe. These aircraft were initially plagued with problems as spare parts were more difficult to come by, leading to messy flight delays and cancelations. Its new 787-9s, however, have been welcomed with overwhelmingly positive reviews.

WestJet’s first transatlantic flight with a Boeing 787 took off on April 29th, 2019. Photo: WestJet

For narrowbody jets, both airlines are 737 MAX customers. But for aircraft that are currently allowed to fly, WestJet relies on its aging 737 fleet (-600, -700, -800) while Air Canada mainly uses Airbus A320s and A321s. For these single-aisle jets, the interiors for both airlines are fairly old and in need of refurbishment – WestJet more so.

Of course, the one narrowbody that isn’t needing any refit is Air Canada’s new Airbus A220. This aircraft has quickly become a favorite among many travelers and is something that Air Canada has above its rival.

Inflight service

The biggest difference in the inflight experience is WestJet’s spotty inflight entertainment offerings. As a majority of its domestic services use older Boeing 737s, many either have old systems or no systems at all.

Some WestJet 737s have old IFE systems that play television channels. Photo: Chris Loh/Simple Flying Older Air Canada aircraft have sluggish IFE systems with a limited selection of content. Photo: Chris Loh/Simple Flying

In contrast, Air Canada does offer inflight entertainment for the majority of its domestic operations – even if some systems are getting old.

Both airlines will normally offer a beverage and a snack during the flight for domestic services with other food for purchase. On international services, Air Canada is a truly full-service carrier offering inflight meals. WestJet’s 787 service to Europe is the only place you’ll find complimentary inflight meals in economy class.

A look at WestJet’s complementary and paid beverage options. Photo: Chris Loh/Simple Flying

Ratings and reviews

Canadians are quite vocal when it comes to complaining about their airlines. While the Dutch overall seem to love KLM and the Japanese adore both ANA and Japan Airlines, it seems like hating on both WestJet and Air Canada is a national pastime for Canadians. Indeed, North American aviation as a whole is usually perceived as a step below other parts of the world.

Reviewers give both airlines 4/10 through SkyTrax. However, the company itself has designated Air Canada a four-star airline while WestJet is labeled a three-star carrier. While SkyTrax has named Air Canada the best airline in North America numerous times, there are many out there who would disagree- or simply state that the bar has been set very low.

Tripadvisor tells a slightly different story as WestJet gets an average rating of 4/5 from reviewers while Air Canada gets 3/5. For Air Canada, its weakest points were the categories of “The Onboard Experience” and “Value for Money”. For WestJet, its weakest point was inflight entertainment.

We asked some Canadian travelers for some opinions and the overwhelming majority said that WestJet’s customer service was better with friendlier staff. Air Canada was praised for its superior inflight entertainment systems and the half-price discount it provides to musicians needing an extra seat to fly with their large, fragile instruments (cellos, for example).

Air Canada’s flagship aircraft has been the Boeing 787-9. Photo: Air Canada

Conclusion

In terms of getting where you need to go (especially internationally), and being recognized for frequent flyer status, Air Canada is the clear winner.

While WestJet originally set off as a low-cost carrier, its pricing and service has since become fairly similar to Air Canada. Overall I have found that WestJet’s corporate culture is friendlier and easier to deal with. However, many have commented that this has declined over the years since the airline launched.

 

https://canadianaviationnews.wordpress.com/2020/04/26/westjet-vs-air-canada-which-canadian-airline-is-better/

[Seeker]

What a stupid article.  Right now the "best" of the two is whichever of them is actually flying where you want (or need) to go.  In six months, the whole calculation will change - in which way it will change is anybody's guess but one thing is for sure, the information in this article will be hopelessly out-of-date.

[boestar]

Which airline is "Best" is completely subjective.  It depends on 

1) what I expect from the airline to begin with

2) my experience on the flights I take.

I have rarely (very rarely) had any issues with service or any other aspect of flying on AC.  Same can be said for Westjet.(I have never flown westjet therefore I have never had a bad experience).  However I fly on AC a LOT so  have some experience there.

Grading things like in flight entertainment is great but saying the system is old is pretty idiotic.  So is the damned plane.  One does not just "upgrade" the inflight entertainment without significant expense.  When technologies are upgraded  it would not be cost effective to upgrade an entire fleet.  This isnt like changing the car sereo.

Grading an airline or comparing an airline by its fleet is a little silly when the two airlines have very different business models and requirements.  A fleet is comprised of the aircraft required to fulfill the missions required. 

These types of articles are just someones way of saying "I really like Airline A because of this and don't like airline B because of that"

Both airlines are great airlines in their own rights. 

 

[Super 80]

I can barely tell them apart and while I once I had a preference for WestJet I no longer do. 

[mo32a]

I think you can only compare inflight entertainment if you are using noise cancelling headphones.

I tried to watch Ford vs Ferrari on my last AC flight using the provided headset, couldn't understand a word they were saying.

[conehead]

4 hours ago, mo32a said:

I think you can only compare inflight entertainment if you are using noise cancelling headphones.

I tried to watch Ford vs Ferrari on my last AC flight using the provided headset, couldn't understand a word they were saying.

You had the wrong language selected.

[Kasey]

2 hours ago, conehead said:

You had the wrong language selected.

Thats amore! 

[J.O.]

The headphone jacks in the B777 business class were pretty weak on both of my January AC flights from YVR to SYD and back. If you wiggled it just so, you could find the sweet spot but even light turbulence was enough to knock it loose.

[Seeker]

4 hours ago, J.O. said:

 If you wiggled it just so, you could find the sweet spot but even light turbulence was enough to knock it loose.

There's a joke in there - BUT I'M NOT GOING FOR IT!

[J.O.]

2 hours ago, seeker said:

There's a joke in there - BUT I'M NOT GOING FOR IT!

Yeah, I just saw that. You’re welcome!