Calgary to London. KLM or Air Canada?

[theikon]

I need to fly from Calgary to London, and need to decide between KLM or Air Canada.

KLM is slightly more expensive, but I don't mind paying extra for the perks.

What i'd really like is internet access on the flight...any input?

[ricosuave]

I would do KLM in a second, just for the simple fact that AC sucks big time

[Hack&Lube]

I always go for European Carriers if given the choice, Air Canada is dead last on any of my lists. I had a great time with BA and the Luftwaff...err Lufthansa is fantastic too.

I haven't been on any flights that have offered internet access though in the past 2 years. I didn't know if it was available. Air Canada has power and usb and a nice touchscreen system at every seat now though.

I was just in Toronto and at the Metropolitan Hotel, it was full of KLM crew, no pretty flight attendants, they were as old as Air Canada's! There was also a rude KLM pilot in the elevator.

[Finny61]

I'd go BA or KLM from the perspective of someone whose been in the business. I won't fly Air Canada ever.

[Redliner]

Avoid Air Canada like the plague. Sadly, service is generally much better on the foreign carriers and some of them actually treat you like a human being.

Don't fly United though....apparently they break guitars.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

I think Air Canada is pretty good. More legroom than WestJet and their touchscreen seat consoles beat WestJet's live TV in my opinion.

Of course, both Air Canada and WestJet are much better than the U.S. airlines I've flown on (United, American, JetBlue).

But that said, I recently flew Lufthansa and that was a totally different experience. I've never flown KLM but I'd say go with the European carrier. Lufthansa even had a similar touchscreen console to Air Canada. It was a Calgary to Frankfurt flight.

[_Q_]

If you take KLM you need to stop over in Amsterdam which will probably add at least 2 hours to your trip. I would say go with Air Canada or British Airways. I find AC to be about mid-range for service, comfort, food quality, etc. Whatever you do, don't fly on any American Carriers.... I have been on Airlines from third world countries that seem safer and have more advanced aircrafts.

[Hack&Lube]

I like Air Canada's touchscreen quite a bit, however it seems all the cool features (Games, Map, etc.) never work when I was flying. I assume map is some kind of GPS positioning of where we are. That would be cool to watch.

I had a great time on BA to London. Complimetary alcholic beverages, delicious meals, awesome snacks (worschestershire sauce flavoured crunchy things???), etc.

[wooohooo]

I used to have huge issues with Air Canada, but lately I find them a lot better. In fact, wait for it.... better than West Jet. On our flight to Hawaii, we had to pay for TV, where as on our flight back with Air Canada, it was free, and the interactive menu/selection was awesome! Great movie, TV and game selection.

However, I took BA to london earlier this year and it's great service. Better than Air Canada's but their entertainment was sub par.

Given the two, I would probably take any european airliner. They always seem to have exceptional service and quality.

Of the best Airlines in the world, I took Singapore airlines once and it was the greatest flight I ever took.

[Hack&Lube]

I have to say I really enjoyed Air Canada's new touchscreen monitors for the entertainment too. Great music in the library, in the faux-XM radio, and the movies and TV selection was phenomenal. Lots of catagories, even indie movies, canadian movies, and if you are only interested in hollywood blockbusters, they have all the newest movies that are not even out on BluRay/DVD yet. On my flight to Toronto, I watched Star Trek and Wolverine last weekend.

I haven't been on a Euro carrier for 2 years though so I don't know if they have upgraded their entertainment systems or not. Definetely if you are the kind of person that needs to be entertained, the Air Canada system has more movies and TV than on my own computer and lots of cool music to sample. You couldn't scratch that library, even on a pan-Atlantic trip.

One travel tip as always is that you should try to get the emergency exit row. The extra space you get makes a huge difference. I could sit on the window seat and walk out of the aisle while the passengers next to me were sleeping and not even disturb them at all.

[BlackEleven]

KLM has a decent touchscreen system. Lots of games and movies on it. AC only has movies (I've never seen the games actually work, and I fly quite a bit).

The food and service is better on KLM vs. AC as well. On an international flight, try to get the row immediately behind business class if you can. Lots of leg room, more than an emergency exit.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

I like Air Canada's touchscreen quite a bit, however it seems all the cool features (Games, Map, etc.) never work when I was flying. I assume map is some kind of GPS positioning of where we are. That would be cool to watch.

I had a great time on BA to London. Complimetary alcholic beverages, delicious meals, awesome snacks (worschestershire sauce flavoured crunchy things???), etc.

Lufthansa has the map on their touchscreen. It's great for an overseas flight as you can see where you are (over Greenland, etc) and also the temperature outside (-70 for some parts of it!).

Air Canada also has complementary alcoholic beverages for all overseas flights - including Hawaii.

[jolinar of malkshor]

I dont know why so many people dont like AC. I fly on it quite a bit and the international overseas flights have nice planes. The best are the pods in business class. You can make the seat go completely flat. You can actually sleep in those things.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

Lufthansa has the map on their touchscreen. It's great for an overseas flight as you can see where you are (over Greenland, etc) and also the temperature outside (-70 for some parts of it!).

I love the map too. And the speed display. But I've been meaning to ask some of you aviation buffs why they increase speed as the flight progresses. I hope the answer is not because they are maxed out, but that the gradual decrease in weight from fuel consumption contributes to the increase in speed.

[Gonain]

For what it's worth, I've flown a fair share and in my most recent trip from Boston - Dallas - Calgary, the Boston - Dallas leg of my trip got delayed twice via American Eagle until I was finally routed to Boston - Toronto - Calgary via Air Canada.

I've personally never been treated so well on a flight. Maybe it's all the security checks, increased cost of checked baggage and other inconveniences giving me a horrible disposition every time I enter an airport . Maybe they are in reality just a terrible airline, but Air Canada is the first non-West Jet airline to treat me well enough to deserve praise in a long time.

In fairness, it was announced prior to the flight that there would be a delay because a fresh crew had to prepare (shift change); they would predictably be more cheerful when they aren't on the 6th consecutive hour on a plane. Also, American Airlines/Eagle gave me such an unpleasant experience leading up to their flight that an airline would have had to try pretty hard to look worse.

[spuzzum]

I've flown the YVR - Amsterdam route 25x times. KLM is a better but they are currently re-modelling their fleet. Check to see if they are using their MD11s or a new Airbus / Boeing. If they are using the MD11, fly Air Canada - you'll at least get a A330 or A340 which makes a hell of a difference with the newness of the plane and the entertainment system.

Also consider with KLM flying their MD11s until they are replaced, potential is there to break down or to be delayed. Going with AC, they can easily replace quicker.

I do say fly European if you can. And there is no internet service available yet trans-Atlantic on any carrier or flight.

[Flacker]

Originally Posted by 4X4

I love the map too. And the speed display. But I've been meaning to ask some of you aviation buffs why they increase speed as the flight progresses. I hope the answer is not because they are maxed out, but that the gradual decrease in weight from fuel consumption contributes to the increase in speed.

Well maxed out is a relative term. In high altitude operations the throttles are likely set to MCT (Maximum Continuous Thrust) while cruising. MCT is not max power, all modern commercial jets in level flight can accelerate into an over speed condition (faster than the airframe is designed/certified to travel). MCT is the highest throttle setting for continuous operation.

The airspeed trends up due to a constant power setting (certainly not balls to the wall) and a decreased payload as fuel is consumed. The aircraft like your car is more efficient when not heavily loaded with fuel.

[Bill Bumface]

In my previous experience (4 years ago) KLM was absolute garbage. Rude, ugly staff, no touch screens, just crappy old school overhead monitors and they still used paper tickets. I was traveling with someone that didn't realize the paper they gave you back at your originating airport was your ticket for the way home. They found there way in the garbage and it was a HUGE production to get on our outdated plane with bitchy staff.

I used to loathe Air Canada, but I've frequently taken them one way to Frankfurt and Lufthansa the other way, and honestly, they are pretty damn close. Air Canada has come a long way. Their TV's have way more English content than Lufthansa as well.

[valo403]

If you can figure out what aircraft are running the route check seatguru.com to see what kind of amenities are available.

As for KLM, I've never flown them but I saw a relatively good looking KLM stewardess recently, although she was rather 'hippy' which made me concerned for the elbows of those on the aisles.

[BlackEleven]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

Air Canada also has complementary alcoholic beverages for all overseas flights - including Hawaii.

Any international flight has that (I don't know about to Hawaii, but certainly to Europe) except the charters like Air Transat, which is probably one of the worst airlines still flying between N. America and Europe.

I don't know why so many knock AC either. For international flights they're actually decent. The amount of videos and tv shows is available is impressive, its just unfortunate the games and map never work. The service and food is middle of the road for me. AC definitely beats any of the American airlines I've flown overseas, except maybe Northwestern -- I had a pretty good Amsterdam-Boston flight with them. And they're better than some of the European ones too.