I'm so sad that CX is continuing to cut F :(

Thoughts on Alaska Miles vs Aeroplan? Which has more flexibility? Just started looked into this as I am switching credit cards.

Indeed. The chances of flying on CX F is getting slimmer and slimmer. While their business product is still top-notch, it is starting to get a little long in the tooth. Wonder if the A350 refresh atleast includes a HD screen in those flip out tv's.

On a related note, just came back from YVR-JFK in CX J and was pleasantly surprised to see that they did hand out amenity kits for this leg. I flew the reverse routing JFK-YVR last year and they did not. Finally have one of these new kits with the zipper to add to my small collection.

Aeroplan has a wider selection of partners, but Alaska has their pluses too. It's a bit of a wash but Aeroplan is easier to earn/get.

Sorry for the late reply.

Redeeming Aeroplan rewards (outside of the shitty domestic Y Class AC Metal redemptions) miles has certainly become an art. Recently snagged a couple J seats to Europe on Swiss (which btw is a great airline to redeem while avoiding surcharges) during the xmas holidays. Return was a whole different story! Don't have the flexibility of waiting <14 days out for a LH F redemption and there were very little attractive options in J so I guess the lady and I will be flying paid on the way back.

Back from the trip.

The SFO GF check-in lounge is so small. I almost missed it walking pass by. But it puts you directly to the Pre-Check line which was great!

https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8138/2...238d3339_c.jpgIMG_0951 by JayPhoto, on Flickr


The United GF hardware is so comfy. I only snapped this pic to show the new GF amenity kit, which comes in a tin can as I thought I'd be taking more pics when I wake up. Granted I didn't sleep well the night before the trip, but to sleep the entire way, barely making the meal prior to arrival is a first for me. :fuckthatshit: I literally passed out as soon as the plane reached cruising alt. so I can put my chair flat. Noise is quite a bit lower in 1A seat, which helped a lot with sleep.

Only complain is probably the lack of storage (overhead bin is tiny. Enough for each pax to store their carry-ons but not much else)
https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5683/3...a8b983fb_c.jpgIMG_0955 by JayPhoto, on Flickr

The Amex lounge at SFO is pretty nice and worth checking out if you have an eligible Amex card to gain entry.

Alaska miles is a much better program. The amount of airlines you have access to is amazing and the fact you can book J and some times F on Emirates is well worth joining.

Side note, MBNA Alaska miles card is one of the best cards I have and I like having the option of the .99% rate they offer for balance transfers. Only negative is the card is lacking when it comes to travel insurance.

One massive issue is the devaluation of Alaska Miles on Emirates - F is now 200K one way(!!!). Very very difficult to get that many miles now, and buying miles to top up is no longer really feasible or good value. I would say that the others (AA, BA, KL/AF/DL) are okay at most, and the YQ on BA TATL really sucks.

Still good for QF, KE, CX for now.

Aeroplan has better selection for TATL and some TPAC, with ANA/BR/LX/LOT/UA providing mostly YQ-free service.

Probably been brought up by others already but I just took my first AC Rouge flight to Osaka on their 767... and boy was it uncomfortable. The aircraft is ancient, 1995 build with nary a refresh. I knew and researched what I was getting into but it still under delivered on all regards, especially the amateur hour service by what I felt like were high school students. An hour between meal service and tray collection, and not even knowing what was inside the meal besides "its chicken" are just examples of the poor-training and service standards.

In comparison, I flew the slave-ship, the 777-300ER in HD configuration on the way back from HKG and enjoyed that. Atleast it has real IFE to distract you from the smaller seats.

EDIT: Suffering from jetlag allowed me to compile this quick video review of the AC HD777. Dreading to relive the Rouge flight so going to hold off on that for a bit LOL.

^ I avoid rouge at all costs...but sadly, AC will eventually Rouge many mainline routes

oh god.. my condolences. Rouge and the 777HD. Sounds awful :(

I feel ya.

Even the J in 777HD is quite horrifying, let alone Y.

What I don't get is the PY in 777HD. I never flew in them per se, but I did try it out on an open seat while I was on my way back to YVR once (I sucked up and paid for the upgrade to J from an incredibly cheap Y fare). The difference between the PY and Y is marginal at best. Anyone who's paying the difference between Y and PY might as well save the money and just pay for the upgrade offer at check-in. In my case of HKG-YVR it was 7000HKD, which I thought it was fair considering the length of the flight and the difference in fare (~5xx one way in Y, 12xx in PY and 23xx in J)

The A50 is quite nice (it's what the CEO calls it), the seats themselves haven't changed too much, but there is now in-flight Wifi (Pay service, cannot be used over China) and the screens are all in HD now.

Bizarre incident...

so it was an A380.. wondered why it landed there as opposed to calgary etc.

from the night time shots i couldnt tell if it had 4 engines or not

I believe it was foggy in YYC so it was rerouted to YVR.

This is what I hear too. The fog in YYC downgraded the landing conditions so it was made to land in YVR. If you think about it, pilots of the A380 have some tough decisions to make when diverting due to the limited amount of runways they can utilize in an emergency...

There's a various number of things to consider. Fog was only a small factor, or probably not even a factor in this case. These aircrafts are advance enough to make such landings. The reasoning was mostly due to the fact there was already a BA 787 on ground at YYC at the time. YVR would have had more ground resources to handle the situation. Not to mention YVR already have a gate suitable for the A380. And they also had to dump some fuel first, add in other factors like local accommodation, hospitals (see above, even in Van they had to separate it throughout 3 diff hospitals), and various reason the public probably won't know about....YVR was the candidate.

Here's the ATC audio from the BA flight

Got around to compiling my flight report for my Air Canada Rouge to Osaka flight. Definitely one to be avoided if you can.

Anyone booking the super cheap flight out of FLR to Asia/Oceania to DUS? It's a great mileage run if they actually honor the fares. So crazy routing involves coming to America first and then to Asia/Oceania... the mileage potential is huge. But again, the chances for them to honor it is low (as it's cheaper than Y fares)

FLR-HKG/ICN/NRT-DUS from 770€ / J - FlyerTalk Forums

I was heading to Japan, so I'd just take the long way there and do some shopping in Europe on the way. Now I'm just keeping my finger crossed for it to be honored and then book my positioning flight. :D

Great price for all those legs in J. But how are you planning to position yourself into FLR?

Assuming the ticket actually stick and don't get canceled, this is my travel set for next year:

YVR-CDG-FLR (on miles)-FCO-HKG-SYD-TPE-HKG-DUS (ticket 1)-AMS-EZE-LIM-LAX-FRA-FLR (ticket 2)-CDG-YUL-YVR (mile ticket 2)

Alternative, I can just stop the journey at LAX and book a 1way ticket back to YVR. :D