summary
- Security and boarding procedures at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol were chaotic and slow, causing frustration and delays for passengers.
- The in-flight dining experience in business class was enjoyable, with a variety of menu options and a decent drink selection.
- In-flight entertainment offered a good selection of movies and TV shows, but the live TV feature and in-flight WiFi weren’t working properly on this flight.
After a few days in Amsterdam, it was time to head to Toronto. Luckily, I was flying Business Class on Air Canada for this trip. Through this review, I will experience the ups and downs of my transatlantic journey. Read on to learn more about the classes available on Air Canada. The flight across the pond was AC809 from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) to Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) on October 27th.
Anyone who has traveled back and forth to the Netherlands knows how efficient they want things to be. However, in this case, after a quick train ride from Amsterdam Central Station to Schiphol, everything seemed to go downhill until we boarded.
Photo: Air Canada
Normally security is easy, but this time it was chaos and it took us 45 minutes in line to get through security. Because of this, we didn’t have enough time to experience the lounge. Eligible Air Canada passengers have access to the Swissport InterContinental Executive Lounge located near Gate 41. When we finally arrived at the gate, my girlfriend’s flight was delayed by 20 minutes and I was just recovering from the flight when a bunch of people surrounded me. Long wait time at security check.
![Air Canada's Boeing 777-300ER lands on the ground](https://static1.simpleflyingimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/b777-300er-3-1.jpg)
Approximately 200 aircraft: Air Canada’s fleet in 2023
Canada’s largest airline continues to grow, taking over new and used aircraft over the past year.
Let’s fly
Air Canada has a fleet of over 80 widebody aircraft, and today I flew a Boeing 777-300ER, registration number C-FRAM (serial number 35250). The 15.5-year-old bird made its first test flight on June 16, 2008, and was delivered to Air Canada the following week on June 25. According to Airfleets, the fleet currently consists of 40 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats, and 336 economy class seats. Two General Electric GE90-115BL2 engines power the aircraft.
I was sitting in the middle seat of the 9th row, and when I arrived on the plane, I was offered a pre-takeoff drink: either water, orange juice, or a glass of bubbly (wine). That made me forget a little bit the drama of arriving at the airport and being slightly delayed for boarding, but after we took off down the runway we were provided with warm towels to freshen up and they were quickly collected after use. Ta.
As I took a closer look at the surrounding storage area, I noticed that dust had accumulated in the water bottle storage area. Also, the bathroom was closer than I originally imagined. But it was a small thing so I sat back, relaxed and headed home. Please note that it is best to book a window seat if you are traveling with other people, as the partition between the two seats may fall off. It closes securely in the middle to maintain privacy, making it ideal for solo travelers.
Photo: AK Hiraki | Simple Flight
When it was time to recline and take a nap, there was no crew to load the mattress cover, so I had to make my own decisions, which was a little disappointing.
food and wine experience
Dinner was soon served and the appetizer was marinated shrimp and seafood salad, served with fresh vegetables and warm garlic bread. For the main course, you could choose from several choices including beef fillet, green curry chicken, salmon fillet, and tomato penne pasta, and for dessert you could choose between fresh fruit salad or Gianduja shortbread.
In-flight meal service began 30 minutes after takeoff, and the hostess was quick to lower the table and set up a cloth. Garlic bread is served to all business class passengers as part of the bread tray, and an hour before the flight I had an appetizer in front of me. The shrimp and salad were delicious and fresh and overall we enjoyed the meal.
The flight was about 7 hours long, so our second meal an hour before landing was pasta salad with smoked chicken breast, orange bunches, bread, and chocolate. This seemed to be the same standard as what you would receive in economy, but in a much nicer format.
To accompany the meal, there was a modest selection of Laurent Perrier champagne, white wines from Portugal or France, and red wines from Canada, Spain, and Austria. Other spirits were also available, including a delicious Aperol Spritz. For beer and seltzer drinkers, Blue Moon Belgian White, Hop Valley IPA, Molson Canadian, Coors Light, Heineken, or Visy Mimosa Hard Seltzer now join the list.
![Air Canada Boeing 787 Dreamliner](https://static1.simpleflyingimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/b787-9-wingflex-1.jpg)
Air Canada makes Europe a little smaller with new connecting train offer
One ticket allows passengers to travel directly from the airport to train stations in France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
entertainment
Air Canada recently launched new live TV features including CTV and BNN, so I was looking forward to my flight to Toronto. But unfortunately it didn’t work during the flight. But there was plenty of other entertainment to keep me entertained.
In addition to not being able to watch live channels, the free onboard WiFi took a long time to load and was still unavailable 30 minutes into the flight. Wi-Fi is typically available for messaging such as iMessage and Whatsapp, and is accessible to all Aeroplan members.
Entertainment on board was good and there was a split TV so I was able to watch a movie on one side and check the flight status on the other. The mini screen also allows you to choose what you want to see next and control the main screen. Apple TV was also available on board.
USB A was available for charging devices. I felt that the headphones provided to business class passengers had excellent noise cancellation, so much so that I didn’t feel the need to remove my personal Bose headphones from my carry-on bag. This allowed us to relax on board and cancel out other noises throughout the cabin as well as the noise of the aircraft in flight.
Arrive in Toronto
Even after leaving Amsterdam a little late, we made up time on the plane and arrived in Toronto 8 minutes ahead of schedule. The arrival hall was almost empty when we got off the plane. However, at border control there was a line for foreign passport holders and an even shorter line for Canadians. Our bags were placed at the beginning of the collection carousel, so we were able to quickly exit the terminal and head home.
Photo: AK Hiraki | Simple Flight
Air Canada offers year-round service to Amsterdam from Toronto Pearson (YYZ), with additional seasonal service from Montreal Trudeau (YUL). Out of Toronto, the airline faces competition from two other airlines, with Dutch carrier KLM Royal Dutch Airlines offering 11 weekly flights, alongside leisure-focused Air Transat. , Air Transat also offers seasonal service during the summer.
In 2022, Toronto was the seventh most popular intercontinental route, with more than 426,000 passengers traveling between the two cities, the most to Canada alone.
Photo: Shawn.ccf | Shutterstock