ANZEIGE
Den folgenden Tripreport wollte ich eigentlich auf FT.com veroeffentlichen, bin aber irgendwie nie dazu gekommen und habe mir daher gedacht, dass ich das ganze mal hier poste, da dieser Flug doch etwas aussergewoehnlicher war (Airline, Airport etc). Ich hoffe, es ist OK, dass ich den TR in Englisch poste, da ich derzeit einfach zu wenig Zeit habe, das alles wieder zurueck ins Deutsche zu uebersetzen 
Zum Hintergrund
Im September war ich geschaeftlich fuer mehrere Tage in den USA und in Kanada unterwegs, das Routing insgesamt war ATL-BOS (DL), dann nach Ottawa (YOW), von dort nach Vanvouver (AC) und schliesslich nach SEA (AS), um von dort zurueck nach ATL zu fliegen. Direktfluege zwischen BOS und YOW gibt es nur mit der Air Canada, die fuer den ca. einstuendigen Flug in einer Dash 8-100 o/w doch glatt 680US$ haben wollten.
Also habe ich mich nach preiswerteren Alternativen umgeschaut und Porter Airlines (Porter Airlines) bot ein Routing via Toronto City Center fuer nur 280US$, ausserdem hatte ich noch einen Promovoucher fuer 25$ off, so dass die Entscheidung recht schnell fest stand.
Porter Airlines und Toronto City Center Airport
Porter Airlines fliegt seit 2006 auf Strecken innerhalb Kanadas (East/Central) mit Bombardier Dash 8-400, ihr Hub haben sie am Airport Toronto City Center, den sie auch exklusiv betreiben. Der Airport liegt auf einer kleinen Insel direkt in der Innenstadt von Toronto und ist nur mit einer Faehre erreichbar. Diese Faehre wird ebenfalls von Porter betrieben und ist mit einer Strecke von 112 Metern und einer Fahrtdauer von 56 Sekunden die kuerzeste kommerzielle Fahrverbindung der Welt (lt. Porter).
Der Airport ist fuer extrem kurze Abfertigungszeiten ausgelegt und Check-In ist bis 15 Minuten vor Abflug moegleich. Nach der Sicherheitskontrolle befinden sich keine Gates im eigentlichen Sinne, sondern eine grosse Lounge fuer alle Passagier, unabhaengig vom Ticketpreis. Dort gibt es freie Getraenke, gratis WiFi, Snacks, Obst und Zeitungen. Das Boarding findet direkt aus der Lounge heraus durch eine von drei Tueren statt, die Maschienen stehen in der Regel nur 50 bis 150 Meter entfernt.
Seit einiger Zeit bietet Porter auch Umsteigeverbindungen innerhalb ihres Netzwerkes an, urspruenglich war die Airline als reine Point-to-Point-Airline ausgelegt worden. In den USA werden derzeit Newark, Boston, Chicago (MDW) bedient, weitere Destinationen (u.a. Washington, Cleveland) sollen in diesem Winter folgen.
Tripreport
As I arrived quite early at the airport, I spend some time exploring Terminal E (where Porter as well as many European airlines leave from).
This terminal is almost empty during the noon hours and I was quickly checked-in. The agent mentioned a light load to Toronto and little did I know how light that was going to be….
I also visited the airline lounges, located in the windowless basement (!) of the terminal.
As a Lufthansa Senator, I went to the LH lounge to see if I could get a German newspaper (which I did) and must say that this is certainly the worst lounge in the entire LH network, dark, small and really outdated. Poor LH customers who are based in BOS and spend their time here quite frequently….
Date: Sept. 15, 2009
Flight: PD 264
Routing: BOS-YCT
A/C: Dash 8-4000
Class: Economy (one-class only)
Seat: 17D
STD: 155PM
STA: 330PM
Duration: 1hrs18min
Boarding commenced well on time and I was already surprised to see only a handful of passengers in the large gate area.
The lead F/A welcomed me on board and confirmed what I thought…it was a very light load, only 9 passengers for the 70 seats on board the new and very comfortable Dash 8-400. But he also mentioned that Porter was actually doing quite well on this route, especially the morning and evening flights were usually well booked. Porter offers a total of three daily flights on the Toronto-Boston route.
With only nine passengers, boarding was done quickly and we were off to the runway about 10 minutes ahead of time. We passed the BA 747-400 that had arrived from LHR and made it to the runway in no time.
There was no other plane in front of us and after holding for a Cape Air Cessna, which was about to land, we were quickly on the active and, thanks to the light load, took off after using maybe ¼ of the total runway.
I had asked to be seated in the second last row (the last row is blocked for crew use) and the feeling at take off was fantastic. The 8-400 is a great aircraft to fly in, fairly quiet and Porter offers spacious leather seats with more than enough legroom for these rather short flights. Flight time today was announced at just over an hour.
Take off was very smooth and we climbed out towards the north, overflying the costal towns around Boston, then turning towards the east while climbing to 26.0000 feet. The weather was beautiful and the in-flight service started only moments after the seatbelt signs were turned off.
This is, among other things, one of the real nice things about Porter: they still offer free drinks (including wine, beer etc) and snacks on all flights and they actually provide it in real glasses. I must say it kind of surprised me how excited I became over the fact that I was served a nice selection of drinks in a real glass by really nice and friendly FA’s. It actually tells a lot about how much frequent fliers are compromising on service these days and it such a welcomed alternative for me to be able to experience that some airlines still make a difference.
My glass was refilled several times and whenever I asked for something, the reply was always finished with a friendly “certainly, my friend†or “no problem, me friendâ€. Is this “my friend†a Porter thing? Anyhow, really nice and a very personal service!
We started the approach into Toronto’s City Airport about 25 minutes before landing and I decided to switch to 17A, as the captain announced a landing from the west. Because the airport is so close to downtown Toronto, one is able to get a great view of the city, parts of the harbor/marina as well as downtown. The approach was quite bumpy as the plane was fighting a strong crosswind, but it eventually smoothened out when we turned towards the runway and the finals were extremely smooth.
We arrived a good 10 minutes ahead of time and before leaving the aircraft I was informed by the FA that I should inquire at the check-in about changing to the earlier YOW flight, which I would easily make. He noticed my connection on his passenger list and decided to be pro-active in telling me about this option. What a service!
Toronto City Center Airport operates only Porter flights as well as some general aviation and the airport is small, easy to navigate and really great for arriving into Canada, as the lines at immigration are short - in a matter of fact there was not a single person in the tiny immigration hall when I arrived. My checked bag arrived within two minutes and I was quickly off to the check-in counters to change my flight - which was not a problem at all. I even got a window seat in the first row (great!) and the whole process took only minutes. As Porter is the only airline to operate at Toronto City Center, the small terminal is completely branded in Porter colors and looks very stylish and sleek. You can see the a/c being parkes right in front the windows.
There are several unique things about Toronto City Center Airport, besides the fact that it is less than 1 mile from downtown: Passengers who start or end their trip in Toronto have to take a ferry from the airport, which sits on an island, to the city. The trip takes 55 seconds (!) and covers around 120 meters, making it the shortest commercial ferry in the world. The ferry runs every 10 minutes and upon arriving on the other side, passengers can board a free Porter bus to Union Station in the heart of downtown….talk about service here!
Also, the departure area is not really a gate but rather a large airport lounge with plenty of comfortable lounge seats, free Wi-Fi, free drinks and snack for all passengers and a very cosy feeling. Basically it reminded me of a mix between a Virgin Airline Club House “lightâ€, the lobby of a W hotel and a small, regional airport. Not much more to ask for, I think. If I would live in Toronto and commute from here, Porter would be my airline of choice - no doubt!
Zum Hintergrund
Im September war ich geschaeftlich fuer mehrere Tage in den USA und in Kanada unterwegs, das Routing insgesamt war ATL-BOS (DL), dann nach Ottawa (YOW), von dort nach Vanvouver (AC) und schliesslich nach SEA (AS), um von dort zurueck nach ATL zu fliegen. Direktfluege zwischen BOS und YOW gibt es nur mit der Air Canada, die fuer den ca. einstuendigen Flug in einer Dash 8-100 o/w doch glatt 680US$ haben wollten
.Also habe ich mich nach preiswerteren Alternativen umgeschaut und Porter Airlines (Porter Airlines) bot ein Routing via Toronto City Center fuer nur 280US$, ausserdem hatte ich noch einen Promovoucher fuer 25$ off, so dass die Entscheidung recht schnell fest stand.
Porter Airlines und Toronto City Center Airport
Porter Airlines fliegt seit 2006 auf Strecken innerhalb Kanadas (East/Central) mit Bombardier Dash 8-400, ihr Hub haben sie am Airport Toronto City Center, den sie auch exklusiv betreiben. Der Airport liegt auf einer kleinen Insel direkt in der Innenstadt von Toronto und ist nur mit einer Faehre erreichbar. Diese Faehre wird ebenfalls von Porter betrieben und ist mit einer Strecke von 112 Metern und einer Fahrtdauer von 56 Sekunden die kuerzeste kommerzielle Fahrverbindung der Welt (lt. Porter).
Der Airport ist fuer extrem kurze Abfertigungszeiten ausgelegt und Check-In ist bis 15 Minuten vor Abflug moegleich. Nach der Sicherheitskontrolle befinden sich keine Gates im eigentlichen Sinne, sondern eine grosse Lounge fuer alle Passagier, unabhaengig vom Ticketpreis. Dort gibt es freie Getraenke, gratis WiFi, Snacks, Obst und Zeitungen. Das Boarding findet direkt aus der Lounge heraus durch eine von drei Tueren statt, die Maschienen stehen in der Regel nur 50 bis 150 Meter entfernt.
Seit einiger Zeit bietet Porter auch Umsteigeverbindungen innerhalb ihres Netzwerkes an, urspruenglich war die Airline als reine Point-to-Point-Airline ausgelegt worden. In den USA werden derzeit Newark, Boston, Chicago (MDW) bedient, weitere Destinationen (u.a. Washington, Cleveland) sollen in diesem Winter folgen.
Tripreport
As I arrived quite early at the airport, I spend some time exploring Terminal E (where Porter as well as many European airlines leave from).
This terminal is almost empty during the noon hours and I was quickly checked-in. The agent mentioned a light load to Toronto and little did I know how light that was going to be….
I also visited the airline lounges, located in the windowless basement (!) of the terminal.
As a Lufthansa Senator, I went to the LH lounge to see if I could get a German newspaper (which I did) and must say that this is certainly the worst lounge in the entire LH network, dark, small and really outdated. Poor LH customers who are based in BOS and spend their time here quite frequently….
Date: Sept. 15, 2009
Flight: PD 264
Routing: BOS-YCT
A/C: Dash 8-4000
Class: Economy (one-class only)
Seat: 17D
STD: 155PM
STA: 330PM
Duration: 1hrs18min
Boarding commenced well on time and I was already surprised to see only a handful of passengers in the large gate area.
The lead F/A welcomed me on board and confirmed what I thought…it was a very light load, only 9 passengers for the 70 seats on board the new and very comfortable Dash 8-400. But he also mentioned that Porter was actually doing quite well on this route, especially the morning and evening flights were usually well booked. Porter offers a total of three daily flights on the Toronto-Boston route.
With only nine passengers, boarding was done quickly and we were off to the runway about 10 minutes ahead of time. We passed the BA 747-400 that had arrived from LHR and made it to the runway in no time.
There was no other plane in front of us and after holding for a Cape Air Cessna, which was about to land, we were quickly on the active and, thanks to the light load, took off after using maybe ¼ of the total runway.
I had asked to be seated in the second last row (the last row is blocked for crew use) and the feeling at take off was fantastic. The 8-400 is a great aircraft to fly in, fairly quiet and Porter offers spacious leather seats with more than enough legroom for these rather short flights. Flight time today was announced at just over an hour.
Take off was very smooth and we climbed out towards the north, overflying the costal towns around Boston, then turning towards the east while climbing to 26.0000 feet. The weather was beautiful and the in-flight service started only moments after the seatbelt signs were turned off.
This is, among other things, one of the real nice things about Porter: they still offer free drinks (including wine, beer etc) and snacks on all flights and they actually provide it in real glasses. I must say it kind of surprised me how excited I became over the fact that I was served a nice selection of drinks in a real glass by really nice and friendly FA’s. It actually tells a lot about how much frequent fliers are compromising on service these days and it such a welcomed alternative for me to be able to experience that some airlines still make a difference.
My glass was refilled several times and whenever I asked for something, the reply was always finished with a friendly “certainly, my friend†or “no problem, me friendâ€. Is this “my friend†a Porter thing? Anyhow, really nice and a very personal service!
We started the approach into Toronto’s City Airport about 25 minutes before landing and I decided to switch to 17A, as the captain announced a landing from the west. Because the airport is so close to downtown Toronto, one is able to get a great view of the city, parts of the harbor/marina as well as downtown. The approach was quite bumpy as the plane was fighting a strong crosswind, but it eventually smoothened out when we turned towards the runway and the finals were extremely smooth.
We arrived a good 10 minutes ahead of time and before leaving the aircraft I was informed by the FA that I should inquire at the check-in about changing to the earlier YOW flight, which I would easily make. He noticed my connection on his passenger list and decided to be pro-active in telling me about this option. What a service!
Toronto City Center Airport operates only Porter flights as well as some general aviation and the airport is small, easy to navigate and really great for arriving into Canada, as the lines at immigration are short - in a matter of fact there was not a single person in the tiny immigration hall when I arrived. My checked bag arrived within two minutes and I was quickly off to the check-in counters to change my flight - which was not a problem at all. I even got a window seat in the first row (great!) and the whole process took only minutes. As Porter is the only airline to operate at Toronto City Center, the small terminal is completely branded in Porter colors and looks very stylish and sleek. You can see the a/c being parkes right in front the windows.
There are several unique things about Toronto City Center Airport, besides the fact that it is less than 1 mile from downtown: Passengers who start or end their trip in Toronto have to take a ferry from the airport, which sits on an island, to the city. The trip takes 55 seconds (!) and covers around 120 meters, making it the shortest commercial ferry in the world. The ferry runs every 10 minutes and upon arriving on the other side, passengers can board a free Porter bus to Union Station in the heart of downtown….talk about service here!
Also, the departure area is not really a gate but rather a large airport lounge with plenty of comfortable lounge seats, free Wi-Fi, free drinks and snack for all passengers and a very cosy feeling. Basically it reminded me of a mix between a Virgin Airline Club House “lightâ€, the lobby of a W hotel and a small, regional airport. Not much more to ask for, I think. If I would live in Toronto and commute from here, Porter would be my airline of choice - no doubt!
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