WestJet: My First Flight
WestJet Airlines Limited — which is better known as simply WestJet — is an airline which is based in Calgary. I have written about WestJet in articles in the past at The Gate primarily because of the creative videos; and I have even poked fun at the Canadian accent of Richard Bartrem, who is the the vice president of marketing communications and community relations at WestJet…
…but I have never flown as a passenger on one of their airplanes — until now.
WestJet: My First Flight
The counters for WestJet at Calgary International Airport were not busy…
…probably because more people were using the kiosks to get their boarding passes — myself included.
Once I passed through the security checkpoint and arrived at the gate, I decided to take photographs of airplanes.
This particular Boeing 737-700 aircraft landed on the runway…
…and arrived at the gate at which I was to depart for the flight to Toronto.
Flight 664 eventually departed on time from gate A12.
The interior of the aircraft was clean; and the members of the flight crew were friendly.
The seats were the “slimline” type; but they were reasonably comfortable.
I wondered for a moment if I was secretly in another one of those infamous WestJet videos — this time, where the carry-on bags doubled as in-flight meals. Richard Bartrem better not get any ideas from the photograph shown above.
The upper pocket in the back of the seat contained literature — such as the in-flight WestJet Magazine and the safety information card.
I was satisfied with the leg room.
Be forewarned that if you sit in a middle seat, your leg room might be impeded upon by a metal box located on the floor in front of you.
Access to power outlets — which included a USB port — was available at every seat aboard the airplane, which is a very nice touch.
Traditional adjustable air vents were thankfully available above every seat aboard the airplane.
The choice of snacks included Biscoff cookies and Krispy Kernels pretzels — which is reminiscent of the similar choices offered aboard airplanes operated by Delta Air Lines — and yes, the flight attendant was kind enough to give me one of each snack.
Krispy Kernels is a company based in Québec.
The pretzels are not only larger than those manufactured by the King Nut Companies — which are typically served abroad airplanes operated by airlines such as United Airlines and Delta Air Lines — but there are also more of them.
The pretzels tasted marginally better than those offered by the King Nut Companies.
The flight — whose duration was three hours and 53 minutes — was uneventful all the way to Toronto.
WestJet Videos
Please see the articles I have written pertaining to past creative videos produced by WestJet for April Fools’ Day, Christmas and other occasions — plus a heartwarming video for the tragedy which occurred in Fort MacMurray — including…
- WestJet Rebrands as Canada Air For 150th Birthday of Canada
- Meet #RALFH
- New SmartSeats by WestJet Can Change the Way You Fly
- Furry Family Service
- KargoKids Service
- Must-Watch Video: WestJet Honors Residents of Fire-Ravaged Fort MacMurray For Christmas
- The Battle of the Canadian Airline Christmas Videos 2015: Which is Better?
- The Battle of the Canadian Airline Christmas Videos: Which is Better?
Summary
This article is a continuation of a series of articles written in honour of Canada Day, which marks 150 years since Canada became a confederation on Monday, July 1, 1867.
I did not specify a seat assignment when booking my flight reservation because I was under the impression that I had to pay extra for an assigned seat — otherwise, the booking process was not complicated. WestJet assigned to me a seat on the aisle, which was fine with me even though I would have preferred a window seat.
After I arrived in Toronto, I went through the security checkpoint because I was on my way to the United States. Even though I went through security checkpoints twice in one day in Calgary and Toronto, I had no issues — and I was even mysteriously granted a similar experience to the TSA Pre✓ program, which resulted in the process being even easier for me.
The flight to the United States was operated by Delta Air Lines, which currently has a reciprocal partnership with WestJet — meaning that I earned 838 SkyMiles as a result of my experience aboard an airplane operated by WestJet from Calgary to Toronto.
My experience with WestJet was pleasant and uneventful; but it was also nothing extraordinary — similar to the general experience of domestic flights in the United States. I would have no hesitation booking a flight with WestJet in the future; and I also recommend WestJet as an airline to consider for future travel.
All photographs ©2017 by Brian Cohen.
I believe you can also credit your flight to American to get AA miles. Thanks Brian, for the review and the pics.
You are very welcome, Linda K T.
Thank you for reading The Gate.
My experience with Air Canada seems to top the Westjet experience. Nothing wrong with Westjet, (free beer or wine if you like), but the terminal area in Toronto favors Air Canada hands down. It is much more streamlined than when flying with Westjet. The terminals are more spacious, offering more amenities. I had to go through customs and security once again in Toronto with Westjet (huge hassle), but with Air Canada there was no additional security check and my bags went directly to Halifax without me having to collect them and go through customs with them. Perhaps this has changed in the past year for Westjet, but that’s what I experienced in 2016.
Things might get better for WS travellers after upgrades at T3 are done, but T1 (for AC and most *A airlines) is spacious and beautiful.
We just flew Westjet from Honolulu to London, it was an alright flight, but between Honolulu and Vancouver they flew a 737 my god the worst seats, so hard and very uncomfortable, then t London bigger plane and nice comfey seats. Service was good on both planes. Won’t fly with them again more options out there.