Home » Daily Update » RWRDS Daily Update September 18: Air Canada to upgrade Q-400 fleet with new interiors and free Wi-Fi & Travel advisors – Welcome to the Rewards Canada community!
RWRDS Daily Update September 18: Air Canada to upgrade Q-400 fleet with new interiors and free Wi-Fi & Travel advisors – Welcome to the Rewards Canada community!
Air Canada to upgrade Q-400 fleet with new interiors and free Wi-Fi
Air Canada announced a major initiative to upgrade 25 of their regional Q-400 aircraft with full cabin redesigns and the addition of fast free Wi-Fi. Air Canada will become the first airline in the world to offer Wi-fi on De Havilland Dash 8-400 aircraft.
Fast, Free Wi-Fi sponsored by Bell on flights from Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to Montréal and Ottawa begins in October, an industry first
New ergonomic seating installed by mid-2026
Redesigned cabin interiors featuring new tones and refined textures, evocative of Canada and its diverse regions
Installation of the Wi-Fi antenna on a Q-400
Inflight Wi-Fi at Billy Bishop
Beginning in October, Air Canada will be the first airline to offer Fast, Free Wi-Fi to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport travellers. The industry-leading service providing high-quality Internet means customers will now have gate-to-gate connectivity so they can enjoy non-stop productivity while travelling between the city airport and Montréal or Ottawa, the country’s most heavily used corridors for business travel.
New Seating
Twenty-five Air Canada Express Dash 8-400 operated by Jazz will be equipped with next generation, well-padded, ergonomic seats from Expliseat. The seats will feature new branding and design language expressed through the seat’s dress cover. All seats will include a seatback multi-use device holder for tablets and phones, as well as a table tray. The installation of the new seating has an expected completion date for the program in mid-2026. Each aircraft will have 78 seats, and pitch will be unchanged.
Cabin Interior Redesign
The cabins of these same 25 Dash 8-400s will be upgraded to a new standard reflective of Air Canada’s mainline aircraft interiors. The design incorporates colours, textures and tones of those found in nature in Canada, reinforcing Air Canada’s pride in being the nation’s flag carrier.
Images via Air Canada
Big updates to the Amex Platinum Cards south of the border, will we see anything here?
Today was a big day that has been greatly anticipated by the points and miles community south of the border (and by Canadians playing the US credit card game) as American Express officially revealed the details of their Platinum Card refreshes. Although many of the changes were leaked in some form or other there was still the anticipation from the official launch to confirm the rumoured changes to both consumer and business cards.
Here’s a quick summary of the changes to the U.S. Platinum Consumer Card:
Limited edition mirror finish to the card
Annnul fee is increased to US$895 from $695
Fine Hotels & Resorts credits boosted to $600 in the from of a $300 credit for Jan-Jun and $300 fro Jul-Dec (Previously was a $200 overall credit)
A new $400 Resy dining credit
Credits for digital entertaiment boosted to $300 in total from $240
A new $120 Uber One credit
A new $300 lululemon credit
A new $200 Oura ring credit
The addition of automatic The Leading Hotels of the World Leaders Club Sterling Elite status
The couponification of this card continues but in general it is still an excellent card especially if you can make use of many of the offers. I mean, the FHR credits alone can pay for 2/3s of the card’s annual fee. It’s also nice to see the addition of one more hotel elite status as Amex in North America hasn’t added anything in that category after they had lost Shangri-La and Radisson statuses over the past decade or so.
So that brings us to the question, what’s in store for the Canadian Platinum Card? I have had several people in our community ask me if we could expect any changes or a refresh to the best Ultra Premium Card in Canada and so far my answer is “I’m not aware of anything”
There was a one off rumour on Reddit stating an Amex Canada employee had confirmed an increase to the annual fee on Platinum is on the way, if that is true that could be a sign of a refresh to the card. However, I wonder if that was a miscommunication as the timing of that note was not too long before the news of the Cobalt Card fee increase.
Rewards Canada is in regular contact with American Express. so if and when we receive any details of any potential changes to the Platinum Card that we are allowed to pass along, you can bet you’ll be the first to know!
Image via American Express
Travel advisors! Welcome to the Rewards Canada community!
Wow, that was a lot of fun! I spent the last two days at the Travel MarketPlace conference right here in Calgary and had a blast connecting with many travel advisors from across Western Canada and travel suppliers from around the world.
A big thank you to all of you who attended my presentation, I hope you were all able to take something out of it that you can use for yourselves and for your clients.
To those who have subscribed to our newsletter, followed us on our socials and/or bookmarked the site I want to welcome you to our community that encompasses all types of points and miles collectors! From beginner to expert, young and old, the casual collector to the all out maximizer, you are about to go down the rabbit hole of getting you and your clients, More Miles, More Points and More Rewards. Welcome!
Subscribe & join to learn more:
Want to learn more? Have a question? Join ourFacebook group to ask the Rewards Canada community!
Be sure to subscribe to the Rewards Canada News email newsletter so that you don’t miss out on any loyalty program news and offers! You can subscribe to the newsletter here
No other resource in Canada provides you with so many ways to earn More Miles More Points More Rewards. Come be part of the Rewards Canada community and make the most of your loyalty programs and credit card rewards!
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Patrick is one of Canada's foremost leading experts on loyalty programs and credit cards. Having founded Rewards Canada in 2001 he brings nearly 24 years of experience to the forefront of helping Canadians make the most of their rewards. He has also provided consulting to credit card companies, airlines, hotels and is regularly featured in the media for his expertise on loyalty programs and credit cards.
