https://youtu.be/XXXKsdq6zNI
March 17, 2020
Air Transat
Airbus A310-300 C-GTSY
YQB-FLL
Seats 22K and 7K
Something I mulled over for months, finally became a reality. I got in the day before, just as things with Covid-19 became more serious and Canada started to close it's border and ban entry to most foreigners. Boarding started at 06:45 and the closer we got to boarding, I started to realize this was going to be an empty flight despite what the seat map said the night before. Boarding began with Zone 1 and the 19 or so people at the gate boarded, leaving just 2 of us. So I walked up and said you can skip zones 2-5 because 6 and 7 are here.
We pushed back on time at 07:15 and de-iced, then proceeded to runway 06 for our nearly 4 hour flight to FLL.
With a total of 21 passengers I was able to get plenty of photos and video. For a flight with no wifi or PTV it was a fast 4 hours. Crew was beyond excellent and friendly, old style seats were plush and more comfortable than the new modern slimline seats, the Poutine was warm and the beer was cold. My expectations weren't high, knowing this is a leisure airline, but overall I was pleasantly surprised with the comfort of the A310 and Air Transat.
Unfortunately C-GTSY would be retired 10 days later. The final A310 (GSAT) would be retired on 31MAR2020, one month earlier than planned due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
