Review: Air Canada Jazz Business Class E175 New York LGA to Montreal

Background and Booking

The first leg of my trip to Quebec City (YQB) was this flight from New York (LGA) to Montreal (YUL) on Air Canada Jazz Business Class aboard the Embraer E175. Then, I would fly from Montreal (YUL) to Quebec City (YQB). The only nonstop to Quebec City from the New York City area is on United, from Newark (EWR), but the price of that flight was quite expensive. I purposely booked a flight with an overnight connection as I was trying to align the second leg with a friend, but didn’t want to leave New York at 6 am, so I decided to fly the night before.

I booked this flight with a combination of Aeroplan points and cash as I had some sitting in my account. Business class was only 1,000 more Aeroplan Miles, so I decided to take the splurge to book Business Class instead of Economy.

Air Canada has 3 different operating divisions for commercial service. So, Air Canada is the mainline carrier, Air Canada Express (Jazz) is the regional division that uses smaller planes and Air Canada Rouge is the low-cost vacation division. The New York (LGA) to Montreal (YUL) route is served by both Air Canada and Air Canada Express (Jazz) flights.

Same Day Change

Air Canada has a nice same-day change policy, and different rules depending on your destination. For US to Canada flights, all business class tickets include same-day changes for free. Also, Comfort, Latitude, and Flexible Premium Economy fares include same-day changes for free.

At check-in 24 hours before your flight, during the check-in process you can check for available flights to switch to. As long as there is available space, you’ll be able to make the switch. I originally was on the last flight for the night, but wanted to go to Montreal earlier to have more rest at the airport hotel I was staying at, so I made the change to an earlier flight.

Flight Details

Air Canada Express (Jazz) Flight 8641
New York (LGA) to Montreal (YUL)
Date: May 2024
Scheduled Departure: 6:15 PM
Scheduled Arrival: 7:45 PM
Duration: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Aircraft: Embraer 175
Cabin: Business Class
Seat: 3A

At the Airport

Air Canada utilizes Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport, which I like as it’s modern and nice. The check-in area was quite empty, and I was helped quickly to print out my boarding pass. 

Passing TSA PreCheck was quick and then I was off to the lounge. While I’ve visited AMEX Centurion Lounge many times before here in Terminal B, I haven’t been to the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge before so I was happy that my business class ticket would give me access. Despite the food selection lacking some more protein offerings, I found the Maple Leaf lounge to be quite nice for a “domestic-style” lounge. It wasn’t too crowded which was nice to get some work done and if you’re interested I wrote a full review here. If you don’t mind more crowds but better food, the Centurion Lounge might be good option to start at, and then come relax at the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge.

Boarding & Air Canada Jazz Business Class on the Embraer E175

The boarding time for the flight was 25 minutes before our scheduled departure time. The lounge provided a boarding announcement for the flight, then I headed out to the gate which was a short three-minute walk over. When I arrived, it was time for Zone 1 (Business Class) to board.

When I boarded, the AC system and engines were off, so it was oddly quiet, especially since there was no boarding music. I was surprised to see a seat back screen for an Embraer 175. I think it’s the first E175 I’ve been on with a seat back screen which was cool! To my surprise, the seats were cloth, as I’ve only flown in leather-style seats on the E175. The Air Canada Express (Jazz) E175 has 4 rows of Business in a 1-2 configuration. aeroLOPA states that the seat pitch in Business Class is 38 inches, with a width of 20 inches. It felt quite similar to other E175 First/Business cabins on other airlines, with a tiny cupholder on the left armrest, and a full-sized armrest that comes out of the righthand armrest. 

It’s always nice sitting on the A side of the E175 when flying in First/Business when traveling alone as it’s just one seat so you won’t have a neighbor.

The Flight

The boarding door closed 5 minutes before our scheduled departure time and we left the gate exactly on time. The captain let us know that it would be an hour in the air, but we got a wheels-up time from ATC in 55 minutes so there might be a delay. He said we would taxi to the runway and wait closer to see if we could perhaps leave closer to our scheduled departure time. We ended up parking near the runway for a while. 

The flight attendant handed us bottles of water, and then while we were parked near the runway, he came to pass our headphones for the seat-back IFE system.

We ended up taking off 40 minutes past our scheduled departure time, and I started to find a movie to watch in the meantime. The IFE screen has movies, TV and audio options, and while the software was dated, it still was alright to navigate.

Snack & Beverage Service

Shortly after reaching cruising altitude, the flight attendant came through the aisle to take drink orders. Additionally, a snack was provided which I was surprised was so elaborate. It was a plate with hummus and bread, plus real silverware was used. I was quite surprised, as a flight of this length in the US would have barely a snack service if you are lucky. I flew the same route a few days later on American Airlines, and only a granola bar was provided.

Shortly after I finished eating, we were already making our initial descent for landing. We got to see nice views of Montreal before landing.

We landed 8 minutes past our arrival time and got to the gate about 15 minutes late. Not bad of a delay given the long wait at LaGuardia. Then I was off to the Montreal Airport Marriott In-Terminal Hotel!

The Verdict

Overall, I had a great time flying Air Canada Jazz Business Class for the first time. I have never been on an Embraer 175 with seat-back screens, and the fact that they still served a snack plate with real silverware on such a short flight was impressive, as a domestic US carrier would not (evidenced by my American Airlines flight back). I would not hesitate to fly Air Canada Jazz Business Class again in the future.

 

Have you flown on Air Canada Jazz Business Class before? How was your experience? Comment below!

 

Cheers,

Ty

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Have any questions? I’ve also started working with a travel agency, Fora Travel, and can assist in booking hotel stays or planning trips. Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!