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Did you know you can book the cheapest Aeroplan ticket for Air Canada and then fly standby on an earlier flight at no cost? Okay, there are some restrictions based on the fare you booked and where you’re going, but this is an incredibly useful trick to keep in your back pocket.
What Standby Really Means
Standby allows you to waitlist for an earlier departure on the same route. It does depend on availability and your place on the list is influenced by elite status and whether you hold an Aeroplan co-branded credit card.
Only certain routes qualify; more routes become eligible if you book a higher fare class. No fare difference is charged when you fly standby. Basic economy fares also do not qualify for standby, but Aeroplan tickets book into at least Economy Standard, so they remain eligible.
You can add yourself to the standby list easily through the Air Canada app or website during check-in.
Where Free Standby Is Allowed on Lower Fares
Economy Standard, Economy Flex, Premium Economy Lowest, Business Class Lowest
For these fare classes, any permutation of the following routes is eligible for free same-day standby:
- Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal
- Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton
- Toronto and New York (JFK, LGA, EWR)
This means you can book the cheapest eligible flight and standby for an earlier departure. Should your standby clear, you’ve just been confirmed on a different flight for free!
What Changes With Higher Fare Classes
Economy Latitude, Premium Economy Flexible, Business Class Flexible
In higher fare classes, you can standby any routes on Air Canada’s network. In theory, this means you can standby on international routes as well, but keep in mind that an earlier departure needs to actually exist. For example, Air Canada only flies Vancouver–Sydney once a day.
In practice, the main use case is transcontinental flights. If you are on the redeye from Vancouver to Toronto, you can standby any earlier flight that day for free. Otherwise, it could come in handy for flights with multiple daily frequencies, such as Toronto-London.
How to Use Standby to Save Points (and Time)
Personally, as someone who frequently travels between Toronto and Ottawa, I always book the cheapest Aeroplan economy redemption and then standby for the earlier flight that I actually want. Through this method, I’ve saved over 50,000 Aeroplan points in the past ~5 years.
I once needed to position from Montreal to Toronto Pearson (YYZ). A redemption to Pearson cost 12,000 points, while Billy Bishop (YTZ) was only 8,000. I checked ExpertFlyer and saw at least nine seats still for sale, so I booked the 5 p.m. flight to Billy Bishop, confident I’d clear standby to Pearson.
You can book the 10:30AM to YTZ, standby the 10:10AM to YYZ, and save 3,000 points!
Standby can also help reduce layover time or extend your trip. Suppose you’re booked Nice-Montreal-Toronto with a four-hour layover. You could standby for an earlier Montreal–Toronto flight and potentially get home sooner. The same logic applies on the outbound. If you’re flying Deer Lake-Toronto-New York with a long Toronto layover, you could standby for an earlier Toronto-New York flight and gain extra time in New York City.
Keep co-terminal airports in mind, like in the example above of being able to standby between Billy Bishop and Toronto Pearson. For New York, consider all of Newark, LaGuardia, and John F. Kennedy.
What Can Go Wrong With Standby
Despite the positives, it would be remiss not to discuss the risks of standby. First off, you cannot have checked bags when flying standby. You sometimes receive a seat at the last minute, and rerouting your bags is a much more complicated task.
Don’t check bags when flying standby
There’s always a possibility that your standby won’t clear, so make sure the original flight you booked is still suitable for your needs. In the example above, I could have taken the UP Express from Toronto Pearson and still made my connecting flight.
If your standby does not clear, you might be at the airport longer than intended, trudging back and forth between various gates just in case of standby announcements or clearing last minute.
Takeaway
With Air Canada, you can same-day standby for an earlier departure on the same route at no additional cost. This works for both cash and Aeroplan tickets.
Use it to your advantage to book cheaper flights, then standby for the flight you actually want. You can also standby to get home earlier from a trip, or arrive earlier on the outbound to maximize your destination time.
Eligible routes depend on the fare class booked. Just remember: standby isn’t guaranteed, and don’t try this with checked bags.
