Canada’s largest airline says it anticipated this year’s travel surge and has responded with solid action. Air Canada and other major players in the Canadian aviation industry met today with Canadian Transport Minister Omar Alghabra to talk about, among other things, recent airport crowding problems at Toronto Pearson and other airports. Following the meeting, Air Canada issued a statement saying it understands the issues at hand. “At Air Canada, we know every trip is important, even more so today as many are flying for the first time in years to see loved ones or take an eagerly anticipated holiday. We Read more
staff shortages
A former Canadian airline executive says airport congestion problems could be with us for some time. Published reports today say that more than one in every 20 flights scheduled to depart from Toronto Pearson Airport were cancelled between June 1 and June 7 due to delays and flight backlogs. The Globe and Mail said Air Canada cancelled nearly 10% of its flights “amid staffing shortages and a surge in passengers at Canada’s busiest airport.” Airlines around the world have been grappling with major delays and problems as travel surges to pre-pandemic levels. U.S. airlines are facing a shortage of pilots. Read more
The Trudeau government is working hard on Canadian airport congestion problems, and an announcement is likely coming soon, Tourism Minister Randy Boissonnault said today. Speaking at a press conference at Rendez-vous Canada, a tourism session being put on by Destination Canada, Boissonnault said he’s been speaking daily with Transport Minister Omar Alghabra and other ministers about lineups at Toronto Pearson and other airports. “Minister Alghabra I think will have announcements on that,” he said. “We are very seized by this idea of increasing the number of agents we have at Canadian airports. And it’s not just airports. It’s the Great Read more
Flight cancellations continue to trouble U.S. and Canadian travelers today, but it’s not as bad as yesterday. As of 1 p.m. Eastern Time today (January 4), flightaware.com reports there have been 3,482 cancellations around the world today. For flights within, to or from the U.S., that figure was at 1,367. That’s a lot, but it’s a little better than the 5,023 cancellations for all day yesterday around the world and the 3,226 cancellations for the U.S. Fliers in Canada continue to have problems with cancellations. Flight Aware says 18% of Air Canada Jazz flights have been cancelled so far today, Read more
It’s another day filled with cancellations and delays for U.S. airlines. Canadian airlines are doing better than some of their American counterparts, but WestJet is still having some problems. The website flightaware.com reports a whopping 54% of flights scheduled to go in or out of Washington Reagan Airport have been cancelled today. For Baltimore Washington airport it’s 31%. Both Southwest and JetBlue were listed as having 13% of their flights cancelled today. Flightaware.com reports that 47 WestJet Encore flights have been cancelled, 23% of their total. For WestJet itself, the numbers were 38 flights cancelled, or about 13%, as of Read more
