The union representing WestJet pilots says they have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike mandate. A representative of the Air Line Pilots Association told the CBC that 95% of pilots took part in the strike mandate voting, and that 93% were in favour of giving the union the ability to call a strike. Yahoo finance said pilots could strike or be locked out if notice is given on May 13. A job action that close to the long May weekend would obviously be extremely disruptive for Canadian travellers. WestJet officials pointed out that a strike authorization vote is a Read more
Trudeau
After months and months of travel discontent across Canada, the Canadian government today said it will spend $1.8 billion over five years to improve airport operations and passenger screening, and to address a backlog of airline complaints to the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA). Canadian Press reports the Trudeau government also is “proposing to strengthen the rules around compensation for Canadians whose travel plans are disrupted, and to give the CTA more authority to resolve passenger complaints.” That will no doubt play well with consumers who were angered by flight delays and cancellations over the Christmas holidays, but probably not with Read more
Canada’s passport application backlog has been ‘completely eliminated,’ one of the top ministers in the Trudeau government says. CTV News reports tat Families, Children and Social Development Minister Karina Gould this week said that service times for passport applications are back to pre-pandemic standards, after the backlog ballooned last summer. Canadians looking to renew their passports last summer found long wait lines and lengthy delays, an issue that passport officials said was due to a huge spike in demand for travel as COVID travel restrictions began to ease. The CBC reports that Canadians waiting anxiously for their passports to arrive before Read more
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are delivering on their commitment to reopen all NEXUS enrolment centres in Canadian airports by Spring 2023. Officials said this will both expand the program’s capacity and help the thousands of travellers who request NEXUS memberships each month get their cards faster. Beginning today, travellers can book interviews at the following airports, with interview start dates listed below: March 27 Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ) Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport (YWG) April 3 Vancouver International Airport (YVR) April 12 Calgary International Airport (YYC) Edmonton International Read more
It’s a new day in Canadian aviation, as WestJet has been cleared to take over Sunwing Vacations and Sunwing Airlines. But the Trudeau government is imposing conditions, and also is pledging to strengthen Canada’s weak airline passenger protection laws. Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra today announced that following Transport Canada’s assessment of the public interest, the Government of Canada has approved the acquisition of Sunwing Vacations and Sunwing Airlines by WestJet Airlines Ltd., subject to strict terms and conditions that are in the interest of Canadians. The minister said Ottawa’s assessment of the propsed deal incorporated the findings of the Read more
