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[Guest1]

Air Canada Now Has 30 Airbus A220-300s

Chris Loh - 13h ago

 

Air Canada

IATA/ICAO Code AC/ACA Airline Type Full Service Carrier Hub(s) Calgary International Airport, Montréal–Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Vancouver International Airport Year Founded 1965 Alliance Star Alliance CEO Michael Rousseau Country Canada

Air Canada now has a fleet of 30 Airbus A220-300s after taking delivery of a new aircraft last week. Being an early customer for the type, the airline is expecting a total of 45 of these small narrowbodies by the end of 2025. Let's take a look at the delivery details of the latest aircraft.

Welcoming C-GVUO to the fleet

On June 18th, Airbus delivered Air Canada's 30th A220-300. The aircraft, registered C-GVUO, flew an uneventful flight from Montreal Mirabel (YMX) to Air Canada's largest hub, Toronto Pearson (YYZ). This flight took just under an hour, with the jet departing Mirabel at 11:40 and arriving in Toronto at 12:36.

While this is a fairly short delivery flight, this would probably be the second-shortest delivery service for an A220 built at Mirabel. That's because Air Canada also has a hub at Montreal's Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport - which is located just 33km from Airbus' Canadian A220 assembly facility. Indeed, driving by car would take less than 40 minutes to cover the 50km of road. If we take C-GNBE as an example, the one-year-old A220 was delivered from Mirabel to Trudeau on March 31st, 2021, with a flight time of just 13 minutes. This is a much shorter flight than delivering the same aircraft type to airBaltic, with a flight from Montreal to Riga taking roughly seven and a half hours.

 

The delivery flight from Mirabel to Pearson. Photo: FlightRadar24.com

 

 

2/3rds complete for A220-300 order

With the delivery of this 30th aircraft, Air Canada's order for the Airbus A220-300 is now two-thirds complete. The airline first ordered the aircraft type back in February 2016 when it was still known as the Bombardier CSeries.

The Canadian carrier has, for the most part, held firm to this order for 45 aircraft, although this waivered slightly during the pandemic. It was back in November 2020 that Air Canada announced that it would be canceling part of its order, reducing its commitment by 12 jets amid the health crisis and its devastating impact on the travel industry. However, when the situation began to improve over the course of 2021, the carrier took the small step of reversing the cancelation of two A220s. Just a few months later, in February 2022, the airline announced that it was reinstating its order for all 12 of the previously canceled jets.

Speaking about the change of direction, newly installed Air Canada President and CEO Michael Rousseau stated the following in November 2021:

"We are encouraged by the favorable revenue and traffic trends in the third quarter, with strong increases in key passenger geographic segments, a record cargo performance, and significant improvements in both Air Canada Vacations and Aeroplan,"

The remaining 15 aircraft will arrive between now and 2025.

 

The airline took delivery of its first A220 in 2019. Photo: Air Canada

Long-and-skinny exemplified

The A220 is well-suited to Canada's domestic aviation scene. With a relatively small population for its massive territory, long-and-skinny trans-continental services would benefit greatly from an efficient performer like the Airbus A220-300. Good examples of such Air Canada services include flights from Montreal to Kelowna, San Diego, and Seattle.

[Guest1]

Review: Air Canada Signature Suite Vancouver [2022]

by Gary Leff on June 25, 2022

Wow. The Air Canada Signature Suite Vancouver provided me with one of the best meals I’ve ever had in an airport.

After spending a couple of nights in Vancouver, breaking up the trip from Austin to Sydney on an Air Canada Aeroplan business class award, we were on our way to visit family Down Under. Air Canada has one of the best lounge experiences anywhere for business class passengers at their Toronto and Vancouver hubs, dubbed ‘Signature Suite’ dining.

Gaining Access

 

These lounges are only open to paid business class tickets, and to Aeroplan flexible award tickets (generally a 10,000 – 12,000 mile one way premium). Upgrades and partner award redemptions don’t gain access. The introduction of access to Signature Suite dining as an option on award tickets came with the launch of the new Aeroplan program.

I paid the extra miles on our Australia redemption so that we could visit the Signature Suite in Vancouver because I enjoyed the lounge in Toronto so much five years ago. Once you’re already spending 80,000 miles the extra 10,000 miles per ticket doesn’t feel like that much (really, an extra 30,000 miles on top of the quarter million I was already spending for the 3 of us). At a value of 1.4 cents per mile I was actually spending $420 for my family’s dinner, which seems nuts, but it didn’t ‘feel’ that expensive. That’s an actually really important point about the psychology of loyalty programs.

Arriving At Vancouver Airport

 

The Vancouver airport isn’t super busy in advance of an 11:00 p.m. departure. In fact, the international check-in area was deserted and a single premium check-in queue was operating for domestic and international business class and elites.

All things considered I was happy being assisted after about a 10 minute wait. It didn’t take long to work through our Australian predeparture approvals. Security for the international terminal was quick and painless. And we were on our way to the Air Canada Signature Suite.

Visiting The Air Canada Signature Suite Vancouver

 

The lounge is located just past security near gates 52 and 53. It is upstairs from Air Canada’s Maple Leaf Lounge.

We showed our boarding passes at the desk downstairs and were invited up to the Signature Suite. We took the elevator rather than the stairs.

Inside we were welcomed. My wife and daughter were with me. It was late – about 11:30 p.m. Central time (our home time zone) at this point – and our daughter was tired so she was in her stroller.

Lounge staff invited us to use the private dining room. The lounge was mostly empty, but I presumed this invitation (which would allow us to be more comfortable) was more for the benefit of other passengers in the lounge.

I had seen claims that the VIP room is highly restricted for access and also that it is available to families with young children.

I absolutely loved the Signature Suite in Toronto when I was there in late 2017, but it was a dark space without windows. The Vancouver Signature Suite has a fantastic windowline.

Here’s the view from inside the VIP dining room.

And here’s the bistro seating area beside it, which you can see has the same windowline.

The bar is actually situated between the bistro area and VIP room.

Beyond the bistro area, bar and VIP dining room is the lounge’s dining room.

What the space lacks, at just 4400 square feet and seating for 105 guests, is work or relaxation areas. This really is a special dining room inside of a lounge rather than a standalone lounge as such.

Amazing Dining

 

What makes the Signature Suite special isn’t that it’s an exclusive space within the Air Canada lounge. What makes the lounge is the food – a nice buffet, sure, if you’re in a hurry but a menu to order from that’s a cut above other lounges with sit down dining.

The food here is better, for instance, than I’ve had in United Polaris lounges or Qantas First Class lounges (and the latter can be quite good). Signature Suite dining is curated by Canadian chef David Hawksworth.

First, here’s a look at the buffet:

If you can, though, take he time to order off of the menu:

My Meal At The Air Canada Signature Suite Vancouver

 

I had really been looking forward to seared foie gras. I tried it in the Toronto Signature Suite four and a half years earlier and remembered it as very good. I had just been talking to my wife a week earlier about how I had a craving for seared foie gras, not thinking that I’d have an opportunity here.

I didn’t order it, though, because we were told they had a special tomahawk steak available, and would we like them to prepare it for us along with some sides? I didn’t feel like I could say no to that, and indeed it was excellent, but I missed out on the foie.

First, though, cocktails. I ordered the mandarin old fashioned which was excellent.

To pair with dinner we went with the Domodimonti Passione e Visione petit verdot. I was told they were down to a few cases, and they’d been cellaring since right before the pandemic when the lounge first opened.

Often in lounges and on planes they’re dealing with such quantities of wine that they are served too young. This bottle was aged perfectly, so I guess the lounge being closed for two years had an upside. It was enjoyable on its own and complemented our steaks perfectly.

We started with an amuse bouche and then staff brought out a couple of sides and salads served family-style for the three of us to eat (my three year old skipped the amuse’). The lounge chef proudly brought out the tomahawk steak, which isn’t something they normally have.

The meal was fantastic and our hour in the lounge was just enough time, or so we thought (the flight wound up being delayed about half an hour but there was no advance indication of this).

Enjoying dinner before such a late departure is perfect, in order to skip the onboard meal and go right to sleep. Enjoying dinner before such a long flight is perfect, too, because we were able to ask the crew to save our meals for later in the flight.

For a roughly 15 hour flight a meal at the start, one at the end, and 11 hours in-between really doesn’t seem like enough. To be sure there are snacks but it was so much nicer to have dinner, then have the inflight dinner around 8 hours later.

I questioned my sanity spending an extra 10,000 miles per person for access to this lounge, but I definitely enjoyed it enough that it was worth it and would pay the premium again.

[Guest1]

Quote

Air Canada Lays Out Key Steps In Aviation Recovery Plan

BYJAMIE MOORE

PUBLISHED 21 HOURS AGO

 

The Canadian airline hopes to return back to normal as it sets out these key steps.

Photo: Getty Images

Air Canada will operate the 787-9 before increasing capacity.

Following a summit with the Canadian Federal Transport Minister, Canadian airline Air Canada has released key steps in its Aviation Recovery Plan. Senior representatives at Air Canada met with the Canadian Transport Minister alongside other participants. The steps are vital in getting business back to normal at Air Canada. Just recently, Air Canada announced its plans to return to Bangkok after 6 years.

In a statement made by Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada, Mr Rousseau said, "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 are determined not to disappoint and have been long preparing for a travel surge this summer, including coordinating with our industry partners."

Reemploying workers

The COVID-19 pandemic hit Air Canada hard. During the height of the pandemic, Air Canada was forced to lay off workers. This decision was not taken lightly. In January 2021, Air Canada laid off 1,700 of its workers.

However, Canada's largest airline announced this week that it had recalled all of its employees who were previously left unemployed. Currently, Air Canada has 32,000 employees, versus approximately 33,000 before the pandemic, while operating approximately 80 per cent of its June 2019 schedule.

 

Air Canada has recalled all of its staff laid off during the pandemic. 

In addition to the recall of employees, Air Canada has hired over 2,000 staff to help customers on the ground with their queries. Employees have been reassigned from other bases to augment specific airports, including the cross-utilization of cargo employees to assist with airport passenger operations.

 

Customer experiences plans

Air Canada has set out many vital steps to aid the recovery. Included in the plan is its new Self-Service Re-accommodation tools, which will allow customers who have schedule changes, delays, or cancellations to request a refund if eligible or rebook their itineraries in a few minutes using Air Canada's mobile app or website.

A second new policy will allow customers free, same-day standby options for earlier flights within Canada/Transborder regardless of fare brand or booking class

 

Airport plans

Passengers flying through Toronto Pearson have the option to extend their connection time. This goodwill policy allows customers to voluntarily increase their connection time at no cost for more flexibility when traveling. This policy can be applied within 48 hours of the original travel time.

Air Canada also has acquired additional ground handling vehicles to improve airport efficiency. The airline is also working closely with airports to enhance and expedite the processing of customers throughout their journey.

"As all businesses worldwide are finding, restarting after COVID is an, extremely complex task, and we deeply appreciate our customers' understanding and patience during these often-frustrating times. I also thank our dedicated employees who are working hard to serve our customers and transport them safely,"

 

Network upgrades

Air Canada has introduced a Minimum Connection Times for flights from international and transborder destinations connecting to domestic destinations have been increased by 30 minutes for new bookings in Toronto and Montreal, giving customers (and their baggage) additional time to connect.

Their schedule has been refined to reduce peak times at the Toronto-Pearson and Montreal-Trudeau airports by rescheduling and canceling certain flights or reducing frequencies, where protection is available to customers on the same day.

What do you think of the recovery plan? Have you flown with Air Canada? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

Air Canada Lays Out Key Steps In Aviation Recovery Plan (simpleflying.com)

[Guest1]

Air Canada cuts a number of Moncton and Bathurst flights

 

The flight reductions are expected to last into August, said airport CEO

Isabelle Leger · CBC News · Posted: Jun 28, 2022 6:28 PM AT | Last Updated: June 28

 

Greater Moncton Roméo LeBlanc International Airport CEO Courtney Burns says the cancellations are due to a staff shortage. (Alexandre Silberman/CBC)

 

After Canada Day, Air Canada will not offer its early morning flight from Moncton to Montreal or its late night flight from Montreal to Moncton. 

In fact, both the Moncton and Bathurst airports will have fewer Air Canada flights to and from Montreal next month. 

There will be 63 flights, instead of 93, from Montreal to the Greater Moncton Roméo LeBlanc International Airport in July.

• No plans to close airports as province looks to add more routes

• 'Domino effect': Flight delays in New Brunswick likely caused by holdups in other cities

The airline will also reduce flights from Montreal to the Bathurst Regional Airport from 31 to 18. 

Courtney Burns, president of the Greater Moncton airport, said she learned about the Air Canada cuts Monday. 

They include the flight departing Moncton for Montreal at 6:05 a.m. and the flight arriving in Moncton from Montreal at 11:33 p.m. 

 

Air Canada will no longer offer its early morning flight from Moncton to Montreal for the month of July. (Alexandre Silberman/CBC)

"It's a personnel issue," said Burns. "What they're choosing to do is pull the flight out of the schedule, so passengers don't book the flight and it ends up needing to be cancelled the majority of days." 

Burns said she was told the flight would return in August, but hopes it will return even sooner. 

"It's a staple flight for Air Canada, so I don't expect this will be long-term," she said. 

Air Canada will still offer a mid-late morning flight and late afternoon flight to Montreal in July. 

For passengers who have already booked the early morning flight, Burns said the airline is responsible for offering either a credit or to switch passengers to the next immediate flight. 

Air Canada has cut dozens of flights from the Moncton and Bathurst airports in July. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press)

"Passengers who may be impacted by that cancellations can expect to hear from Air Canada," she said. 

Bathurst Airport CEO Jamie Degrace confirmed to Radio-Canada the flight reduction is because of staff shortages at the Toronto Pearson Airport which affects a wide range of flights. 

Degrace expects the shortages will impact flights into August. 

Air Canada did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

[Guest1]

A Message from Air Canada’s President

29 June 2022Canadian Aviation News

29 June 2022 – To Aeroplan Members

At Air Canada, we know how important travel plans are. This is even more the case today when many are taking their first trip in years following the pandemic. Whether for long‑anticipated vacations, visits with relatives and friends, or for business, we are grateful and recognize our responsibility when people like you entrust your travel to our airline.

Regrettably, things are not business as usual in our industry globally, and this is affecting our operations and our ability to serve you with our normal standards of care. The COVID‑19 pandemic brought the world air transport system to a halt in early 2020. Now, after more than two years, global travel is resurgent, and people are returning to flying at a rate never seen in our industry.

This surge in travel has created unprecedented and unforeseen strains on all aspects of the global aviation system. Around the world, there are recurring incidents of flight delays and airport congestion, resulting from a complex array of persistent factors impacting airlines and our partners in the aviation ecosystem. Similar effects are being seen in other industries too, where companies and suppliers are struggling to restart, unclog supply chains and meet pent‑up demand.

At Air Canada, we anticipated many of these factors and began taking tangible action during the depth of the pandemic to be ready for a rapid restart. Yet, despite detailed and careful planning, the largest and fastest scale of hiring in our history, as well as investments in aircraft and equipment, it is now clear that Air Canada’s operations too have been disrupted by the industry’s complex and unavoidable challenges. The result has been flight cancellations and customer service shortfalls on our part that we would never have intended for our customers or for our employees, and for which we sincerely apologize.

In response, we took a number of important steps, including introducing flexible ticket policies, new travel self-management tools, improvements to airport operations, as well adjustments to our schedule ‑ all to strengthen operational resiliency and to give customers more options. However, to bring about the level of operational stability we need, with reluctance, we are now making meaningful reductions to our schedule in July and August in order to reduce passenger volumes and flows to a level we believe the air transport system can accommodate.

This was not an easy decision, as it will result in additional flight cancellations that will have a negative impact on some customers. But doing this in advance allows affected customers to take time to make other arrangements in an orderly manner, rather than have their travel disrupted shortly before or during their journey, with few alternatives available. It will also enable us to more reliably serve all customers.

I can assure you Air Canada is also working in close cooperation with airports, government, and its third‑party service providers, who all are striving to return our industry to pre‑pandemic standards of operation.

We are convinced these changes will bring about the improvements we have targeted. But to set expectations, it should also be understood the real benefits of this action will take time and be felt only gradually as the industry regains the reliability and robustness it had attained prior to the pandemic.

On behalf of all of us at Air Canada, please accept my sincere apologies for any disruption you have experienced or may experience with your travel plans during this unprecedented period. I also assure you that we very clearly see the challenges at hand, that we are taking action, and that we are confident we have the strategy to address them. This is our company’s chief focus at every level.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We certainly look forward to future opportunities to serve you and regain your loyalty at a time when we can better demonstrate our commitment to taking good care of customers such as yourself.

Sincerely,

Michael Rousseau
President and Chief Executive Officer
Air Canada

[Guest1]

Quote

Air Canada cancels 154 flights a day this summer amid 'unprecedented and unforeseen strains'

 

Air Canada cancels 154 flights a day this summer amid 'unprecedented and unforeseen strains' | Financial Post

[Jaydee]

20 minutes ago, Kargokings said:

Air Canada cancels 154 flights a day this summer amid 'unprecedented and unforeseen strains' | Financial Post

Found this little gem…

 

Sharing from a Montréal Lead Ramp Agent.  The struggle is real…if you have to travel, give yourself a few extra days…and if you don’t “need” to travel…stay home!!!

"I just got home at 6am after a 14h day including 6h of overtime. I struggle to convey in words how much chaos there is at the airport right now.

1. Last night I saw SFO passengers crawling through the carousel to retrieve their bags ... from a secured customs area ... because they've been waiting 4 hours for them.

2. I saw FAs walk off flights because the pilots were flying illegally after timing out, and the FAs didn't feel safe because they knew how tired the pilots were.

3. I saw Delhi leave with 100 missing meals and STOC said send it anyway.

4. I saw a handicapped person with no legs crawl out of a plane himself because there was no wheelchair crew.

5. We've now reached 2019 peak rush times but with only 800 ground crew staff, compared to 1200 in 2019 (and we were barely making it then)

6. I've seen dogs being left in the bulk of a cancelled flight for 2 hours. 

7. One guy on my crew today almost walked into a live engine because he was new. With only 5 weeks training, he had forgot ¾ of it cause it's so condensed. The higher ups in Toronto want to make that training 5 days instead of 5 weeks.

8. We no longer wait for passengers to connect.  I dispatched FRA the other day with 50 missing passengers and STOC didn't want to wait.   We don't wait anymore cause it delays all the flights in the gate moving forward.  So we fly with whoever is onboard.

From the bottom of my heart, tell your loved ones not to fly now.  Regardless if they bring a bag or not.  I saw the proposed schedule
over the next year and a half and it's enough to keep me up at night.   

Anyway, for those of you travelling anyway... stay safe.  Bring food and water with you.  Don't ever check a bag.  And if you do fly, don't connect.  You'll miss it 100%.

Rant over. I'm exhausted and going to sleep cuz I I only get 7.5h rest between shifts."

[conehead]

4 hours ago, Jaydee said:

Found this little gem…

 

Sharing from a Montréal Lead Ramp Agent.  The struggle is real…if you have to travel, give yourself a few extra days…and if you don’t “need” to travel…stay home!!!

"I just got home at 6am after a 14h day including 6h of overtime. I struggle to convey in words how much chaos there is at the airport right now.

1. Last night I saw SFO passengers crawling through the carousel to retrieve their bags ... from a secured customs area ... because they've been waiting 4 hours for them.

2. I saw FAs walk off flights because the pilots were flying illegally after timing out, and the FAs didn't feel safe because they knew how tired the pilots were.

3. I saw Delhi leave with 100 missing meals and STOC said send it anyway.

4. I saw a handicapped person with no legs crawl out of a plane himself because there was no wheelchair crew.

5. We've now reached 2019 peak rush times but with only 800 ground crew staff, compared to 1200 in 2019 (and we were barely making it then)

6. I've seen dogs being left in the bulk of a cancelled flight for 2 hours. 

7. One guy on my crew today almost walked into a live engine because he was new. With only 5 weeks training, he had forgot ¾ of it cause it's so condensed. The higher ups in Toronto want to make that training 5 days instead of 5 weeks.

8. We no longer wait for passengers to connect.  I dispatched FRA the other day with 50 missing passengers and STOC didn't want to wait.   We don't wait anymore cause it delays all the flights in the gate moving forward.  So we fly with whoever is onboard.

From the bottom of my heart, tell your loved ones not to fly now.  Regardless if they bring a bag or not.  I saw the proposed schedule
over the next year and a half and it's enough to keep me up at night.   

Anyway, for those of you travelling anyway... stay safe.  Bring food and water with you.  Don't ever check a bag.  And if you do fly, don't connect.  You'll miss it 100%.

Rant over. I'm exhausted and going to sleep cuz I I only get 7.5h rest between shifts."

Just.... wow....

[FA@AC]

AC is trying to recruit cabin groomers at around $16/hour.  I believe the starting pay for a CSA who can expect to be left solo and expected to perform tasks for which they haven't been trained while dealing with mobs of justifiably angry customers is about the same.  Amazon offers $19-ish hourly.  

Edited July 1, 2022 by FA@AC

[st27]

I can’t help but think of staff that used to take commuting for granted….from getting on flights or taking a hotel at the airport…..yikes!

[Guest1]

Air Canada’s Summer 2022 Schedule Adjustments

2 July 2022Canadian Aviation News

2 July 2022 – Air Canada 

This week, Air Canada announced changes to its summer schedule to support unprecedented and unforeseen strains on our organization. International flights are unaffected, with a few timing changes to reduce flying at peak times. Flights adjusted are to and from our Toronto and Montreal hubs. These will be mostly frequency reductions, affecting primarily evening and late-night flights by smaller aircraft, on transborder and domestic routes. Four routes will be temporarily suspended.

Temporary Route Suspensions:

Montreal – Kelowna
Montreal – Baltimore
Montreal – Pittsburgh
Toronto – Fort McMurray

Frequency Reductions

Toronto – Deer Lake: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 1 flight daily
Toronto – Saint John: reduce 2 frequencies, now operating 1 flight daily
Toronto – Charlottetown: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Toronto – Quebec City: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 4 flights daily
Toronto – North Bay: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 1 flight daily
Toronto – Timmins: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Toronto – Sudbury: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Toronto – London, ON: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 4 flights daily
Toronto – Windsor: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Toronto – Winnipeg: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 5 flights daily
Toronto – Edmonton: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 7 flights daily
Toronto – Calgary: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 11 flights daily
Toronto – Vancouver: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 14 flights daily
Toronto – Boston: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 6 flights daily
Toronto – LaGuardia: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 9 flights daily
Toronto – Newark: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 6 flights daily
Toronto – Baltimore: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Toronto – Philadelphia: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Toronto – Washington (DCA): reduce 1 frequency in August, will operate 2 flights daily (3 flights remain for July)
Toronto – Miami: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 1 flight daily
Toronto – San Francisco: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Montreal – Moncton: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Montreal – Fredericton: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Montreal – Saint John: reduce 1 frequency, now operating total 1flights
Montreal – Halifax: reduce 1 frequency in August, will operate total 3 flights daily (4 flights remain through August 3)
Montreal – Ottawa: reduce 2 frequencies, now operating 6 flights daily
Montreal – Quebec: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 4 flights daily
Montreal – Toronto (Island): no weekend operations and Friday reduced to 3 flights daily
Montreal – Edmonton: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Montreal – Calgary: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 4 flights daily
Montreal – Boston: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Montreal – LaGuardia: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 4 flights daily
Montreal – Newark: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 3 flights daily
Montreal – Fort Lauderdale: reduce 1 frequency, now operating 2 flights daily
Ottawa – Toronto (Island): no weekend operations

Route Retimes:

Montreal – Los Angeles
Montreal – Las Vegas
Montreal – Punta Cana
Montreal – Fort Lauderdale
Montreal – Winnipeg
Montreal – Edmonton
Toronto – Manchester
Toronto – Edinburgh
Toronto – Copenhagen
Vancouver – Portland
Vancouver – Regina
Vancouver – Cranbrook

[spreadsheet]

More cuts to come, or are they including some previous cuts? Don't believe this is close to 150/day.

[Guest1]

1 hour ago, spreadsheet said:

More cuts to come, or are they including some previous cuts? Don't believe this is close to 150/day.

Have you crunched the numbers or just WAG?

[Specs]

15 hours ago, spreadsheet said:

More cuts to come, or are they including some previous cuts? Don't believe this is close to 150/day.

Just a quick summing gave me over 100 flights cancelled.

[Guest1]

Feeling entitled..... much.......  and he is calling for "deregulation of the industry". I guess he didn't know that was done many years ago.

1987

---

Air Canada’s privatization swiftly followed the complete deregulation of air travel in the country in 1987, which instituted equal competition for the first time. This permitted an airline to fly on any domestic or international route as long as it met government safety regulations.

 

'Incompetent.' New Brunswick cabinet minister blasts Air Canada for cancellation

3h ago

FREDERICTON — New Brunswick's education minister is lashing out at Air Canada, saying the airline is incompetent because it decided on the weekend to cancel a Monday flight that would have taken him and four officials to a meeting in Regina.

Dominic Cardy posted a series of tweets Saturday, saying the cancellation — announced earlier that day — means New Brunswick will not have representation at this year's meeting of the Council of Ministers of Education.

Cardy followed up by calling for deregulation of Canada’s airline industry.

 

"I’m speaking for myself," he wrote. "I hope Canadians start asking why we pay more for flights than anyone in the world, in exchange for terrible service. Paying for unavailable services isn’t left versus right. It's called being ripped off." 

His comments sparked an online debate, with some people asking the minister why his delegation had to attend in-person rather than taking part in a Zoom call, which would save taxpayers money.

In response, Cardy said he doesn't run the council, and he doubled down by suggesting that "incompetent and coddled airlines" that take money for services they know they can't deliver could be committing fraud.

Air Canada could not be immediately reached for comment.

One online commenter suggested Cardy should try booking a flight on another airline.

[conehead]

4 hours ago, Kargokings said:

 

One online commenter suggested Cardy should try booking a flight on another airline.

[Jaydee]

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-air-canada-summer-flight-cancellations/
 

 

Edited July 4, 2022 by Jaydee

[AvWatcher]

15 hours ago, Kargokings said:

Quote

Feeling entitled..... much.......  and he is calling for "deregulation of the industry". I guess he didn't know that was done many years ago.

1987

---

Air Canada’s privatization swiftly followed the complete deregulation of air travel in the country in 1987, which instituted equal competition for the first time. This permitted an airline to fly on any domestic or international route as long as it met government safety regulations.

 

'Incompetent.' New Brunswick cabinet minister blasts Air Canada for cancellation

3h ago

FREDERICTON — New Brunswick's education minister is lashing out at Air Canada, saying the airline is incompetent because it decided on the weekend to cancel a Monday flight that would have taken him and four officials to a meeting in Regina.

Dominic Cardy posted a series of tweets Saturday, saying the cancellation — announced earlier that day — means New Brunswick will not have representation at this year's meeting of the Council of Ministers of Education.

Cardy followed up by calling for deregulation of Canada’s airline industry.

 

"I’m speaking for myself," he wrote. "I hope Canadians start asking why we pay more for flights than anyone in the world, in exchange for terrible service. Paying for unavailable services isn’t left versus right. It's called being ripped off." 

His comments sparked an online debate, with some people asking the minister why his delegation had to attend in-person rather than taking part in a Zoom call, which would save taxpayers money.

In response, Cardy said he doesn't run the council, and he doubled down by suggesting that "incompetent and coddled airlines" that take money for services they know they can't deliver could be committing fraud.

Air Canada could not be immediately reached for comment.

One online commenter suggested Cardy should try booking a flight on another airline.

I'm guessing by deregulation, he meant to open our skies to any worldwide airline. If they did, I somehow doubt Fredericton would even make the cut, much less have better service.

[rudder]

21 hours ago, Specs said:

Just a quick summing gave me over 100 flights cancelled.

That list is 39/day plus the unspecified weekend flight reductions at YTZ.

There are a lot more US flight reductions that are not listed (mostly AC Express routes).

[conehead]

2 hours ago, airbrake said:

I don’t believe what is reported is at all accurate, but what did occur?  Maintenance, medical?  
 

https://www.thetorontoharold.com/news/m8y9r63nu4fhlz64p78cmbwvvjpo48

After diverting to YWG... 

“You know, I had never even heard of this place before the plane was forced to land here, but maybe I’ll just stay,” said 41 year old Carol Horne, “I’m sure there must be lots to do here. And the mosquitos are so bad at home right now this’ll probably be a nice break.” 

[Guest1]

Air Canada temporarily bans pets from baggage hold over delays

By Allison Lampert - 23m ago

By Allison Lampert

MONTREAL (Reuters) - Air Canada said on Wednesday it will not allow animals in the baggage hold until Sept. 12 due to "longer than usual" delays at airports, as carriers and airports wrestle with complaints over lost luggage and long lines.

Airlines in Europe, the United States and Canada are cancelling and delaying flights due to staffing shortages, as aviation struggles with a stronger than expected surge in traffic after a pandemic-induced slump.

Passengers at airports from Toronto to Frankfurt have been sharing photos of piled-up luggage near baggage belts on social media.

"Due to longer than usual airport delays, and for the safety and comfort of pets, we will not be accepting new requests for pets travelling in the baggage compartment until Sept. 12, 2022," Air Canada said in an emailed statement. Current pet bookings will be honored, it said.

Earlier this month, Canadian broadcast network CTV News reported that a dog flown by a different carrier had been left at Toronto Pearson International Airport with baggage for about 21 hours.

Air Canada's smaller rival WestJet Airlines said it will continue accepting animals.

Canada's largest airline recently said it would cut flights by 15% in July and August, with the changes on largely domestic routes going into effect on Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for Pearson, Canada's busiest airport, said it is "still assessing the impact of these reductions."

According to data from FlightAware, around 70% of Air Canada's U.S. flights were delayed over the long holiday weekend, the highest proportion of any carrier. Air Canada is the largest foreign carrier in the United States.

In a June 29 letter to customers, Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau apologized for flight cancellations and customer service shortfalls.

Earlier on Wednesday, a senior United Airlines executive said the U.S. aviation system is expected to "remain challenged this summer and beyond."

(Reporting By Allison Lampert in Montreal, editing by Deepa Babington)

[Guest1]

16 minutes ago, conehead said:

After diverting to YWG... 

“You know, I had never even heard of this place before the plane was forced to land here, but maybe I’ll just stay,” said 41 year old Carol Horne, “I’m sure there must be lots to do here. And the mosquitos are so bad at home right now this’ll probably be a nice break.” 

Funny. I hope she enjoys the former Mosquito Capital of Canada.  

[Jaydee]

The federal government under Justin Trudeau is committed to making travel as difficult as possible for Canadians for as long as they can.

 

Canada will keep ArriveCan for its data on COVID-19-positive travellers: sources

The federal government has no intention of dropping the controversial ArriveCan app because it gives the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) key health information about travellers who test positive for COVID-19 through testing at airports and land borders, senior government sources tell CTV News.

 

 

https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/feds-intend-to-keep-arrivecan-for-its-data-on-covid-19-positive-travellers-sources-1.5977612

[Jaydee]

Great spoof!

[Guest1]

Air Canada and Emirates Form Strategic Partnership

12 July 2022Canadian Aviation News

MONTREAL, July 12, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ – Air Canada and Emirates today announced the signing of a strategic partnership agreement that will create more options for customers when travelling on the carriers’ networks while also enhancing the customer experience throughout the journey.

Air Canada and Emirates intend to establish a codeshare relationship later in 2022 that will offer enhanced consumer travel choices for Air Canada customers to travel to the United Arab Emirates and to destinations beyond Dubai. Emirates customers will also enjoy an enhanced travel experience when travelling to Toronto or to key destinations across the Air Canada network. Customers will have the ability to book connecting travel between both airlines’ networks with the ease of a single ticket, seamless connectivity at the carriers’ respective global hubs and baggage transfers to their final destinations.

“As we continue pursuing our strategy of expanding our global reach in response to growing opportunities in VFR markets (Visiting Friends and Relatives) that serve Canada’s large multicultural communities, we are very pleased to form a strategic partnership with Emirates, a highly respected flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates with a hub in the vibrant city of Dubai. This strategic agreement will create network synergies, and Air Canada customers will have additional, convenient options when travelling between Canada and the United Arab Emirates as well as destinations beyond Dubai” said Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer at Air Canada. “We look forward to introducing Air Canada codeshare service on key Emirates flights, as well as adding the EK code on select Air Canada flights, and welcoming Emirates customers on our services later this year.” 

Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline said: “This is a significant partnership that will enable our customers access to even more destinations in Canada and the Americas, via our Toronto and US gateways. It also opens up many new route combinations for travelers across Emirates’ and Air Canada’s extensive networks in the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. We are pleased to partner with Air Canada, one of North America’s most established airlines and Canada’s flag carrier and we look forward to jointly progressing on various areas to provide even better customer flight choices and experiences.”

To further enhance the customer experience, the carriers will also establish reciprocal frequent flyer benefits and reciprocal lounge access for qualifying customers. Further details of the partnership and specific codeshare routes will be announced when finalized and will be subject to regulatory approvals and final documentation.