Air Canada will suspend its limited transborder flying on April 26, citing the extension of coronavirus-related joint travel restrictions put in place by Canada and the U.S., and reduced demand for repatriating Canadians.
Air Canada announced plans to seek workforce grants under the federal government’s proposed Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program, as it looks to offset a precipitous decline in revenues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canada’s flag carrier planned to offer more than 16 million seats during the second quarter of the year but will slash capacity by up to 90% in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
The proposed Air Canada-Air Transat merger would create too many monopoly markets with high barriers to entry for potential competitors, higher fares, and less choice, Canada’s Competition Bureau said, setting the stage for potential concessions from the companies if Transport Canada agrees with the conclusions.
Air Canada and its pilots have agreed to cost-cutting moves that include reduced pay, modified retirement terms and up to 600 layoffs, the Air Canada Pilots Association said.
Air Canada has cut tentative deals to have heavy maintenance for its Airbus A330s and A220s done in Quebec, providing an economic boost to the province that is tied to the completion of its Air Transat acquisition.
Air Canada is hopeful that challenges posed by the Boeing 737 MAX grounding and COVID-19 outbreak in China will be resolved by the second half of 2020, optimistic time lines that assume worst-case scenarios regarding both crises will not come to pass.
As 2019 draws to a close, Routesonline revisits some of the biggest stories making the headlines. Part one of our review looks at the first six months of the year, featuring Thai Lion Air, Air Transat, airBaltic, Qantas, Jet Airways and more.
This week: Air France-KLM drops Virgin Atlantic deal plans; Ryanair to close two bases; Transavia to start Brussels service; codeshare agreed between Gulf Air and Middle East Airlines and more.
Canada’s flag carrier is to launch a new route between Montreal and Bogotá, it’s 39th new route launched from the Canadian city since 2012 and the 12th new route since 2017.
Air Canada has picked up the connection between Toronto and Belgium’s capital Brussels after fellow Star Alliance carrier Brussels Airlines dropped the route in favour of serving Montreal.
This week: BA takes delivery of first A350; Ryanair traffic grows 11 percent; Air Canada removes Max flights until 2020; short-haul challenges hit Lufthansa and more.
Air Canada is in exclusive talks to buy the company that owns Air Transat, potentially providing an opportunity to quickly expand its Air Canada Rouge business and increase consolidation in the transatlantic market. The proposed acquisition comes days after private equity firm Onex Corp struck a deal for Canadian rival WestJet.
Air Canada's recent period of sustained growth will give way to a focus on optimising its network and fleet, but the carrier will continue to target strategic expansions, such as leveraging its Airbus A220 on new routes within North America. That's according to Ferio Pugliese, senior VP regional markets and government relations.
