Aviation

THE STUFF OF DREAMS: Air Canada Foundation continues to help kids

Dreams Take Flight, Air Canada and The Air Canada Foundation celebrated another successful year of heartfelt journeys to theme parks in Florida and California. This year, more than a thousand children across Canada got to experience a day full of rides, magic and laughter.

MEET THE MEGAHUBS: Ranking the world’s most connected airports

London Heathrow (LHR) has retained its title as the world’s most connected airport for the third consecutive year in 2025, offering over 59,000 possible connections to 226 destinations on the busiest day. Two Canadian airports made the annual top 50 ‘Megahubs’ list by global aviation data platform leader OAG: Toronto Pearson at 26, and Vancouver, 46.

PRETZELS OR COOKIES?: WestJet solves age-old mystery

As 2025 comes to a close, WestJet has revealed a list of some of its quirkiest and most critical stats of the year – such as the most-watched movies at 35,000 feet and whether guests consumed more cookies or pretzels.

COULD ‘HOME ALONE’ TRAVEL CHAOS HAPPEN TODAY?

Panic erupts in the McCallister household as soon as the day begins. The parents’ alarm clock never rings, bags and coats spill across the floor, and the family barrels out the door to catch a flight to Florida in “Home Alone 2.” The pandemonium intensifies at the airport.

BALKANS BONANZA: Air Transat taps into Albania, and beyond

Direct flights from Canada to Albania? Credit Air Transat for tapping into the Balkan country’s growing reputation among savvy travellers as an up-and-coming travel destination that is off the mainstream track in Europe but not lacking in amenities or charm.

WHAT TRANSAT PILOTS WILL EARN WITH NEW DEAL

Air Transat pilots begin voting today (Dec. 19) on a tentative deal with the company that would see raises of well over 50%, boosting the salary for most senior pilots to nearly $388,000 a year by May 2029.

AIR CANADA’S 12 DAYS OF HOLIDAY CHEER

By Michael Baginski/ With 2025 coming to a close, Air Canada hosted a VIP industry gathering in Toronto late last week to say farewell to a successful year, as well as VP of global sales Lisa Pierce, who is retiring at the end of the month after a 40-year career with the company.

WESTJET PLAN MAY NOT HAVE LEGS: Airline faces opposition over non-reclining seats

WestJet has paused a move to install non-reclining seats on a big slice of its fleet after pushback from employees and passengers. The airline announced in September it would reconfigure the seating on 43 Boeing 737 jets to install an extra row and divide the cabin into several tiers, some with more space – and pricier tickets – than others.

HIGH-SPEED RAIL PLANS TAKE SHAPE

The first segment of the federal government’s proposed high-speed rail project will connect Montreal and Ottawa, acting as a test case for a multibillion-dollar infrastructure project intended to transform rail travel in Canada’s most densely populated region. 

WHAT TRANSAT PILOTS GOT, AND WHAT’S NEXT

A tentative deal has yielded big wage gains for Air Transat pilots, the culmination of nearly a year of bargaining and 10 straight days of intense negotiations that saw wages emerge as the main sticking point.

HOW SWEDE IT IS: WestJet, SAS, announce codeshare

WestJet and Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) have announced a reciprocal codeshare partnership, offering guests on both sides of the Atlantic enhanced access to a broader network of destinations all with the ease of a single booking.

GOING MOBILE: Smartphone, digital ID the future of travel

The International Air Transport Association’s 2025 Global Passenger Survey (GPS) highlights two key trends that are redefining the passenger travel experience: More travellers are managing every stage of their journey using smartphones; and use of biometrics and digital identity is expanding to enable more seamless airport processing – and travellers like it.

TRANSAT DEAL MOVES THE GOL-POSTS FOR SOUTH AMERICA

Air Transat has a new interline partnership with GOL Airlines that will significantly expand the Canadian carrier’s network by providing convenient onward connections across Brazil and to key destinations throughout South America with one of the country’s largest airlines.

PORTER FEELING BETTER IN THE BAHAMAS

Porter Airlines launched inaugural roundtrip service yesterday between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Nassau, The Bahamas. Seasonal service to Nassau increases to daily flights beginning Dec. 12, while nonstop service from Ottawa begins on Dec. 13, and Montreal on Feb. 5.

MORE EUROPE, MORE MONTREAL FROM AIR CANADA

Air Canada has announced a further expansion of its Summer 2026 global schedule to Europe with new destinations from Toronto and particularly Montréal, plus a new European route from Halifax. The additions further the airline’s international growth and give the carrier North America’s second largest transatlantic network by destination.

CABIN FEVER: Rouge remake highlights Air Canada renewal program

A new look and feel Rouge product will be welcomed by travellers as Air Canada embarks on what the company calls its “most comprehensive” cabin renewal program ever. The refit will also extend to the mainline fleet and Air Canada Express (Jazz) with the multi-year investment earmarked to include new interiors, next-gen technology, and details that reflect the input of both customers and.

SABRE AI SOLUTION A BIG LEAP – FOR CONSUMERS

Sabre has launched SabreMosaic Concierge IQ for airlines, an all-in-one generative AI chat solution that helps travellers plan, book, and manage trips in one seamless conversation. Moreover, according to the travel technology giant, it does so with the “same empathy and judgement as a skilled human agent” while accomplishing what otherwise would be hours-long work in seconds.

TRANSAT TALKS TURKEY, GOING TO GHANA

A new interline agreement between Air Transat and Turkish Airlines is now in effect, the airlines have announced. The partnership enables travellers to book itineraries combining flights from both airlines, enhancing connectivity between Canada and Türkiye, and key destinations across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

AIRLINES CANCEL FLIGHTS TO VENEZUELA AFTER FAA WARNING

International airlines increasingly cancelled flights to Venezuela on Sunday after t he U.S. Federal Aviation Administration warned pilots to use caution when flying in the country’s airspace because of worsening security and heightened military activity.

AIR CANADA, EMIRATES ENHANCE PARTNERSHIP

Air Canada and Emirates – the world’s largest international airline – have signed a memorandum of understanding to extend their reciprocal codeshare and loyalty partnership until Dec. 31, 2032. The renewed agreement will deepen their cooperation, lead to enhanced services for customers and cargo shippers, and create the potential for new gateways within Canada in the codeshare network.

FIRST SOUTH AMERICAN NON-STOP FOR WESTJET: And other summer 2026 highlights

WestJet has revealed five new seasonal international destinations from Toronto, three new transatlantic destinations from Halifax, as well as new domestic and Nordic connections from Western Canada as part of its summer 2026 schedule. Headlining the route roster is WestJet’s first South American non-stop connection from Toronto: Medellín, Colombia.

STEADY AS SHE GOES: Airfares forecast to remain flat in 2026

Airfares are expected to remain broadly stable through 2026, according to the newly released Air Monitor 2026 from American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT). The annual forecast analyzes global airfare trends and provides insight to help organizations manage their travel programs in a shifting airline landscape.

WESTJET LAUNCHES HOTEL BOOKING PLATFORM

WestJet has launched a new hotel booking platform that will enable both WestJet members and customers to book hotels worldwide and earn WestJet points. In partnership with digital travel platform Agoda, WestJet Hotel aims to enhance the WestJet customer experience by expanding hotel bookings with flight services, encouraging loyalty through the WestJet Rewards program.

AIR TRANSAT ANNOUNCES AFRICA FIRST FOR 2026

Air Transat is expanding its 2026 summer program with two new non-stop routes from Montreal to Dakar (DSS), Senegal, and Reykjavik (KEF), Iceland. The airline is also increasing the frequency of its flights to Valencia (VLC), Spain, due to the popularity of this destination, which was launched in the summer of 2025.

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