The Grande Prairie Airport has received $140,000 from the Alberta provincial government to explore renovations that could include adding customs and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). The money will fund a Canadian Border Services Agency Facilities Study.
Toronto’s airports authority has announced a multibillion-dollar plan to update and modernize Toronto Pearson Airport. The program will see the refurbishment of existing airport assets, including high-speed taxi lanes, a modernized airfield electric lighting and control system, and interim terminal facilities.
With rising travel costs and some airlines introducing surge pricing policies on checked baggage, plus new paid seat options, Corporate Traveller Canada’s latest poll paints a vivid picture of the strains facing Canadian business travellers today.
Lufthansa and a union representing cabin crew have reached a pay deal, concluding the last of several major disputes that have led to recent strikes at Germany’s biggest airline and in the country’s wider aviation sector. The UFO union said nearly 19,000 cabin crew will get a pay raise effectively totaling 17.4% in three stages under the three-year deal, plus a one-time payment of 3,000 euros (CDN$4.400) per person to offset inflation. Some bonuses also will be increased.
With little fanfare, Air Canada has resumed service between Canada and Israel following a six-month pause. The airline says flights between Toronto and Tel Aviv resumed April 9, and a once-weekly flight between Montreal and Tel Aviv will resume in May.
An Australian court has rejected a case brought by five women seeking compensation from Qatar Airways over invasive gynecological examinations conducted on passengers at Doha’s airport in 2020, but their case against the airport’s operator is going ahead.
The Oakland International Airport has voted to add “San Francisco” to its name to attract more passengers, but its neighbours across the Bay have slammed the rebrand. Oakland airport officials say travellers unfamiliar with the region fly into San Francisco’s airport even if their destination is closer to the East Bay airport. Modifying the name to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport will change that, they say. The airport’s three-letter code OAK would not change.
Strong demand heading into the summer-vacation season is an indication that travellers seem unfazed by recent incidents in the industry that ranged from a panel blowing off a jetliner midflight flight to a tire falling off another plane during takeoff, according to the head of Delta Airlines.
A strike by over 800 workers at a catering company could mean no food and beverages on many flights out of Toronto Pearson Airport this month. The job action could begin as early as April 16, according to Teamsters Local Union 647.
When Boeing boss David Calhoun steps down at the end of the year, he’ll be forgoing compensation that in 2023 was valued at US$33 million. Admittedly the figure – nearly all of it in stock awards – will be cut by nearly a fourth in 2024, but will still total approximately $25 million.
Drink it or bin it: That phrase should have become history this summer at all UK airports.
WestJet has announced additions to its Winnipeg network, featuring new year-round, daily service to Montreal, as well as increased, daily, year-round service to Ottawa, beginning June 3. The airline also announced new seasonal service between Winnipeg and Nashville, set to take off on Sept. 16.
A Southwest Airlines jet returned to Denver Sunday morning after the engine cover fell off and struck the wing flap during takeoff, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Boeing 737 landed safely, and the passengers headed to Houston were being put onto another aircraft, Southwest Airlines said in a statement.
The authority overseeing the Montreal airport plans to spend nearly $4 billion in a bid to reduce congestion and ramp up capacity at the country’s second-biggest flight hub. The announcement comes after rising passenger volumes and surging car traffic last summer prompted a wave of frustration among travellers trying to make their planes on time.
Air Canada’s inaugural Singapore flight (from Vancouver) – which landed Thursday morning – is the airline’s longest flight measured by distance (12,818 km) with a flying time of up to 16 hours and five minutes.
Pilots at WestJet regional carrier Encore have voted 97 percent in favour of strike authorization after contract talks around pay and career progression came to a “near standstill,” says the Air Line Pilots Association. A strike could commence as soon as April 17.
Upstart airline BermudAir, which began flying to the US from Bermuda last September, has announced it will add Toronto and Halifax to its growing list of gateways (now seven) starting in May. Starting May 17, the airline will begin operations between Bermuda’s L.F. Wade International Airport (BDA) and Toronto Pearson (Tues-Fri-Sunday), with flights to Halifax Stanfield (Sat.) commencing on May 25.
United Airlines is asking its pilots to take time off in May because of delays in receiving new planes that the airline ordered from Boeing, which is struggling with production due to manufacturing problems.
American Airlines is relaxing part of its pet policy to let owners bring their companion and a full-size carry-on bag into the cabin. Until last week, people who carried a pet into the cabin – which involves paying a $150 fee – could only have one other small item that fit under the seat.
As the aviation industry grapples with a shortage of pilots, United has opened a new, 14,000-sq.-m. building at its Flight Training Center in Denver – already the largest facility of its kind in the world – that has the potential to trains 240 more aviators per day. The new building gives the airline the capability to add 12 more advanced full-motion flight simulators to the facility, six of which have already been delivered.
Accompanied by key suppliers from New Zealand, the South Pacific country’s national carrier called in Toronto and Calgary this week as part of a North American mission designed to “harness everything New Zealand… and bring a touch of New Zealand” to the trade.
Citing strong financial results– including record annual revenue – Air Canada issued its 2023 Annual Report highlighting the carrier’s achievements for the year, including progress made on several key strategic initiatives.
Passengers at busy Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas can test self-screening at customs – a new system that US federal airport security officials are calling “a step into the future.”
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun will step down from the embattled plane maker at the end of the year after a series of mishaps at one of America’s most storied manufacturers. Board Chair Larry Kellner has also told the company he doesn’t plan to stand for re-election in May. Boeing also said Monday that Stan Deal, president and CEO of its commercial airplanes unit, will retire immediately from the company.
By the simplest measurement, the answer to that question is ‘no’ but you would never know that by reading about the torrent of flight problems in the last three months. The last deadly crash involving a North American airliner (Colgan Air, which operated for Continental Express, United Express and US Air Express) occurred in February 2009 – 15 years ago – an unprecedented streak of safety, especially given there were 9.6 million flights in the US alone last year.
US Federal regulators are increasing their oversight of United Airlines following a series of recent issues including a piece of the outer fuselage falling off one jet, an engine fire and a plane losing a tire during takeoff.
In a decision hailed by an environmental group as a historic victory, an Amsterdam court has ruled that Dutch national airline KLM misled consumers in statements about sustainable aviation in a case that accused the carrier of “greenwashing.”
Conditions on federal loans to Transat A.T. Inc. mean the tour operator’s CEO lost out on nearly half a million dollars in compensation last year. A document prepared by the Montreal-based company for its shareholders shows that strings attached to $743 million in emergency loans from Ottawa during the pandemic deprived chief executive Annick Guérard of $489,500 in cash in 2023.
Canadians are not only polite, but also a punctual bunch, observe execs at Buffalo Niagara International Airport. With this in mind, the facility – a popular gateway for southern Ontarians heading to New York, Florida, and other points in the US – is eager to point out to travellers from north of the border that it has plenty of options and activities for those who arrive early at BUF before winging off to somewhere else.
Advocates and Air Canada served up opposing views of on-board accessibility for passengers in the House of Commons on Tuesday, though both sides agree that consistency remains a problem. Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau told the House transport committee that an overwhelming majority of the 1.3 million passengers who requested special assistance last year had a positive experience. About 1,950 – or 0.15% – filed complaints.