Aviation

Air France has inaugurated its new non-stop flight between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Ottawa, making the carrier the only company to operate direct flights between the Canadian capital and Europe.

Porter Airlines continues to expand its presence in Western Canada with the addition of Victoria to its network with one daily roundtrip flight as of September 20. Victoria is the second city in British Columbia that Porter will serve with its new 132-seat Embraer E195-E2 aircraft, which the airline touts as having the lowest fuel consumption per seat and per trip among its class.

As if tech issues, labour shortages and weather aren’t enough, flights south of the border could be disrupted starting next week because some planes lack updated equipment to prevent interference from transmissions by wireless companies.

Low-cost Icelandic airline PLAY launched its inaugural flight from Canada June 22, with the carrier aiming to offer another competitive alternative for Canadians to fly to Europe via its Reykjavik hub.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech says bringing Swoop and Sunwing Airlines under its banner won’t lead to higher airfares, since integrating the discount carriers will also tamp down costs.

The federal government moved this week to bolster accountability at airports, introducing new legislation that would compel them and other operators to cough up more information on their performance.

With news swirling this week about the future integration of Sunwing Airlines into the WestJet fleet, the company’s tour operator arm is reassuring the trade that it’s “business as usual” and that the future is “brighter than ever.”

Kwasi Bandoh, a senior recruiter for an airline, stood before a group of aviation mechanic students at their graduation ceremony last month and congratulated them for all having jobs. As some of the students began nudging each other, Bandoh realized that perhaps not every one of them had already been hired.

Experts seemingly disagree whether WestJet’s decision to shut down Sunwing Airlines and fold it into its main operations could mean less service and higher fares – or whether the Competition Bureau, competitors, and savvy consumers will ensure that fares stay competitive.

WestJet says it will wind down Sunwing Airlines and integrate the carrier into its mainline business within two years as part of a strategy to streamline operations.
However WestJet said its “immediate focus” remains on weaving Swoop into the company’s operations.

The oneworld airline alliance says it has completed initial trials of a state-of-the-art booking tool that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to help users navigate the complex process of planning a “Round the World” ticket.

U.S. officials says they will require new airline planes to have a second barrier to make it harder for passengers to break into the cockpit when the main door is open. The Federal Aviation Administration rule will apply to commercial planes made after mid-2025.

Overall, flying will be far more expensive this summer, according to corporate travel manager American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT), which analyzed tens of thousands of client transactions on flights to and from Canadian destinations. However, amid the soaring prices, flights to Western Canada are bucking the trend.

Sabre and Air Canada have announced the completion of a new multi-year distribution agreement that provides Sabre-connected agencies with long-term access to Air Canada’s full content via NDC channels.

Lawmakers south of the border are considering rolling back an Obama-era rule that requires airlines to show the total price of a ticket upfront in advertising, while also tweaking training requirements for airline pilots and making other changes in a massive bill covering the Federal Aviation Administration.

WestJet will wind down its Swoop subsidiary by late October as it integrates the budget carrier’s operations into its main banner, the airline said Friday. The move comes after pilots with the two airlines ratified a new collective agreement that brings them onto a level pay scale.

Air Canada says it made a mistake in rejecting some compensation claims from the thousands of travellers affected by delayed flights due to computer malfunctions. In messages to some customers, the airline initially said the information technology fumble was out of its hands, relieving it of obligations to pay them compensation.

Security guards at London’s Heathrow Airport will escalate their strike action over wages into the busy summer months, the UK’s largest trade union has warned. Fortunately, Canadians flying on Air Canada and WestJet appear poised to avoid the disruptions.

Transat AT Inc. saw revenues double – and losses shrink by more than two-thirds – in its latest quarter amid a major sales boost propelled by solid leisure travel demand on top of higher prices.

Travel brand loyalty is nothing new. Ever since Texas International Airlines and American Airlines created the first frequent-flyer programs in the late 1970s and early 1980s, travellers have been racking up miles, seeking elite status and pouring their airfare dollars into brands that offer the most perks.

Flair Airlines Ltd. has the highest number of complaints per 100 flights of all the major airlines in Canada, according to the Canadian Transportation Agency, as airlines have had a rocky recovery year with delayed and cancelled flights.

American Airlines says it will appeal a court decision that would force the airline to break up its partnership with JetBlue Airways in the Northeast. American and JetBlue face a late-June deadline to end the agreement in which they coordinate flights and share revenue.

Air Canada experienced technical problems causing flight delays for the second time in a week yesterday. The airline advised travellers to check the status of their flights online amid delays caused by an IT issue. South of the border, Spirit Airlines experienced similar problems on Thursday.

New Zealand’s national airline is asking passengers to step on the scales before they board international flights. Air New Zealand says it wants to weigh 10,000 passengers during a monthlong survey so pilots can better know the weight and balance of their planes before takeoff.

The pilots union at the country’s biggest airline is opening the gate to bargaining ahead of time – as early as this summer. Air Canada says its pilots group has triggered an option to launch negotiations around a new collective agreement a year early.

Lufthansa has signed a deal with the Italian government for a 41 percent minority share in the long-struggling ITA Airways, formerly Alitalia. Lufthansa will also have the option of buying the remaining shares at a later date. Once the deal is completed, ITA Airways would be Lufthansa Group’s fifth carrier.