Building on strong bookings this summer, US airlines are already adding new routes later this year and next, underscoring the airline industry’s confidence that its strong recovery from the pandemic will continue and that planes will remain packed.
Flair Airlines says it is launching a unique pilot training program that will see applicants placed in the cockpit of one of the company’s Boeing 737 jets within 18 months.
Airlines are adjusting prices and adding capacity to help with evacuation efforts in Yellowknife. WestJet and Air Canada both said they are taking steps to avoid elevated prices, adding extra flights and swapping in bigger planes amid the rapidly unfolding situation up north.
WestJet announced the addition of twice-weekly non-stop service between Kelowna and Toronto to the airline’s 2023/24 winter schedule. The service will begin Nov. 5.
Preparatory construction works for the new terminal at Montreal Saint-Hubert Airport has begun, but airport officials maintain that “at no time” will be the operation of the airport will be compromised or affected.
Two years after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the United States has begun easing rules that could allow commercial airlines to fly over the country in routes that cut time and fuel consumption for East-West travel.
Air Canada says earnings last quarter reached heights not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic amid high travel demand and pricier fares, and despite thousands of flight delays.
A new report says Air Canada ranked last in on-time performance among the 10 largest airlines in North America, as some carriers in Canada struggle to find their post-pandemic footing despite much better outcomes than the travel chaos of 2022.
Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, including a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that the post-COVID recovery momentum continued in June for passenger markets with total traffic (measured in revenue passenger kilometres or RPKs) rising 31.0% compared to June 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 94.2% of pre-COVID levels.
New Distribution Capability content from British Airways is now live on the Travelport+ platform, enabling the carrier to give simplified access to NDC content to agents, so that travel retailers can easily book and service NDC offers for their customers.
US regulators are warning airlines to limit the use of an anti-icing system on Boeing 737 Max jets in dry air to avoid overheating engine-housing parts, which could cause them to break away from the plane.
As if there aren’t enough reasons for planes to be delayed these days, a bear escaped from its crate in the cargo hold of an Iraqi aircraft as it was due to depart from Dubai airport, leaving passengers disgruntled over the delay and causing a stir on social media.
Instead of pursuing “costly and poorly thought-out” air travel consumer rights regulations, federal governments in Canada and the US need to “take ownership” of the issues causing “unacceptable” delays at airports across the continent and resolve them, says the director general of IATA.
Canadians will have a new connection to the Caribbean and South and Central America courtesy of low-cost Dominican Republic-based carrier Arajet, with the launch of Toronto service in October, followed by flights from Montreal in November.
Another month, another record number of hours flown, says Canada Jetlines, which has also announced the addition of its third plane. Following a 265% increase in hours flown in Q2 over the hours flown in Q1, the discount carrier says it set a new record of hours flown in July with 622 block hours flown in the month.
Air Canada Vacations has added a host of popular sun destinations to its ePackages shopping tool. Among them: Bermuda, Belize, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Fort-de-France, Martinique, Grand Cayman, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, Saint Vincent, St. Kitts, Port of Spain, Kingston (Jamaica), and Mexico City and Monterrey (Mexico).
Edmonton International Airport (YEG) is the first Canadian airport to sign on to a new initiative led by Action Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT) Alberta that provides translated materials to Canadian newcomers about their rights in Alberta.
The WestJet Group has announced changes its winter schedule with an expansion of sun destinations from Abbotsford, BC, serving the Fraser Valley and a similar transition from Swoop to the mainline carrier in Hamilton, Ont., as WestJet integrates its low-cost subsidiary.
Passengers travelling through London Gatwick’s North Terminal will soon be able to enjoy a host of new features, as its biggest-ever transformation gets underway. Among those who will experience the £10-million refresh will be WestJet passengers flying from Canada to the British capital.
The US is requiring more planes to have accessible restrooms, but the change will take years to implement. Some new planes eventually will be required to have lavatories big enough to be accessible to wheelchair users, a change that disability advocates have sought for many years.
Scandinavian Airlines says travellers can now book seats on the carrier’s first commercial flights in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark aboard electric-powered aircraft – due to start to five years from now. The Stockholm-based SAS airline group said there will be 30 seats available on each of the three flights and that the day and place of departure will be communicated to travellers by email once decided. Online reservations opened June 2.
Last Sunday a British Airways flight ran into a catering issue when it was discovered that the catering carts were ‘not properly chilled’ making the planned in-flight meal unusable on BA252 from Turks and Caicos to London. When the plane made a scheduled stop in Nassau, the crew went into the terminal to buy KFC chicken buckets and distributed pieces to passengers in economy and business class.
Canada’s two biggest airlines saw a far higher proportion of their flights delayed than many of their American peers, according to figures from an aviation data firm. Overall, only half of Air Canada’s flights were on time between June 19 and July 16, statistics provided by Cirium reveal. In comparison, 64 percent of WestJet’s flights touched down on time.
A Delta Air Lines flight taxied around the Las Vegas airport for nearly 90 minutes in triple-digit temperatures, causing at least one person to need medical treatment. The Boeing 757 aircraft left its gate at the LAS on Monday afternoon but never left the ground. The plane taxied to the end of a runway and then turned around and returned to the terminal.
The WestJet Group has announced its winter schedule, operating 230 direct routes from Canada to the southern US, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America this winter, while also extending key domestic and international routes from summer to year-round service.
Hail battered a Delta Air Lines passenger jet bound for New York shortly after taking off from Milan on Monday, forcing it to divert safely to Rome’s main airport, Italian media and the airline said. The aircraft sustained damage to its nose and on the fuselage near the wings, according to Italian media.
It’s estimated there are more than 41,000 airports in the world. And while it would be impossible to visit them all, British-based company Artemis Aerospace has channelled its eye-in-the-sky ethos to come up with a shortlist of six must-see runways that provide rare and beautiful vistas, guaranteeing a great start, or end, to a visitor’s journey.
Toronto’s Pearson airport says a staffing boost and other initiatives have ‘tangibly improved’ service, and issues that sparked chaos at Canada’s largest airport last summer have been addressed. And no longer is the Toronto hub rated last globally in on-time performance.
Air Canada has added a host of new features for passengers, from check-in to inflight. The upgrades include expanded in-flight food and beverage offerings, more family-friendly options in the airline’s in-flight entertainment library, as well as additional advances to the Air Canada App.