Airlines
A Little Insurance From WestJet
WestJet has announced no-charge COVID-19 travel insurance coverage for eligible guests booking travel to Mexico, the Caribbean and European destinations including the United Kingdom. The airline says that for reservations made on or after Sept. 18, 2020, any WestJet air-only reservation including WestJet Vacations bookings for travel to and from Mexico, the Caribbean (excluding the U.S.), Europe (including U.K.) and inbound to Canada will provide eligible guests no-charge COVID-19 travel insurance through new partner TuGo. Coverage will be automatically applied at no...
A Healthy Achievement For Toronto Pearson
Toronto Pearson International Airport, operated by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), is the first Canadian airport to be accredited under the Airports Council International (ACI) Airport Health Accreditation program. ACI-NA president and CEO, Kevin M. Burke said: “Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, North American airports have taken unprecedented steps to ensure the health and safety of passengers and airport workers.” Burke continued: “We are proud to recognize Toronto Pearson International Airport as the first Canadian airport to achieve their Airport...
Taking A Consistent Approach
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on the air industry and how Canadians travel across Canada, the government of Canada is making it clear that it’s committed to addressing new and emerging challenges and implementing measures to protect Canadians’ health and reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19. To that end, Canada’s Minister of Transport, the Honourable Marc Garneau has announced that Transport Canada, provincial and territorial governments, public health authorities, and Canada’s largest air carriers have established a consistent approach for...
When Will The Domestic Travel Recovery Begin?
In Canada, we have now completed our fifth month of fighting COVID-19, while we wait on a possible vaccine and try to establish the “new normal.” Our border to the US remains understandably closed, while our federal government takes no progressive action in opening our air borders to “safe” countries such as the EU Schengen countries, and most of us in the travel industry are trying to stay optimistic about the future, despite all the obvious encumbrances. For Canadian hoteliers, we have all been hoping for a resumption of domestic short haul travel as most of the country...
Signs Of A Rebound
According to GlobalData, the travel and tourism (T&T) sector witnessed an uptick in Q3 2020 earnings transcript sentiment scores. The leading data and analytics company reports that hotel operators’ sentimental growth was influenced by improvements in occupancy rates, while airline companies’ sentiments were largely influenced by enhanced liquidity. Rinaldo Pereira, senior business fundamentals analyst at GlobalData, said: “There has been a surprisingly early sentiment rebound in the T&T sector, which has taken a hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” Pereira pointed...
Porter Pushes Service Restart To Nov. 12
Porter Airlines is advising that it will return to service on Nov. 12. Previously, the carrier had indicated that it was targeting to recommence its service on Oct. 7. It noted in advising of the new date that the recent extension of the quarantine period for travellers entering or returning to Canada, along with the continued closure of the Canada-U.S. border and Atlantic Canada travel bubble, were key factors in the decision to extend the restart date. Michael Deluce, president and CEO, Porter Airlines, said that: “Every one of our markets is affected by the Canadian...
Brussels Airlines Working To Resolve Refund Backlog
Pointing out that since the start of the crisis, Brussels Airlines was forced to cancel on average 83% of its scheduled flight program, impacting the travel plans of 3 million of its passengers. The airline notes that the pandemic and the worldwide travel restrictions caused a three-month grounding of the airline’s fleet (from March 21until June 14), and urged Brussels Airlines to adapt its offer to the continuously low travel demand. As a result, Brussels Airlines had to cancel more than 36,000 flights in total since the start of the crisis, which led in that same period to...
Get Flexible Or Get Left Behind
According to GlobalData, travel companies are going to have to provide flexibility or risk being left behind. The data and analytics company pointed to the recent announcement that Delta Air Lines was joining American Airlines and United Airlines in scrapping a range of ticket-change fees. GlobalData travel & tourism analyst, Ralph Hollister observed that: “Last year, Delta accumulated US$830 million in change fees, more than any other US carrier. After suffering a pre-tax loss of US$7 billion in Q2 2020, the last thing Delta needs is to be closing off such a valuable revenue...