Airlines
A Difficult Decision
WestJet has announced that it will be indefinitely suspending operations to Moncton, Fredericton, Sydney and Charlottetown while significantly reducing service to Halifax and St. John's. The suspension eliminates more than 100 flights weekly or almost 80% of seat capacity from the Atlantic region starting Nov. 2, 2020. Ed Sims, WestJet president and CEO, explained: “It has become unviable to serve these markets and these decisions were regrettably inevitable as demand is being obliterated by the Atlantic bubble and third-party fee increases.” And Sims continued: “Since the...
Porter Extends Suspension To Dec. 15
Porter Airlines is extending its temporary service suspension to Dec. 15, based on continuing travel restrictions associated with COVID-19. Michael Deluce, president and CEO, Porter Airlines, said: “The flare up of COVID-19 cases in certain markets during the last month dampened any expectation of changes to government restrictions that will enable us to begin flying again in November.” Deluce continued: “The federal government is indicating that they need more confidence about what course the pandemic will take before restrictions are reconsidered. We hope that lifting of...
A Celebration For The Industry
No one will argue with the assertion that the travel industry in Canada needs a reason to celebrate. Certainly, no on here at Baxter Media will argue with that. So, while a global pandemic may have prevented an in-person, hugs and cheek-kissing gala, it didn’t prevent Baxter Media from taking the high-tech route and hosting the 2020 Agents’ Choice Awards Virtual Gala – a first for the industry – to celebrate the favourites in the 21st edition of the annual Agents’ Choice Awards Readership Survey. And by all accounts, it was a great way to pay tribute to those in the travel...
Change Of Plans
Air Canada has concluded an amended transaction with Transat A.T. Inc. that provides for Air Canada to acquire all the issued and outstanding shares of Transat and for its combination with Air Canada. Under the binding agreement, unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of Transat, Air Canada will acquire all shares of Transat for $5.00 per share, payable at the option of Transat shareholders in cash or shares of Air Canada at a fixed exchange ratio of 0.2862 Air Canada share for each Transat share (representing a price for the Air Canada shares of $17.47). The value of the...
IATA Releases New COVID-19 Research
IATA is demonstrating the low incidence of inflight COVID-19 transmission with an updated tally of published cases. Since the start of 2020 there have been 44 cases of COVID-19 reported in which transmission is thought to have been associated with a flight journey (inclusive of confirmed, probable and potential cases). Over the same period some 1.2 billion passengers have travelled. Dr. David Powell, IATA’s medical advisor, said: “The risk of a passenger contracting COVID-19 while onboard appears very low. With only 44 identified potential cases of flight-related transmission...
Sunwing Survey Finds Canadians Ready To Travel
A new survey, commissioned by Sunwing, reveals that a growing number of Canadians are ready to go on vacation. The survey was conducted by Sunwing among members of the Angus Reid Forum between Sept. 28-29, 2020 with a representative online sample of 1,505 Canadians, in both English and French. Results revealed that 56% of Canadians are considering going on vacation within the next year. Regular vacation-goers are even more likely to be interested in an upcoming getaway, with seven-in-ten (71%) saying that they are considering a vacation. Of respondents who would consider travelling...
Travel Advisors Are All-Stars
In the Agents’ Choice 2020 Readership Survey, the value of using a travel agent is showcased in the issue’s feature story. In the wake of travel bans, restrictions, cancellations and last-minute re-booking needs brought on by the pandemic, it became apparent that those who used travel advisors were better off than those who decided to go it alone. “I have never been told so many times how absolutely lost they would have been without a travel agent to find alternate flights home, cancel their trips for refunds or credits and take care of everything. I was able to assist all my...
Air Canada Taking Care Of Its Employees
Air Canada said it plans to explore the application of COVID-19 contact tracing technology in its workplace using the Bluetooth enabled TraceSCAN app and wearable technology developed by Canadian-based Facedrive Inc. Samuel Elfassy, vice president, safety at Air Canada, said: “The health and safety of our employees is of paramount concern to Air Canada and is key to restoring our operations safely for our customers. Air Canada has embraced a science-based approach to managing COVID-19 and as part of this has committed to evaluate the use of new technologies like TraceSCAN's...