Airlines
Kudos For Galardo
Air Canada is congratulating Mark Galardo, its vice president, network planning on his nomination as one of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 for 2019, a recognition of exceptional achievements of 40 outstanding Canadians under the age of 40. With 15 years of experience at Air Canada, Galardo is a key member of the leadership at the airline's Montreal headquarters, overseeing the development and performance of Air Canada's globe-spanning network that consists of more than 1,500 daily flights to nearly 220 destinations. Arielle Meloul-Wechsler, senior vice-president, People, Culture and...
Absolutely Spectacular
There have been deals and there have been deals, but it is hard to find a comparison to the announcement that Air Canada and Transat A.T. Inc. have successfully concluded a definitive Arrangement Agreement that will see Air Canada acquire all issued and outstanding shares of Transat, resulting in its combination with Air Canada. It is absolutely spectacular. Under the terms of the binding agreement, unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of Transat, Air Canada will acquire all outstanding shares of Transat for $13 per share. The value of the all-cash transaction is...
IATA Transforming The Customer Experience
IATA is urging aviation stakeholders to embrace data and digital transformation to help deliver a frictionless customer experience while enhancing safety and efficiency. Alexandre de Juniac, IATA's director general and CEO, said: “We must transform paper-based and legacy processes into digital ones and use data to drive decision-making in all facets of our business. Organizational silos will need to be shed to ensure a holistic focus on the entire customer experience. And we will need to do all this while continuing to ensure the highest levels of safety, security and environmental...
Sky Bird Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary
Sky Bird Travel is celebrating 10 years of doing business in Toronto. Arvin & Jaya Shah took their first steps into the travel industry from their kitchen table in Windsor Ontario. They quickly realized that there was a promising business opportunity and founded Sky Bird Travel across the border in Detroit in 1976. Arvin Shah has been at the helm ever since as the Chairman and CEO, successfully guiding the company through four decades of growth in an ever-changing business environment. Ten years ago Arvin and Jaya opened the doors to Sky Bird’s office in...
Swoop Ready For Winter, Adds Los Cabos
Swoop has released its 2019 winter schedule with non-stop flights available for booking from June 25, 2019 through April 25, 2020. The schedule boasts 28 winter getaway routes, including the enticing new destination of Los Cabos, Mexico. As part of the winter schedule, Swoop announced three-times weekly service between Edmonton International Airport (YEG) and twice-weekly service between Winnipeg Richardson International Airport (YWG) and Los Cabos International Airport (SJD). The Los Cabos routes start November 2, 2019 and November 17, 2019, respectively. Steven Greenway, president...
ATPCO Expands Deal With Google Flights
ATPCO has announced that Google Flights has signed a long-term expansion deal that gives the metasearch website access to all Routehappy rich content. The agreement continues Google's access to Amenities, providing travellers with at-a-glance insights into flight Amenities such as Wi-Fi, seat pitch, onboard entertainment, and power availability, while also providing access to Universal Ticket Attributes (UTAs) and Universal Product Attributes (UPAs). In 2014, Google Flights was one of the first metasearch websites to integrate Routehappy's comprehensive Amenities data in its flight...
Above & Beyond
Where were you when the Toronto Raptors won the NBA Championship? Well, for close to 400 of the Canadian travel industry's finest, the answer to that question is they were at the second annual Agents' Choice Awards Gala at the Arcadian Court in Toronto. It was a night of celebration and anticipation as Baxter Media unveiled the results of the 20th Anniversary edition of the Agents' Choice Awards Readership Survey, and – with all the glitz and glamour of Hollywood's Oscars – presented awards to the 2019 favourite suppliers as selected by the 6,512 travel agents from across Canada...
WestJet, Onex Deal Clears First Hurdle
WestJet Airlines Ltd. has announced that Onex Corporation has received approval from the Minister of Transport (Canada) on the basis that the proposed acquisition of WestJet by Onex does not raise public interest issues as related to national transportation. WestJet and Onex entered into a definitive agreement on May 12, 2019, for the proposed acquisition of WestJet by Onex under a plan of arrangement pursuant to which each outstanding share of WestJet will be exchanged for $31.00 in cash (the "Arrangement"). Receipt of the Minister of Transport's approval is one of the conditions...