Airlines
Making It Better
IATA has called on China to continue strengthening safety and to optimize its airspace capacity further to reduce flight delays. Speaking at the Beijing International Forum on Civil Aviation Safety, IATA's director general and CEO, Tony Tyler said, “It is clear that China is fully dedicated to supporting its overall development with a strong air transport industry. The efforts of the CAAC to implement the State Safety Plan, upgrade systems, open new routes, develop new airports, reduce delays and much more are greatly appreciated by airlines. By 2034, China will be the world's...
Sending Out An SOS
Transat has donated close to $33,000 raised during its most recent twitter auction to SOS Children's Villages in order to help victims of the Nepal earthquake. With latest reports indicating that more than 5,000 are dead (a figure that is still rising), thousands are homeless and hundreds of children are orphaned, Transat and SOS Children's Villages agreed to donate the entire auction proceeds to the SOS Children's Villages emergency relief effort in Nepal. The money will be used to provide immediate relief to local communities, with SOS Children's Villages representatives acting on...
WestJet Adding Vegas-Abbotsford Flights
WestJet will be adding new, non-stop, twice-weekly service between Abbotsford, BC and Las Vegas, beginning Oct. 29, 2015. The Abbotsford International Airport recently eliminated several fees, including the airport improvement fee, creating a cost-friendly environment for WestJbbet to grow service from the Fraser Valley. Gregg Saretsky, WestJet president and CEO, said: “Abbotsford and WestJet have been partners since 1997, and we see the recently announced fee drops at the airport as an opportunity to further build service in the area.” And Saretsky noted that: “We need more...
Copa Signs Deal With MLB
Copa Airlines and Major League Baseball (MLB) have signed a two-year agreement that will see the carrier become the “Official Airline of Major League Baseball” in Latin America and Canada through the 2016 season. As part of the deal, the Major League Baseball silhouetted batter, as well as the logos of all 30 MLB Clubs, will appear on a Copa Boeing 737-800 Next Generation aircraft set to fly across the region for the remainder of the 2015 MLB Championship Season. Marco Ocando, marketing director for Copa Airlines, said: “It is an honor for Copa Airlines to be part of this...
Japan Flying High Out Of Canada
New flight services to Japan from Vancouver are helping to ensure that more Canadians visit, while a new bullet train service has opened up more tourism territory once they get there, reports western editor, Ted Davis in this week's digital edition of Travel Courier. A schedule of direct non-stop flights between Vancouver and Osaka will start on May 1, with operations by Air Canada rouge. This is the first trans-Pacific rouge flight, and the only direct flight between Canada and Osaka. Five flights per week will operate from YVR to Kansai International Airport (KIX) in Osaka, using...
One On One With Sue Clements
When she was a youngster, Sue Clements and her dad would sit at the end of the runway at YYZ to watch the airplanes taking off and landing. Even then, says Clements, she knew she wanted to work at Air Canada. And for 35 years and seven months, most recently as director of agency sales, she has worked for the employer she chose as a child. But that will end on April 30 when Clements takes retirement. Directly out of university, she joined the airline’s reservations department in Toronto. It was an excellent learning experience for about three years but Clements knew that she didn’t...
Air Canada Set To Take Off To Amsterdam
Air Canada and about 150 travel agents, tour operators and corporate customers were on hand at Toronto's Casa Loma to celebrate the carrier's June 4 launch of service to Amsterdam. But that wasn't all. Along with Amsterdam, Air Canada – as well as Air Canada rouge – will also bring close to a dozen more, new or expanded services online between now and the end of June. A sample of some of the destinations Air Canada is adding include Atlantic City and Austin, Texas from Toronto; a batch of domestic flights to Terrace and Nanaimo from Calgary and to Comox from Vancouver. Plus Air...
EVA Back As Swinging Skirts Sponsor
EVA Air will once again be the official airline sponsor for the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic, which is returning to the Bay Area and Lake Merced Golf Club for its 2015 tournament. Lydia Ko, 2014 Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic Champion, and other top female golfers from around the world will compete for the crown in professional rounds scheduled to start today (April 23) and continue to April 26, 2015. With the 2015 Swinging Skirts LPGA, EVA is marking its 5th consecutive year as the Official Airline Sponsor for the organization's major annual tournament. The airline is making an extra...