Airlines
Strike action in Frankfurt
Lufthansa is advising passengers of flight disruptions at Frankfurt Airport as the result of strike action by the Gdf air traffic controllers union on Thursday and Friday. The carrier indicated that it regrets the inconvenience to passengers that the strike will cause and "will do its utmost to minimize impacts" on them. Go to http://www.lufthansa.com/de/en/Travel-information for...
Big change at WestJet
Reports indicate that Duncan Bureau has left WestJet. Bureau was the carrier's vice-president of sales. In the interim, Bryan Wolfenden will handle the sales operations in Ontario. As well, Stephen Goulding will take on the responsibilities of national manager corporate and strategic...
AC confirms deal with crew schedulers
Air Canada has received confirmation from the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union Local 2002 that the airline's in-flight service crew schedulers have ratified a new collective agreement. The agreement has also been approved by the Air Canada board of directors. The four-year agreement is in effect until March 22, 2015. Air Canada's 76 in-flight service crew schedulers coordinate work schedules for flight attendants. Go to http://www.aircanada.com for...
Icelandair implements full fare pricing for Canada
Effective immediately, Icelandair will advertise prices in Canada inclusive of airport charges, fuel surcharges, insurance, air security charges and all government taxes. All-inclusive fares will be displayed on Icelandair's web site, e-mail specials, online and print advertising. "Passengers can feel comfortable knowing the price they see is what they will pay,"says Thorsteinn Egilsson, general manager - The Americas. "We are pleased to offer all-inclusive pricing to our passengers throughout the Americas, we feel this transition makes sense and will simplify budgeting when making travel...
BARCA welcomes new members
The Board of Airlines Representatives in Canada (BARCA) has welcomed two new members -- Air Canada and Saudia Arabian Airlines. The association kicked off its revamped mandate to air carriers last fall and continues to attract more new members. BARCA welcomes airlines that operate to/from Canada or maintains a sales/office presence in Canada to join. For further details, contact BARCA's manager - industry relations, Bruce Bishins, at...
So what’s “Nexus?”
Starting today (Feb. 15), NEXUS members flying to the United States will be able to use NEXUS cards in designated security lines for pre-board screening at airports for faster service. This announcement, made by the Minister of Transport Denis Lebel, follows the recent Action Plan on Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness announced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and United States President Barack Obama. "This change will make air travel from Canada to the United States more convenient, while maintaining a high level of aviation security,"said Lebel. "I encourage Canadians to apply...
Business as usual for AC
Air Canada says it's business as usual for the airline and that its customers can continue to book Air Canada flights with confidence, following the announcement today of voting results by the Air Canada Pilots Association (ACPA) which gave union leadership a strike mandate if a tentative agreement is not reached. ACPA represents approximately 3,000 pilots employed by Air Canada. Duncan Dee, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of Air Canada, commented: "We welcome the Minister's appointment of the Honourable Justice Louise Otis and Mr. Jacques Lessard, Acting Director General...
Austrian increases frequencies to Eastern Europe
Austrian Airlines has announced it will sharply increase flight frequencies to its core markets in Eastern Europe this summer, and build up capacity to the Middle East in a trade-off with the destination of Mumbai. The airline will increase flights from Vienna to Bucharest from three to five times per day, and to Sofia from four to up to five times a day. In the winter schedule, the number of flights operated to Belgrade was raised from three to up to four per day. In Western Europe, Austrian will offer passengers one additional self-operated flight per day to London Heathrow, beginning this...