SkyscraperCity Forum banner

✈ | Canada-Based Carriers | 3H/4N/5T/7F/AC*/F8/PD/RV/TS/WG/WS

352K views 2K replies 179 participants last post by  hkskyline 
#1 ·
World Vision Canada and Air Canada team up to aid tsunami victims


1/4/05
TORONTO, Jan 04, 2005 (The Canadian Press via COMTEX) --

The first relief agency flights from Canada to tsunami-stricken Indonesia are expected to take off from Toronto this week.

The first of the two Air Canada cargo flights will leave Toronto's Pearson International Airport on Tuesday, ferrying aid workers and more than 40,000 kilograms of desperately needed supplies.

A second plane will carry more than 85,000 kilograms of relief supplies to Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, on Wednesday, said Air Canada spokeswoman Laura Cooke.

The relief material, supplied by the World Vision Canada, is headed for Indonesia's hard-hit Aceh region.

"Things like dried food, water purification tablets, clothing, blankets, tarps, tents, medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, which might sound funny, but soap and that sort of thing are very important now because of the risk of disease," said Judy Burrell, a spokeswoman for World Vision Canada of the supplies.

"Some of it was on hand - we do store things in bulk ahead of time just in case - some if it did come from storage facilities, but the rest of it was donated by companies."

As of Tuesday, World Vision Canada had raised $8 million for the tsunami relief effort - part of the millions donated to charitable organizations by Canadians. The federal government has said it will match donations by individual Canadians up to Jan. 11.

Large charitable organizations say they prefer cash and not donations of food or clothing. They buy the items they need in bulk overseas, which reduces sorting, storage and shipping costs.

But Air Canada made an offer of two flights to World Vision Canada that the charity couldn't refuse.

"It was really terrific. We would rather people give us cash because you save a lot of money if you buy things there and in bulk. Transportation is a huge cost, but with Air Canada making this donation to us, we took advantage of it," said Burrell.

Air Canada made the offer after being approached by employees who were anxious to help in relief efforts following the Boxing Day natural disaster.

Cooke said the employees involved are helping out on their own time and will not be paid for the efforts, although she added the airline will cover their expenses.

Cooke could not say how many employees had volunteered.

"We had a significant number of employees come forward wanting to volunteer to be part of the mission. Whether that was as simple as working at the airport getting the relief mission organized, working on the ramp, or with the cargo, right down to the crews that will operate the flight," said Cooke.

She also said of our pilots taking the controls for a leg of one of the flights is a retiring captain who wants to make his last flight part of this relief flight.

The online source for news sports entertainment finance and business news in Canada


Copyright (C) 2005 The Canadian Press (CP), All rights reserved


 
See less See more
1
#934 ·
Oh United States! Air Canada cries foul over US position on sports team charter flights
11 September 2009

ATLANTA (AP) - Air Canada says the United States' insistence that the carrier cancel all of its season-long sports charter flights would wreak havoc on the upcoming professional hockey and basketball seasons if it is upheld.

Teams could have difficulty playing back-to-back games in the U.S. if they are forced to return to their home country between each game.

"The urgency of this matter cannot be minimized," Air Canada said in court papers.

The National Hockey League's regular season starts Oct. 1. Six of the 30 NHL teams are based in Canada. The NBA regular season starts in late October.

A hearing in the case is currently scheduled for Monday.

The airline, which flies numerous sports teams between points in Canada and the U.S., seeks in a federal lawsuit filed in Washington on Wednesday to prevent Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood from enforcing his department's decision.

The agency claims that the sports charters violate U.S. law because they last for an entire season and sometimes involve travel between U.S. cities rather than solely between one point in Canada and one point in the U.S.

The U.S. prohibits carriage of passengers or cargo for compensation or hire by a foreign airline solely between points in the U.S.

But Air Canada asserts in its lawsuit that the ban does not apply to the carriage of stopover traffic since stopovers, by definition, include an international segment. For example, the airline said, the Toronto Maple Leafs may have games scheduled in Toronto, then Anaheim, Calif., then Dallas, and then back in Toronto.

"The charter would therefore have to move the team and coaches from California to Texas without an intervening stop in Canada," Air Canada said. "But because the entire charter contract and the season-long itinerary is treated as a single journey with stopovers for purposes of the permit," there would be no violation.

Air Canada said in court papers that there was never any problem voiced about their charter flights until U.S. carriers complained. A DOT spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit Friday. A spokesman for the Air Transport Association, a trade group that represents U.S. airlines, said he had no additional comment beyond a 2008 letter from the ATA and several other groups to the DOT that asserted that Air Canada's charter flights that operate between U.S. cities should be deemed unlawful.

Air Canada said it has a foreign air carrier permit issued by the U.S. that allows it to operate both scheduled and charter air service between any point or points in Canada and any point or points in the U.S. The carrier has a unit called Jetz that provides business-class level charter service.

Jetz offers season-long charters for sports teams whose schedules require play in the U.S. and Canada. Initially, Jetz' clients were Canada-based hockey teams, but it has since expanded its offering to U.S. teams in both hockey and basketball. Air Canada said that's when opposition started.

"That pushback was plainly driven by domestic airline competitors who did not want to see their business impacted by Jetz," Air Canada said in its lawsuit.

Air Canada said it was told last month by the DOT that it must cancel all of its season-long sports charters regardless of the point of origin.

"We believe that such an operation would place Air Canada in violation of U.S. law," the DOT said in a recent letter to Air Canada cited in the lawsuit.

The DOT's position on the charter flights has already had ramifications in baseball. Canada responded by enforcing the rule on its side of the border.

The Toronto Blue Jays recently changed the destination of one flight in one of their final road trips of the season to comply.

The Blue Jays fly with Miami Air International, a Florida company that also provides charter service to five U.S.-based NHL teams, including the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

Unable to use an American carrier for a domestic flight in Canada, the Blue Jays changed their destination to Detroit and were granted approval.

The standoff could also affect NHL teams based in the U.S.

The Dallas Stars are wondering if the standoff will affect road trips to Canada on the club's plane.

"We used to fly from Edmonton to Vancouver no problem," said Stars spokesman Rob Scichili. "Now we're looking at all our options, and we hope the issue is resolved before the start of the regular season."

------

AP Airlines Writer David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.
 
#935 ·
WestJet 3Q Net Dn 46%
Lower Fuel Costs Partly Offset Rev Drop

4 November 2009
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

Kicking off the third-quarter reporting season for Canada's airlines, WestJet Airlines Ltd. (WJA.T) posted a 46% drop in earnings but said relief from significantly lower fuel costs helped offset a drop in revenue.

The Calgary-based low-cost air carrier earned C$31.4 million or 24 Canadian cents a share, down from C$57.9 million or 45 Canadian cents a year earlier. Analysts had been expecting earnings of 28 Canadian cents.

Revenue fell 16% to C$600.6 million, just below the Thomson Reuters mean estimate of C$604 million. Aircraft fuel expenses fell to C$151 million from C$245 million a year earlier.

BMO Capital Markets was forecasting earnings would be much lower than a year earlier, with a sharp drop in yields and a lower load factor more than offsetting lower fuel prices. Airlines continue to feel the effects of the downturn in the economy and sharp decline in demand for air travel.

As reported, third-quarter load factor was 79.7% versus 81.4%. Traffic fell 3.2% and capacity was down 1.1%.

Revenue per available seat mile, or RASM, was down 15.5% from a year earlier. It had been projecting third-quarter RASM declines to be similar to the 15.4% drop it reported in the second quarter.

WestJet is projecting capacity for the fourth quarter will be up 2-3%, with new capacity being deployed into its transborder and international markets.

It said challenges encountered leading up to the end of the third quarter "are creating a lot of uncertainty around the remainder of 2009 and into 2010."

National Bank Financial is forecasting the current environment will persist for Canadian airlines for most of the rest of 2009 and probably into the first half of 2010, noting the airline industry usually lags economic improvement by six or more months.

"While we are seeing more signs of an economic recovery, we believe the airline industry may still remain under pressure given concerns over the potential re-emergence of the H1N1 influenza virus and general demand weakness," National Bank said in a recent report.

Separately, Wesjet reported a load factor of 77.3% for October, up 1.5% from a year earlier. October traffic improved 0.3%, while capacity was down 1.8%.

In Toronto Tuesday, WestJet closed at C$11.09, down 0.1%.
 
#937 ·
Air Canada service to Iqaluit an uphill fight
10 November 2009
The Toronto Star

Iqaluit: the true north, strong and although not yet free, at least a bit more accessible.

Air Canada announced on Monday it will begin daily flights to the frigid capital of the territory of Nunavut, from both Ottawa and Montreal, beginning on March 28, 2010. It's the first time Air Canada will fly the journey, though a since-merged subsidiary once also made the trip.

The airline said it expects to attract the steady flow of government and business travellers that form the core customer base for the expensive, 2,090 km trip. An Air Canada spokesperson said the airline hopes to plug Iqaluit into its global network, to take advantage of both domestic and international interest in the north's stark beauty.

Two airlines already make the daily trip: FirstAir and Canadian North.

Robert Kokonis, who heads the Toronto-based airline and travel consultancy AirTrav Inc., said Iqaluit's natural resources made it the "capital of the 'new north'" and has a steady, profitable passenger base. He noted that Air Canada will have business-class seats on the 75-seat Bombardier CRJ 705, unlike the other airlines, but wondered whether the move made sense.

"I don't think there's enough space for three carriers flying daily to the north," Kokonis said. "Air Canada's got a bit of an uphill fight, but they have a great product."

Almost any flight to Iqaliut will cost between $1,400 and $1,700, more than the price of most flights to China, and beyond the reach of all but the most dedicated tourists, bureaucrats on expense accounts, and mining consultants.
 
#938 ·
Reservation overhaul leaves customers up in the air
2 December 2009
The Toronto Star

WestJet is known for low fares and high service standards. But a reputation that took 13 years to build is losing altitude after the airline upgraded its reservation system in mid-October.

"It's an absolutely enormous project because it means replacing the entire IT platform upon which almost the entire airline rests," said spokesman Robert Palmer.

"And no matter how much you train (we trained for 150,000 hours), you are still going to encounter some problems in the live environment that simply did not appear in the test environment."

The unexpected problem? More than 500,000 bookings made before Oct. 16, the changeover date, are not recognized by the online system.

"We discovered that these old bookings did not perform the same way in the new system - they took longer to open, change, cancel and manage in general," Palmer explained.

"Obviously, this is increasing our call centre volumes and wait times."

Six weeks after the upgrade, disgruntled customers are still posting messages at WestJet's Facebook page.

"Maybe it's time to change management. When you're on hold three days, a total of one hour and 37 minutes, just to ask a simple question, it's ridiculous," Robert Wheeler said on Monday.

"I'm sick of hearing all these, 'it's the system' excuses. WestJet is a customer service provider and has been failing miserably at providing that service lately," said Dustin Chappell the same day.

I, too, have received complaints about long wait times.

Charles Troster couldn't confirm his booking online and was told that call wait times would exceed 60 minutes. He finally got a new confirmation code after writing on WestJet's Facebook wall.

The company has a lot at stake. Fast and friendly service is its defining feature, which it uses to distinguish itself from others.

"When people tell us we dropped our service to the level of other airlines, it's a dagger to our heart," Palmer said.

"We apologize profusely in person, in emails and on the website, every chance we get."

WestJet had to upgrade since its current technology was not supported after this month. Picking a transition time after Thanksgiving and long before the Christmas rush seemed smart.

Not so smart, as it turned out, since the system snafu has torpedoed WestJet's growth plans.

Until calls get back to normal, its planned frequent flyer program and co-branded credit card - the RBC WestJet MasterCard - are on hold.

Also on hold are code-sharing plans with Southwest, KLM and British Airways. (This practice allows one airline to sell flights bearing its name on aircraft operated by another airline.)

WestJet is working closely with Sabre Holdings Corp., its technology supplier, to fix the problems. It is hoping that a new computer patch, due to arrive this week, will do the trick.

Sabre has shifted 200 call-centre agents at Travelocity, an online booking website it owns, to handle WestJet reservations.

"We're pretty much back to normal with new bookings," said Palmer, adding that WestJet's call centre now works exclusively on existing bookings.

Customers can try calling from midnight to 6 a.m. to avoid the peak times, he suggests.

Meanwhile, the 200,000 passengers flying on the weekend after the upgrade will get discounts on future travel - as will others who suffered an impact, such as not having credit cards recognized by the new system.

The lesson for other companies? If you build a reputation for service excellence, you must react quickly to mistakes.

Customers will go elsewhere if they feel their time is wasted and their loyalty betrayed.
 
#939 ·
Air Canada defends refuelling decision, calls it unusual
2 December 2009
Winnipeg Free Press

OTTAWA -- The decision to refuel a Winnipeg-bound plane with an engine still running was a highly unusual event that has never happened before or since, Air Canada said Tuesday.

However, at least one passenger who was on board says her confidence in airline safety has been shaken after learning the plane may have violated two serious safety rules, including taking off without de-icing when there were reports of ice on the wings.

Ann Griffin, returning to Winnipeg from a business trip on the Oct. 9 flight, said the airline didn't tell passengers there was any issue with refueling with the engines still on. She only found out it was not allowed by federal safety rules in media reports this week. "We were just kind of left in the dark."

AC flight 271 from Toronto to Winnipeg was diverted to Grand Forks after another plane skidded off the only open runway in Winnipeg in the middle of a snowstorm. The plane had circled the city for more than an hour before it ran low on fuel and the decision was made to fly to North Dakota.

Once on the ground there, it was discovered U.S. customs officials were unavailable, so passengers could not get off the plane. There was also no power at the airport, which meant the Airbus couldn't restart its engines.

The airline had to make a decision whether to turn the engines off and force passengers and crew to remain aboard overnight until the airport reopened in the morning, or to refuel with the engines still on, which breaks Canadian federal aviation regulations.

"It was a dilemma, the choice was either to refuel in this manner or risk leaving passengers on an unheated, dark aircraft with no power for an indeterminate period," Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick said Tuesday.

While the government's regulations prohibit refueling with active engines, the plane's manufacturer says it is perfectly safe to do so.

Fitzpatrick emphasized only one engine was left running during the refuelling, and it was on the opposite side of the plane from the fuel port.

Fitzpatrick said this is the only time Air Canada has ever followed manufacturer specifications instead of federal regulations.

A pilot on board the flight as a passenger also complained to Transport Canada about the incident, alleging the plane took off from Grand Forks with ice on its wings, which Air Canada denied.

The incident was cited Monday at a House of Commons committee hearing on airline safety as an example of the country's new safety system run amok. The Canadian Federal Pilots Association called for a public inquiry into the Safety Management Systems implemented with the large airlines in 2005 and scheduled to be phased in for smaller airlines and charter companies in the next two years. The system puts the onus on safety inspections by the airlines themselves, leaving Transport Canada to assess each airline's safety records rather than actually conducting spot checks and audits.

CFPA national chair Daniel Slunder said in a statement Tuesday that the incident aboard flight 271 shows how SMS lets an airline break the rules knowing there are no real consequences.

Griffin said she is concerned an airline can make its own decisions about whether to violate safety regulations. "I do a lot of travelling with my job and I'm not too crazy about this."

-- With files from Canwest News Service
 
#940 ·
Air Canada voted best airline in Canada and North America
2 December 2009
Canwest News Service

MONTREAL - Air Canada said Wednesday it has been voted "Best Airline in Canada and in North America" by readers of the prestigious Global Traveler magazine.

The award was based on responses from more than 25,000 readers who are premium travellers averaging 12 round-trip flights annually, with 96 per cent in first or business class.

"These customers are in the best position to compare Air Canada's products and services with those of its peers," said Ben Smith, the airline's executive vice-president and chief commercial officer.

"They clearly appreciate our onboard facilities, the refurbished hub in Toronto and our modern fleet."

He said the award is also "a testament to Air Canada's employees and their hard work and dedication to offering superior products."

Air Canada flies new Boeing 777s' and Embraer aircraft on its international routes, offering top-level seating, personal entertainment systems and many other amenities, including lie-flat beds.

Its scheduled and charter flights transport passengers and cargo to more than 170 destinations on five continents. It is a founding member of the Star Alliance network of international airlines.
 
#942 ·
In pursuit of reduced turbulence
Glitches in its computer reservations system made for some unfriendly skies in 2009, but a loyalty program, added destinations and a few novel seating ideas may fuel better days ahead, the CEO tells reporter
BRENT JANG
29 December 2009
The Globe and Mail

Devotees of WestJet Airlines Ltd. will be looking to have their faith restored in 2010. The Calgary-based carrier has garnered a loyal following since it launched in 1996, but the shaky introduction of a new computer reservations system in the fall of 2009 wreaked havoc with carefully laid travel plans.

WestJet website crashes and long waits to reach the airline's call centre have irked “guests” – the term for customers in WestJet lingo. The airline industry, meanwhile, had to cope this week with widespread passenger chaos and delayed flights due to heightened security measures in the wake of an attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound airplane on Christmas Day.

Sean Durfy, who has served as WestJet chief executive officer since September, 2007, is counting on reduced turbulence in 2010, though he cautions it's too early to tell whether the airline industry will bounce back.

WestJet's profit for the first nine months of 2009 tumbled 43 per cent, to $78-million, compared with the same period in 2008. While rival Air Canada spent much of 2009 trying to avoid bankruptcy protection, analysts view WestJet as a good bet to enjoy a respectable 2010, albeit with fuel prices being the wild card. Mr. Durfy spoke about the challenges ahead in a recent interview.

What's the update on the SabreSonic reservations system? The computer system is stable, so it's working. The problem is that it's not working as well as the old system worked at this point in time. Basically, we've had a number of glitches. It's one of those things where we haven't experienced this before. Really, it's about technology allowing us to transact with our guests.

How long will customers be mad about this? Some are frustrated, no doubt about it. But at the same time, they're also saying, “We just want you to get this behind you.” Some guests fly with us only once a year, so by the time they try to book with us in 2010, everything will be fine. You have to put it in relative terms. Through 13 years of WestJet providing what I believe is a great guest experience, and by fundamentally changing the airline industry in Canada and bringing down ticket prices, our guests understand. Why is it important for WestJet to launch its frequent flier program and loyalty credit card in 2010, competing for Air Canada customers who belong to Aeroplan? Our loyalty program will be competitive against Aeroplan. We're really excited about our rewards. It's something our business guests have asked about for a long time. It's a big card, a big play for us over the next several years. Business folks make their decisions based on flight frequencies, price and a loyalty program.

Experts say the North American economy is on the mend. What's your general outlook? I'm still nervous about 2010. It's tough and it's going to be tough. Average households in the U.S. have been spending more than they earn. The reason that we're in this mess is debt loads – don't give credit to a person who can't afford it. From a macroeconomic standpoint, the mess concerns me. We still see the effects of the recession, but I'd like to think we are going to see a recovery in 2010 in Q2 or Q3.

How many planes and destinations will you have at the end of 2010? We'll be taking five aircraft and that gets us to 91. We'll probably add three to five destinations, and that would make it a total of 70 to 72 destinations. And how many international partnerships are in store? We hope to operationalize Southwest Airlines in 2010. We already have Air France-KLM. There could be two to four other partners.

What's behind WestJet's trial project coming up in March on flights between Alberta and Hawaii, where you would charge a fee to sit in rows with empty middle seats? I will have to put an awful lot of fuel on the aircraft for flights between Alberta and Hawaii, in order to fulfill our regulatory obligations for flying over water. You've got to balance off the weight of the fuel with the weight of people on board. So, we have to fly with less than a full load of guests. We have to be creative in our marketing.

Would customers on selected cross-Canada flights be willing to pay a premium – maybe at least $50 one-way – for the aisle or window seat, if the middle one is guaranteed empty? Why wouldn't we test it on this market and see if it flew? Gee whiz, it would be interesting if we could do that. The new reservations system allows us to do it. I think it's neat. We're blue-skying at the moment. Will we actually sell a product like that? Why wouldn't we test something like that? We have looked at a new middle seat, where the back actually folds down and the armrests fold in and it turns into a table. We decided against it.
 
#943 ·
Toronto man in custody after 'altercation' forces Air Canada plane to land in Montreal
31 December 2009

TORONTO (AP) - Air Canada says a flight bound for Germany made an unscheduled landing in Montreal following an altercation between two passengers.

Air Canada spokesman John Reber says the incident occurred Wednesday night on a flight headed to Frankfurt from Toronto.

Reber says police were waiting when the plane landed at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport at about 7:30 p.m. local time. One passenger was taken into custody and the flight departed at 8:40 p.m. local time.

Police spokesman Const. Olivier Lapointe says a Toronto man is in custody and is expected to be charged with causing a public disturbance.

Reber says the other passenger remained on the flight.
 
#945 ·
Air Canada adds nuts to no-fly list; Nut-free 'buffer zone' ordered for travellers with severe allergies
8 January 2010
The Toronto Star

There is business class, first class, economy class. Coming soon to an airplane near you: nut-free class.

Air Canada has been told to create a nut-free "buffer zone" on all flights to accommodate passengers who suffer from severe nut allergies. Thursday's decision by the Canadian Transportation Agency followed complaints from two passengers about the inconsistent and difficult experiences they faced when they asked Air Canada to accommodate their severe nut allergies.

"There was clearly no policy. I was getting a different story on every flight," said complainant and frequent traveller Sophia Huyer. "Certain individual flight attendants, if they understand the issue of allergies, would accommodate me, but often it was left up to the captain or staff to make that decision."

Huyer filed the complaint in June 2006 after two flights where she had asked flight staff to not serve nuts. On one, the flight attendant said she could get off the plane and take a later flight. She did. The next time, she stayed on board. When the attendant insisted on serving nuts, Huyer locked herself in the washroom for 40 minutes.

"I felt like I was in a life-threatening situation," said Huyer, whose severe allergy can make it difficult for her to breathe, give her a rash, and cause her tongue to swell if she is even around nuts.

The agency ruled Huyer's allergy can be classified as a disability, and must be accommodated.

Air Canada has 30 days to submit comments on the decision, including how long in advance a person needs to notify the airline for a buffer zone to be created, and how large the zone should be, depending on the aircraft.

Air Canada stopped serving peanuts on flights more than a decade ago, but continues to give out almonds and mixed nuts in business and first class. Porter Airlines serves almonds and says it can accommodate passengers with 48 hours' notice. WestJet doesn't serve nuts, and has used the buffer zone approach for years.

Huyer said she is glad to see a final decision, but doesn't feel the ruling goes far enough. She thinks nuts should be completely banned.

"I know no area can be totally nut-free, but if you're serving nuts, you are actively increasing the risk anyway."

The nut-free zone is among a long list of recent changes introduced on airlines, such as allowances for animals on planes, allowances for those with allergies to animals, and a Supreme Court ruling that those deemed medically obese be allowed to have two seats when flying.

"That's just the way the world seems to be going," said Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick.
 
#946 ·
Air-rage newscaster cites menopausal exhaustion
Judge fines broadcaster $2,400 for 'outrageous' tarmac tantrum

THE CANADIAN PRESS
21 January 2010

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. -- The next time a flight attendant tells her to sit down, Colleen Walsh says she'll listen.

The Toronto broadcaster apologized Wednesday after she was fined $2,400 for slapping another passenger and breaching the Aeronautics Act during an outburst she blamed partly on menopausal exhaustion.

Her tarmac tantrum last March 31 made her a lightning rod for Internet critics, who blasted her chippy refusal in the aftermath to admit she'd lost it.

A more remorseful Walsh told reporters after the verdict, "I accept the responsibility. I think the judge ruled very fairly in terms of my behaviour."

A former Global Television host and CBC Radio newscaster, Walsh said her career and reputation have been "decimated."

"For me, it's been devastating to think that I would be lumped in the same category as anybody who is a criminal. Because I didn't feel that I had committed a crime," she said.

Walsh, 49, acted up after her transatlantic flight was diverted to St. John's for a medical emergency. Police and security officers testified that after the plane landed she was loud, insulting and appeared drunk.

Judge Greg Brown called Walsh's conduct "outrageous" and said "she appears to have been impacted greatly ... by lack of sleep, travel at 30,000 feet, the meal, two small bottles of wine and consuming a sleeping pill."

Walsh testified she'd been up for 30 hours and was on hormone replacement therapy.

She accused Air Canada staff, airport security and police officers of treating her "like a caged animal."

And she vehemently denied saying, once in the back of a cruiser, that she hoped the plane that left St. John's without her would "blow up," contrary to an officer's testimony.

"I would never say something like that. My whole background has been in healing and helping," she testified.

Walsh was placed on probation for a year. She was also ordered to remove offensive blog posts about Stan Harrington, the 67-year-old passenger she struck.

Harrington had testified Walsh stalked down the aisle of the plane towards him and backhanded the side of his head after he told her to "just sit down."

Walsh testified that she merely touched his forehead with the heel of her hand in an effort to calm him. The judge didn't believe her.

The flight was diverted after a young woman drifted in and out of consciousness - a situation Walsh, who is trained in first aid, said Air Canada officials blew out of proportion.

After the judgment, Walsh said she hopes both she and Harrington can move on with their lives.

She said she has lived much of the last nine months in a fog of paralyzing depression and disbelief. She described the verdict as a new beginning.

"I'm going to try and live my life without judgment and by trying to be a better person every day of my life. If this experience has done anything, it has put me in that direction in a much clearer path."
 
#947 ·
Air Canada loads down in January, WestJet gains

OTTAWA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Air Canada , the county's No. 1 airline, said its planes flew less full last month even as smaller rival WestJet Airlines Ltd said its flights were more crowded.

Air Canada, said its load factor, the percentage of available seats filled with paying customers, slipped 0.6 percentage points to 77.5 percent from January, 2008, when the measure rose to a record for the month.

Traffic on Air Canada and its regional carrier Jazz , increased 4.1 per cent to 3.86 billion revenue passenger miles but that gain was more than offset by a 4.9 percent rise in capacity, or available seat miles, to 4.99 billion.

"This result is close to last year's record load factor for the same month underscoring the on-going effectiveness of our disciplined approach to capacity management in a difficult economic environment," Calin Rovinescu, Air Canada's chief executive, said in a statement. "

WESTJET RISES

WestJet, the country's No. 2 airline, said on Wednesday its planes flew fuller in January, helped by increased vacation travel.

The carrier said its load factor rose to a record high of 78.8 percent from 76.8 percent in January 2009.

Traffic, or revenue passenger miles, increased 9.7 percent year-over-year, while capacity, or available seat miles, rose by 6.9 percent.

"As we continue to endure the challenges of an uncertain economy, we are happy to be starting 2010 on the right foot," said WestJet Chief Executive Sean Durfy.

"These great traffic results help illustrate the success of our seasonal deployment strategy and the continuing strength of WestJet Vacations and the WestJet brand."

The company said it launched new services in January to several "sun destinations" in the United States and Mexico.

The Calgary, Alberta-based airline has said that transition problems with its Sabre reservation system would hurt fourth-quarter results, which are expected Feb. 17. It has forecast a decline in revenue per seat mile of 11 percent to 13 percent from the year-before quarter.

WestJet shares rose 5 Canadian cents to C$13.30 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Wednesday while Air Canada class B shares fell 3 Canadian cents to C$1.31.

($1=$1.06 Canadian)
 
#949 ·
Air Canada launches court bid for slots
11 February 2010
The Globe and Mail

Air Canada is aiming to lure corporate customers by adding 74 new daily flights in a crucial battleground while trying to thwart fast-growing Porter Airlines Inc.'s expansion plans.

Montreal-based Air Canada launched legal proceedings yesterday, accusing Porter of having an “improper anti-competitive advantage” at Toronto's downtown island airport. The defendants are Porter and the Toronto Port Authority (TPA), a federal agency that oversees the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.

The TPA is poised to “grandfather” Porter's monopoly on 120 daily “slots” – takeoff and landing positions – at the island airport, Air Canada said in legal documents to back its notice of application in the Federal Court of Canada for a judicial review of the TPA's slot distribution process announced late last year.

While the TPA has agreed to finally allow competition, the agency will give 50 per cent of any additional slots to Porter, meaning the Toronto-based airline could nab 46 of an estimated 92 slots expected to be divvied up in future.

The result would be that Air Canada and other carriers would wind up with a total of 46 slots at most. Air Canada counters that it needs 74 daily slots to be viable at Bishop airport, aiming to serve Montreal, Ottawa and Newark, N.J.

“For the past nearly four years, Porter has had exclusive access to slots at the island airport,” said Air Canada, which wants to use its Jazz affiliate to compete against Porter. Jazz filed its own Federal Court lawsuit in 2007 against the TPA and Porter, which have denied any wrongdoing.

Air Canada, in making submissions to have its new case heard, said it is seeking “an injunction to prevent the TPA from proceeding” with its strategy to allocate slots in a manner that still heavily favours Porter and allegedly abuses guidelines under the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

“We're anxious to get into the airport. Our customers want us to do that,” Air Canada chief executive officer Calin Rovinescu said during a conference call yesterday.

TPA chairman Mark McQueen said in an interview that slots will be distributed fairly.

“The process is wonderfully understood and there's nothing about the process that we're going to deviate from,” Mr. McQueen said. “We have not yet appointed an individual who is an IATA-approved person, but that person will follow the protocols.”

Mr. McQueen said Air Canada's latest legal move “is an unnecessary step. We're dancing as fast as we can.”

Air Canada is also concerned that TPA insists that Jazz make leasing arrangements with City Centre Terminal Corp., a company headed by Porter CEO Robert Deluce.

Air Canada announced yesterday that its 2009 loss narrowed to $24-million, helped by foreign-exchange gains. It lost $1.02-billion in 2008.
 
#950 ·
WestJet 4Q Net Drops 52%; Results Better Than Expected
17 February 2010

TORONTO (Dow Jones)--WestJet Airlines Ltd. (WJA.T) reported a 52% drop in fourth-quarter profit after booking disruptions, increased airport security and a weak economy forced it to keep its prices low.

Net income fell to C$20.2 million or 14 Canadian cents a share from C$42 million or 33 Canadian cents a year earlier. Excluding a tax credit, profit dropped to C$15.1 million or 11 cents, which exceeded the Thomson Reuters mean estimate of 5 Canadian cents.

In Toronto Wednesday, the stock is up 18 Canadian cents to C$14.04 on 592,000 shares.

Calgary-based WestJet, posting its 19th straight quarter of profitability, managed to navigate through a difficult 2009 when the airline industry experienced its worst decline in passenger demand in history and Air Canada (AC.B.T), the country's largest airline, nearly filed for bankruptcy protection.

"They were good results," says National Bank Financial's David Newman. "It looks like the airline industry is coming back strongly here."

Revenue fell 7% to C$570 million, but was ahead of the mean estimate of C$562 million. Operating margin was 6.3% versus 9.6% a year earlier on lower fuel costs.

Fourth-quarter capacity rose 2.9% from a year earlier and realized a yield decline of 11.0% from fare discounting, while its load factor increased to 78.4% from 77.6%, leading to a 10% decline in revenue per available seat mile, or RASM.

The drop in RASM was better than expected. Citing challenges experienced in transitioning to a new reservation system, WestJet said in early December that fourth-quarter RASM was expected to be down 11%-13% from a year earlier. Cost per available seat mile fell 6.8%.

The airline upgraded its bookings system to Sabre in mid-October, a transition that was marred by computer glitches. The new system failed to recognize more than 500,000 bookings made before the changeover date, frustrating travellers who couldn't get through to WestJet's call center. Chief Executive Sean Durfy said on a conference call that, while revenue was hurt, it was difficult to quantify, and that call-center wait times are now "very close to pre-cutover levels."

Sabre is "a key catalyst" to attract co-share partners, and "that could be fairly material," Newman said.

Durfy said the airline will add three to four more inbound interline partnerships this year and will likely begin marketing code-share partnerships in 2011.

But, its highly touted code-share with Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) "will be pushed out further than 2010," primarily because of technological issues, Durfy said. He remains optimistic the partnership will come to fruition.

The airline is expected to launch its much-delayed frequent-flier program, as well as a co-branded credit card with Royal Bank of Canada (RY) and MasterCard in March, both of which are important in attracting business travellers, Newman said.

WestJet said first-quarter RASM is expected to decline less than 5% from a year ago because of continued pressure on fares.

It will also take delivery of additional aircraft, bringing its fleet to 88.
 
#951 ·
WestJet closing gap with Air Canada
18 February 2010
The Globe and Mail

Sean Durfy believes WestJet Airlines Ltd. is on pace to challenge Air Canada for the lead in domestic market share four years from now, likening the Calgary-based carrier to a long-distance speed skater who gradually closes in on the favoured rival.

“We're narrowing the gap. It's more of a 5,000-metre event rather than a 500-metre event,” said Mr. Durfy, WestJet's chief executive officer.

By the time the next Winter Olympic Games roll around in 2014, WestJet could be nipping at the heels of Air Canada, he predicted.

At the end of December, WestJet had a domestic market share of 38 per cent, compared with 36 per cent at the end of 2008, Mr. Durfy said in an interview yesterday, basing his figures on revenue passenger miles, a key measure of airline traffic.

While he declined to estimate his rival's share, industry experts say Air Canada's piece of the domestic market stood at 55 per cent at the end of 2009, down from 57 per cent a year earlier.

“We're targeting gaining a point or two every year, so to get to 39 or 40 per cent in late 2010 would be fantastic for us,” Mr. Durfy said.

If all goes well for WestJet, the carrier will have roughly 45 per cent of the Canadian scheduled airline market in 2014. Toronto-based Porter Airlines Inc. plans to continue its expansion, solidifying its spot in third place, albeit a long way back from Canada's two largest carriers.

A decade ago, after acquiring Canadian Airlines International Ltd., Montreal-based Air Canada commanded 77 per cent of the domestic market while WestJet held just 7 per cent.

Founded in 1996, WestJet didn't fly east of Manitoba until 2000.

WestJet has grown steadily from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland in recent years, as Air Canada shifted its attention to U.S. and overseas flights because, historically, long-haul routes carry the highest profit margins.

WestJet announced yesterday that its 2009 profit fell 45 per cent to $98.2-million. Its fourth-quarter profit declined 52 per cent to $20.2-million, but given last year's recession and glitches with a new computer reservations system, the carrier's executives said they were proud to have posted the 19th consecutive quarter of profit.

Versant Partners Inc. analyst Cameron Doerksen said it's realistic for WestJet to set its sights on Air Canada's No. 1 position domestically.

WestJet will benefit from international partnerships, attracting connecting passengers, though some pacts will take longer than expected to come to fruition. An alliance with Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co., originally slated to take effect in 2009 or 2010, has been rescheduled for launch in 2011.

Mr. Doerksen said WestJet will be limited in Canada at some point with its fleet of Boeing 737 jets, unless it orders aircraft better suited to serving smaller Canadian cities such as Regina. Air Canada has an advantage because it offers flights through its Jazz affiliate, which operates regional jets and turboprops.

“If WestJet does want to tap into the traffic coming from some of these smaller cities, they will have to get smaller aircraft into their fleet or get a partnership going,” Mr. Doerksen said.

WESTJET (WJA)

Close: $14.03, up 17¢

***

WestJet ascends in Canada's skies

Founded in 1996, WestJet began flying east of Manitoba in 2000, gradually loosening Air Canada's grip on domestic flights.

DOMESTIC AIRLINE MARKET SHARE

2000:

Air Canada 77%
Westjet 7%
Other 16%

2006:

Air Canada 60%
Westjet 33%
Other 7%

2009:*

Air Canada 55%
Westjet 38%
Other 7%

* As of Dec. 31, 2009

WESTJET AVAILABLE SEAT MILES, IN BILLIONS

'04 - 9.0
'05 - 10.7
'06 - 12.5
'07 - 14.5
'08 - 17.1
'09 ' 17.6

THE GLOBE AND MAIL / SOURCES: INDUSTRY ESTIMATES; OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE; WESTJET
 
#952 ·
WestJet rewards program takes aim at Aeroplan
9 March 2010
The Globe and Mail

Air travellers seeking to book last-minute flights or fly during peak periods are counting on WestJet Airlines Ltd.'s new frequent flier program to be an improvement over Air Canada's Aeroplan loyalty plan.

WestJet is hoping to tap into consumer discontent that accompanies searches for Aeroplan rewards, at least during popular travel times, said Patrick Sojka, chief executive officer at rewardscanada.ca, which tracks a wide range of loyalty programs.

Aeroplan passengers get sticker shock whenever they try to book with little notice or attempt to fly during any hectic holiday period, resulting in redemption requirements that can be two to four times higher than the number of points needed to obtain off-peak flights, Mr. Sojka said yesterday, after WestJet kicked off its “frequent guest program.”

Bob Cummings, WestJet's executive vice-president of marketing and sales, said there won't be holiday blackout periods on the Calgary-based carrier's reward flights.

Instead of copying Aeroplan's system of encouraging consumers to accumulate “miles,” WestJet is offering “dollars off flights and holiday packages,” Mr. Cummings said.

WestJet and Royal Bank of Canada introduced new credit cards last Thursday, with consumers who applied on launch day scheduled to receive their loyalty cards as early as March 18. Two cards are available to accumulate “WestJet dollars,” called the WestJet RBC World MasterCard and WestJet RBC MasterCard.

WestJet is also attempting to lure Air Canada customers away from 25-year-old Aeroplan by persuading consumers to participate in a new program that offers tiered rewards after an individual traveller spends more than $1,500 on WestJet flights annually.

More than one-fifth of Aeroplan reward seats are booked within 14 days of travel, said Aeroplan spokeswoman JoAnne Hayes, who noted that passengers face higher WestJet base fares during peak times. WJA (TSX) fell 3 cents to $14.02.
 
#953 ·
WestJet faces shakeup as CEO steps down
Surprise resignation comes on heels of sharp profit drop and reservation glitch

16 March 2010
The Globe and Mail

An airline industry veteran has been tapped to run WestJet Airlines Ltd. after its chief executive officer resigned, a surprise move that follows weak quarterly earnings and the bungled launch of a new reservation system.

Sean Durfy stepped down as president and CEO of the Calgary-based airline last night, saying he wanted to spend more time with his young family. He'll be replaced by industry veteran Gregg Saretsky, who was an executive at the now-defunct Canadian Airlines for 13 years and has worked in the industry for 25 years.

“There's no secret that there have been challenges at the company over the last 12 months, and I'm certain that there have been issues when it comes to performance,” said Ben Cherniavsky, an industry analyst who follows the airline for investment dealer Raymond James Ltd.

It's the second time in 10 years WestJet has replaced a top executive unexpectedly. It's an awkward situation for a company that prides itself on corporate culture, Mr. Cherniavsky said.

“This is a delicate situation for the board and for WestJet,” he said. “Culture and leadership is important at any company, but it is absolutely pinnacle to the success at WestJet. It's telling that this is the second time in a relatively short history the plug has been pulled on a CEO, even if he resigned on his own.”

The airline praised Mr. Durfy for spearheading several projects, including the launch of its vacation package business and the implementation of two new reservation systems. However, the most recent reservation system was an embarrassment for the airline when it launched in October, causing website crashes and long waits for customer service.

The company said the reservations glitch eroded its fourth-quarter results, with profit coming in 52 per cent below the same quarter a year ago. While pressured by reduced business spending, high unemployment and low consumer confidence, Mr. Durfy told analysts that he was “ecstatic and extremely pleased” with the quarter's $20.2-million profit.

The company's shares have lagged its main competitor Air Canada, with a gain of 11.95 per cent since the beginning of the year. Air Canada has gained 28.03 per cent, while the S&P 500 Airline Index, which tracks the broader industry, has gained 13.73 per cent.

Mr. Durfy said he would stay with the company until April. Both men will attend a press conference today, and plan to attend a National Bank Financial transportation conference in Toronto March 24.

“Those things I set out to accomplish at WestJet have now been achieved and I believe this is an appropriate time to allow others to carry the torch,” Mr. Durfy said in the release.

At the end of December, WestJet had a domestic market share of 38 per cent, compared with 36 per cent at the end of 2008, Mr. Durfy said in February, basing his figures on revenue passenger miles, a key measure of airline traffic. While he declined to estimate his rival's share, industry experts say Air Canada's piece of the domestic market stood at 55 per cent at the end of 2009, down from 57 per cent a year earlier.

Before joining WestJet, Mr. Durfy was president and chief operating officer at Calgary-based utility Enmax Energy Corp. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Founded in 1996, the low-cost WestJet didn't fly east of Manitoba until 2000. It now serves 69 cities in North America and the Caribbean.

Mr. Saretsky is well positioned to enhance his predecessor's accomplishments, WestJet chairman Clive Beddoe said. At Alaska Airlines, Mr. Saretsky developed a network of partners among the U.S. airlines and an award-winning rewards program. He was also “instrumental in the establishment of many cost-saving initiatives, making Alaska one of the most efficient airlines in North America,” WestJet said.

“He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the president and CEO role and we are confident his background will provide the leadership and experience required to achieve our strategic plans,” Mr. Beddoe stated.
 
#954 ·
WestJet plans big push on airline partnerships
24 March 2010

VANCOUVER, March 24 (Reuters) - WestJet Airlines Ltd wants to establish one new partnership with another carrier every quarter starting later this year as it eyes expansion into international markets, the newly chosen chief executive of Canada's No. 2 airline said on Wednesday.

Gregg Saretsky, who takes over as WestJet's CEO on April 1, said a number of carriers have already beaten a path to the door of the airline, which at the moment flies only to destinations in North America and the Caribbean.

"The plan is to have a code-share partner in each geographic region in the world," Saretsky told a transportation conference in Toronto.

"(The plan is for) one for Asia-Pacific, one for the Indian subcontinent, perhaps one in the South Pacific. Europe and Asia we already have a good start with," he said in his first public appearance in front of investors and analysts since his surprise appointment last week.

Saretsky, a 25-year veteran of the airline industry, joined Calgary-based WestJet just nine months ago. Last week he was named new CEO to replace Sean Durfy who is stepping down for family reasons after less than three years at the helm.

WestJet already has a partnership with China Airlines Ltd and Air France-KLM , which it is developing into a full code-share arrangement.

Code-share deals allow carriers to sell tickets to passengers from another airline, helping carriers to increase revenue while limiting costs as they don't have to service all destinations.

"We are going to exploit international markets first going through code-share arrangements," Saretsky said when asked about WestJet's plans to fly international routes.

Partnerships were a key part of Durfy's expansion strategy for WestJet too, although the targets laid out by Saretsky appear more aggressive.

Saretsky was quick to reassure investors that little will change under his lead at WestJet, which is one of the few airlines in North America to stay profitable through the recent recession-led slump in airline travel.

"My plan for WestJet is pretty much business as usual," he said.

He said applications for WestJet's recently launched frequent flier program "blew the doors off", although he declined to provide figures.

WestJet, which has about a 38 percent share of the Canadian market, should "fairly easily" be able to increase this into the mid-40s over the next two to four years, Saretsky said. To do this, it will need to eat deeper into the turf of Air Canada , its only real rival.

WestJet's stock was up 9 Canadian cents at C$13.84 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Wednesday afternoon.

($1 = $1.02 Canadian)
 
#955 ·
Jetstar ties up with Air Canada
12 April 2010
The Australian

AIRLINES: Jetstar customers will be able to buy a through fare to Canadian cities such as Vancouver and Quebec after the low-cost Qantas offshoot signed its 12th interline deal.

The deal with Air Canada means Jetstar customers will be able to connect to the Canadian carrier's services through Hawaii using a joint fare on a single booking.

Air Canada, which operates direct flights between Sydney and Vancouver, is also offering a combo deal that allows passengers to combine a stop-over in Honolulu with Jetstar in one direction and fly non-stop in the other.

The Canadian carrier joins existing Jetstar interline partners such as Qantas, Etihad, Air Calin and Royal Jordanian.

Jetstar expects the deal to be financially beneficial and to boost in-bound tourism from Canada.

Jetstar said it would provide seamless booking and ticketing, providing customers and the travel industry with more options to include a Jetstar flight into itineraries.
 
#956 ·
Air Canada unions say increasing pool of stocks for execs sends wrong message
28 May 2010
The Canadian Press

MONTREAL - Air Canada's shareholders rejected Thursday the warnings of its unions that increasing the pool of available stocks to reward executives could damage efforts to rebuild the airline.

More than 80 per cent of investors supported a plan to increase the shares in its long-term incentive plan to nearly 19.5 million or seven per cent of all outstanding shares.

Five million shares were made available at Air Canada's (TSX:AC.B) initial public offering in 2006, representing five per cent of outstanding shares. Only 1.8 million of the 278 million outstanding shares remain available for distribution.

The Montreal-based airline said it needed the extra shares ``to attract, retain and motivate employees in key positions.''

But the head of the pilots' union said the move violates an agreement with employees not to increase executive compensation during a 21-month freeze on pay for employees that expires next March.

The freeze and contract extension gave unionized workers 17.6 million shares and one seat on the board of directors.

``This sends the wrong message to employees,'' Bruce White told shareholders, noting the improvements made by the airline over the last 10 months.

``In fact, instead of engaging them, we feel it may in fact alienate them. This could in fact even damage some of our efforts to rebuild this airline into a sustainable company.''

White said he's not opposed to rewarding senior management, but that any incentive targets should also be open to other employees.

Supporting the pilots' position was the union representing flight attendants.

Air Canada chairman David Richardson said the company is not currently awarding these extra shares and will stand by agreements with its unions.

But he said that outside advisers have told the airline it needs to have between five and 10 per cent of its shares available to give it the flexibility to thrive by attracting and retaining the industry's best leaders.

``There's no attempt to change the compensation plans and we stand by the agreement that we made with the unions that there would be no change in the compensation plans of the senior executives.''

Chief executive Calin Rovinescu added that increasing the share float doesn't violate the union agreements, noting the company could have used its existing available shares.

``The arrangements last year didn't preclude even the issuance of options to our senior management team,'' he told reporters. ``All it said was we were not going to improve the terms of the grants. None of that is going on.''

Air Canada's six senior executives shared $8.4 million of remuneration in 2009, including option-based awards, incentives and pension values. Rovinescu's total was $2.58 million, including $1.05 million salary and an $800,825 bonus.

The airline avoided another round of creditor protection last year by receiving a financial injection of more than $1 billion.

Rovinescu told shareholders at the company's annual meeting that the airline was on the runway to generate long-term profits, reversing last year's $316 million of operating losses.

``This franchise is very strong and we intend to make it stronger,'' he said.

It cut $50 million in costs last year and plans to save another $270 million in 2010 and $500 million by 2011.

Canada's largest airline is beginning to see a recovery in revenue from higher ticketed premium seats and is looking attract more business travellers from the eastern U.S.

Rovinescu said Air Canada has no ``immediate'' plans to follow the lead of the largest U.S. carrier to add a ``peak travel surcharge'' of up to $30 per seats for flights on most days this summer.

``We're not looking at that sort of thing right now,'' he told reporters, adding that airlines are looking at different ways to increase their revenues

On the Toronto Stock Exchange, Air Canada's class B shares closed down three cents to $1.85 in Thursday trading.
 
#957 ·
Why is flight from Toronto to Buenos Aires via Santiago? Obviously, most of the passengers to Toronto are from Buenos Aires, so...? It should be direct. All the people I know who been to Canada went through Miami. You can also go through Dallas, Houston, Washington, New York or Atlanta. They would have a lot more pax with a direct. At the moment It's just a 5 weekly on B767
 
#958 ·
The winter season (summer in Buenos Aires) will be daily on a 777. I'm not 100% sure about the reason why AC needed to stop in Santiago but my guess is that because it's a 5th Freedom right that they're exercising, they can in fact fly domestic passengers on the internal South American route so from a revenue/load factor standpoint, they're not really losing out by not flying direct.
 
#959 ·
Air Canada secures $170.5 mln loan to buy planes

OTTAWA, June 10 (Reuters) - Air Canada, said on Thursday it has a commitment for a senior secured term loan facility of up to $170.5 million from GE Japan Corp to help finance the purchase of 16 planes it currently leases.

Canada's biggest airline can put up to $128.5 million toward the purchase of eight Airbus A319 airplanes and four Boeing B767-300ER aircraft in 2011, with terms of seven and four years respectively.

The airline can use up to $42 million toward the purchase of four Airbus A319 aircraft in 2012, with a term of five years.

The company's more heavily traded class B shares were up 5 Canadian cents, or 2.75 percent, at C$1.87 on the Toronto Stock Exchange early Thursday afternoon.

($1=$1.03 Canadian)
 
Top