Air Canada is cutting more than 15 per cent of its scheduled flights in July and August as airports face lengthy delays and cancellations amid an overwhelming travel resurgence.
The move will see 154 flights per day on average dropped from the airlineB次元官网网址檚 schedule B次元官网网址� already operating at 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels B次元官网网址� affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers. The flights link mainly to its Toronto and Montreal hubs, and are all on domestic or Canada-U.S. routes, the company said in an email Wednesday.
B次元官网网址淭his was not an easy decision, as it will result in additional flight cancellations that will have a negative impact on some customers,B次元官网网址� chief executive Michael Rousseau said in a statement.
B次元官网网址淏ut doing this in advance allows affected customers to take time to make other arrangements in an orderly manner, rather than have their travel disrupted shortly before or during their journey, with few alternatives available.B次元官网网址�
The slimmed-down schedule is marked mainly by frequency reductions that affect evening and late-night flights on smaller planes, Air Canada said. International flights remain unaffected except for some timing changes to reduce flying at peak times and even out passenger flow.
Comparing backed-up airports and flight schedules to other global industries where companies B次元官网网址渁re struggling to restart, unclog supply chains and meetpent-updemand,B次元官网网址� Rousseau said Air Canada foresaw much of the strain now weighing on global aviation networks.
B次元官网网址淵et, despite detailed and careful planning, the largest and fastest scale of hiring in our history, as well as investments in aircraft and equipment, it is now clear that Air CanadaB次元官网网址檚 operations too have been disrupted by the industryB次元官网网址檚 complex and unavoidable challenges,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淭he result has been flight cancellations and customer service shortfalls on our part that we would never have intended for our customers or for our employees, and for which we sincerely apologize.B次元官网网址�
Problems escalated across the airline sectorthis month, despite a federal hiring spree of security and customs officers and a pause on randomized COVID-19 testing, which had caused bottlenecks for international arrivals.
A majority of domestic flights to CanadaB次元官网网址檚 busiest airports were delayed or cancelled over the past week as the effects of an overloaded international network continued to ripple across the country.
Some 54 per cent of flights to the four largest airports were bumped off schedule in the seven days between June 22 and 28, according to analytics firm Data Wazo.
TorontoB次元官网网址檚 Pearson airport topped the list, with 51 per cent of flights delayed B次元官网网址� more than 700 B次元官网网址� and 12 per cent cancelled. Montreal was runner-up at 43 per cent delayed and 15 per cent cancelled.
Three Air Canada routes will be temporarily suspended between Montreal and Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Kelowna, B.C., and one from Toronto to Fort McMurray, Alta., the carrier said.
Before the changes it operated about 1,000 flights a day on average, the Montreal-based company said.
Airlines and the federal government have been scrambling to respond to scenes of endless lines, flight disruptions, lost luggage and daily turmoil at airports B次元官网网址� particularly at Pearson B次元官网网址� a problem the aviation industry has blamed on a shortage of federal security and customs officers.
But Philippe Rainville, CEO of MontrealB次元官网网址檚 airport authority, said in an interview Wednesday that many of those hires B次元官网网址� 900-plus for security screeners B次元官网网址� are now in place, yet delays and cancellations persist. Flight disruptions abroad play a big role in continuing to knock domestic schedules off course, he said.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a consequence of the delay in international flights,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭o delay a domestic flight is a lot easier because flying to major hubs in Europe, the slots are very tight. Domestically, weB次元官网网址檝e got a lot more leeway.B次元官网网址�
Before Air CanadaB次元官网网址檚 announcement, Rainville expected passenger volumes through Montreal to hit 80 per cent of 2019 levels, though peak times are already on par with three years ago. The airport was planning for about 16 million travellers versus 20.3 million in 2019.
Kinks in one part of the air travel pipeline can snarl others, with overflowing customs areas stopping flight crews from disembarking, for example, or a lack of airline customer service agents exacerbating delays.
Luggage is an especially sticky problem, with a shortage of baggage handlers to shuttle suitcases from late arrivals to connecting planes amid last-minute gate changes.
Passengers say they receive last-minute emails informing them of repeated delays, aircraft changes or rebookings scheduled days after the original departure time. Reasons cited run the gamut from absent pilots to unplanned mechanical maintenance.
B次元官网网址擟hristopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press
