The fierce competition and high demand playing out across the Canadian air travel industry bubbled to the surface over the weekend when four Flair Airlines planes were abruptly seized over lease payments.

The Boeing 737 Maxes were grounded Saturday after a B次元官网网址渃ommercial disputeB次元官网网址� with New York-based Airborne Capital Inc., Flair said.

A person familiar with the matter but who was not authorized to speak publicly about it said the payments for the affected planes were a few days behind and the amount owed was small relative to FlairB次元官网网址檚 overall revenue.

Flair has since B次元官网网址渋nitiatedB次元官网网址� lease payments, the airline said, calling the seizures B次元官网网址渦nprecedented B次元官网网址� extreme and unusual.B次元官网网址�

Leasing prices have skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic due to surging travel demand, even as domestic airfares have dropped amid a crop of new carriers and expansions at others, said John Gradek, head of McGill UniversityB次元官网网址檚 aviation management program.

As a result, the B次元官网网址渟lightest sneezeB次元官网网址� in a payment plan could trigger termination of an older lower-price lease, allowing the lessor to find a new client willing to pay more per month for the pricey planes, he said.

B次元官网网址淚f you screw up your payment with the lessor, they will take the first opportunity to seize the airplane, bring it back and then remarket it at a much higher level of revenue than you would normally get with Flair.B次元官网网址�

Gradek said 737 Max 8s can now cost lessees up to $450,000 per month versus about $150,000 in 2021. A delayed payment may also tarnish FlairB次元官网网址檚 credit and reputation, making future leases even costlier, he added.

The sudden seizure of more than one-fifth of its fleet saw Flair scramble to roll out other planes over the weekend, as passengers in Toronto, Edmonton and Waterloo, Ont., dealt with last-minute flight cancellations.

Canadians still reeling from memories of pandemic confinement have been eager to board flights this year B次元官网网址� putting planes in even higher demand from airlines and leasing companies.

The number of scheduled flights by Air Canada and WestJet jumped 31 per cent to 47,362 this month from 36,062 in the same period a year earlier, according to flight data firm Cirium.

Domestic ticket prices have dropped 15 per cent from 2019 amid heightened airline competition B次元官网网址� six carriers now ply the Toronto-Vancouver route versus two a few years ago B次元官网网址� leaving carriers with thinner profit margins as they battle for control of the skies, according to Montreal-based travel data firm Hopper Inc.

Flair spokesman Mike Arnot said a number of Flair flights were cancelled Saturday morning, but the company had three spare aircraft to backfill those flights.

Passengers travelling in the subsequent 72 hours will either be accommodated on Flair flights or on another airline at the companyB次元官网网址檚 expense if a Flair flight isnB次元官网网址檛 available, he said.

An update from the company later on Saturday added that customers can also rebook their own travel and receive a reimbursement within seven days.

B次元官网网址擟hristopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press