Aviation


  • SUNWING AIRCRAFT BOLSTER WESTJET FLEET
    by Staff Writer - Three Sunwing Airlines Boeing 737 aircraft (tails 395, 396 and 393) have begun service for WestJet, flying both WestJet and Sunwing Vacations guests as the two brands prepare to fully integrate on May 29.

  • THREE’S THE CHARM: Virgin Atlantic returns to Toronto after lengthy layoff
    by Michael Baginski - By Michael Baginski/   Virgin Atlantic celebrated its arrival in Toronto on Thursday with its founder Sir Richard Branson at Toronto Pearson International Airport. The route marks Virgin Atlantic’s return to Canada after more than a decade, linking Toronto and London. It is also the third attempt by the British carrier to fly the lucrative YYZ-LHR route.

  • MANILA ROUTE STRENGTHENS AIR CANADA ASIA-PACIFIC NETWORK
    by Staff Writer - Service to Air Canada’s newest destination in Asia – Manila – took flight Wednesday from Vancouver, marking the start of three times weekly year-round service (increasing to four times weekly on May 1) linking Canada and the Philippines.

  • COULD BE WORSE: Air Canada confirms drop in U.S. business 
    by Staff Writer - On a day that Air Canada celebrated the resumption of flights between Ottawa and London Heathrow, the carrier confirmed that its cross-border flight bookings for the next six months have decreased about 10% – though considerably less than some industry suggestions that traffic has dropped by up to 70 percent.

  • GO CANADA!: Porter adds more Maple Leaf to network tree
    by Staff Writer - Claiming “Our goal is to fly where our customers want to travel,” Porter Airlines is adding more Canada to its summer schedule. The carrier says domestic flying will comprise 80% of its total network capacity, up from 75% in its original seasonal plan.

  • AIR CANADA EYES EUROPE WITH NEW ROUTE, CAPACITY
    by Staff Writer - Air Canada is adding a new route and boosting frequencies to popular Europe destinations for the summer, highlighted by new service from Montreal to Edinburgh, Scotland. The carrier is also adding close to 1,300 weekly seats to Paris and Athens, and is also extending its peak Toronto to Rome schedule until October.

  • MUSK LINK TAINTS NEW WESTJET WIFI
    by Staff Writer - A mixed reaction from Canadians has greeted the launch of WestJet’s on-board Wi-Fi service powered by Starlink – the satellite internet technology made by Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX. Activated in March, the service now offers free Wi-Fi on 16 of the carrier’s nearly 140 planes, with the airline expecting to complete hardware installations on its narrow-body fleet by the end of this year and on its wide-body aircraft before 2027.

  • FAA SAYS IT MUST DO BETTER AFTER DEADLY DC AIR COLLISION
    by Staff Writer - The head of the Federal Aviation Administration told Congress during a hearing Thursday about a midair collision over Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people that the agency must do more to ensure flying remains safe. “We have to do better,” Chris Rocheleau said. “We have to identify trends, we have to get smarter about how we use data, and when we put corrective actions in place, we must execute them.”

  • PORTER-PASCAN PARTNERSHIP BOOSTS EASTERN CDN. CONNECTIVITY
    by Staff Writer - A new partnership between Porter Airlines and Pascan Aviation will improve access to air travel across Eastern Canada, taking advantage of Porter’s growing North American network and Pascan’s Québec and Maritimes-focused regional flights. Primary connecting airports are in Halifax and Québec City, with other hubs serving as secondary options.

  • WESTJET PILOTS OPPOSE FOREIGN TEMPS
    by Staff Writer - The union representing WestJet pilots is asking a judge to quash federal approval of temporary foreign workers in the cockpit. In an application it says was filed Monday, the Air Line Pilots Association petitioned the Federal Court to declare invalid a government decision green-lighting temporary work permits at WestJet Encore earlier this month.

  • RECALLING SOME OF HISTORY’S WORST AIR TRAVEL DISRUPTIONS
    by Staff Writer - The fire that closed London Heathrow Airport last Friday sparked one of the most serious disruptions to air travel in years. More than 1,300 flights were cancelled and hundreds of thousands of journeys were disrupted following the blaze at an electrical substation near the airport. But the incident wasn’t the first – and certainly not the worst – to cause air travel chaos in recent years.

  • WESTJET BARCELONA-BOUND FROM HALIFAX
    by Staff Writer - WestJet will launch new service between Halifax and Barcelona, Spain, beginning June 27. The seasonal route will operate four times per week as part of WestJet's summer 2025 schedule, offering Atlantic Canadians a direct connection to what the airline says is one of its most sought-after European destinations.

  • SATIRE, SOCIAL MEDIA FUEL FLIGHT ATTENDANTS’ CAMPAIGN
    by Staff Writer - Airplanes with standing sections. An extra fee for boarding charged at airport terminals. Even smaller carry-on luggage allowances. These are a few of the features offered by ‘Unfair Canada,’ a fictional airline (based on a real one) with the slogan “where we can’t take you!” and which runs a scrolling banner on its website proclaiming “all flights cancelled because we feel like it.”

  • STILL SEARCHING FOR MH370
    by Staff Writer - Malaysia’s government has given final approval for a Texas-based marine robotics company to renew the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which is believed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean more than a decade ago.

  • WHY DID DELTA PLANE CRASH IN TORONTO?
    by Staff Writer - A preliminary report into a plane crash at Toronto's Pearson airport last month says the aircraft's alert system issued a warning about the descent rate less than three seconds before touchdown. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada released its report Thursday morning as it continues to investigate the Feb. 17 crash landing that sent 21 people to hospital, noting that it's too early to draw any conclusions.

  • PORTER POINTS NOW EARN FLIGHTS ON TRANSAT, ALASKA AIRLINES
    by Staff Writer - Porter Airlines is expanding its VIPorter loyalty program, giving members more ways to earn and redeem points for travel. For the first time, members can redeem VIPorter points for flights with partner airlines, starting with Air Transat and Alaska Airlines. Over 2,000 routes are now available for reward travel.

  • AIRPORT PRIVATIZATION A ‘BAD IDEA,’ WARN FLIGHT ATTENDANTS
    by Staff Writer - A government proposal to increase the privatization of airports in Canada threatens to make travel more expensive and ‘a bad idea,” says the union for 18,500 flight attendants across the country.

  • SPIRIT LIFTED FROM BANKRUPTCY: And what the future looks like for US discount carrier
    by Staff Writer - Discount carrier Spirit Airlines has emerged from bankruptcy protection. The budget airline – known for its no-frills, low-cost flights on a fleet of yellow planes – said that its parent, Spirit Aviation Holdings, exited Chapter 11 after finalizing debt restructuring.

  • AN INTOLERABLE RISK: Helicopter ban at Washington Regan urged
    by Staff Writer - Federal investigators looking into the cause of the January collision between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter near Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people recommended a ban on some helicopter flights Tuesday, saying the current setup “poses an intolerable risk.”

  • MOVING RIGHT ALONG: YYC to consolidate security screening for speed and convenience
    by Staff Writer - Construction is underway at the Calgary International Airport Domestic Terminal building to consolidate all domestic security checkpoints into one centralized screening process. The updated infrastructure will eliminate the need to remove laptops, and permitted liquids, aerosols and gels from carry-on bags, making the screening process faster, more efficient and convenient.