When Are we Going Back to a Normal Air Travel Schedule?

On October 28, 2022 Senator Omidvar asked the Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transport, about the capacity of airlines and airports.

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Thank you, minister, for being with us today. My question is about airports and airlines. Given the size of our country, if we want to go from east to west, air travel is, unfortunately, the only option. This is a matter that occupies Canadians, including, I would say, people in this chamber, because I hear horror stories about how people have to travel from Montreal to Toronto to Halifax to somewhere else in order to get somewhere else.

My question to you is about the capacity of airlines and airports. When are we going back to a normal air travel schedule? What can you tell us?

Hon. Omar Alghabra, P.C., M.P., Minister of Transport: Senator, it’s good to see you. Let me just say, as I stated earlier, that the performance of the aviation sector, as I see it today, has come back not necessarily in volume but in performance and efficiency to the same level as it was pre-pandemic. This is good news for not only passengers but for those who work in the industry, because I know they’ve had a very tough two years.

The volume is still not back where it was pre-pandemic, but it is coming back. We expect the Christmas season to be busy again. I met yesterday with the chairman of Air Canada. I have been speaking with airports across the country about how important it is that we do not witness the same issues that we saw during the summer.

Prior to 2017, prior to our government, passengers had no legislative protection. Their rights were not protected in law until our government brought together the bill of rights for air passengers, also known as the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. This September, we actually strengthened these rules to ensure that passengers are protected if a flight is cancelled or delayed or if luggage is lost. So we have strict rules that protect passengers.

However, I will acknowledge that this past summer most passengers felt — and add me to that list — extreme frustration with what it was like to fly during that time. I am happy to see that things are better now, but we cannot lose sight of making sure that we never go back to what we saw during the summer.