Air Canada Cuts Way Back on Scheduled Flights

[Dean2]

Just one more example of how poorly run this airline is, but also clearly shows how fragile the whole North American and European infrastructure is. Air Canada gets to jack up ticket prices big time by restricting flights, and blaming it on bottle necks. More gasoline on the inflation fire that is already raging.

Dear DEAN,

At Air Canada, we know how important travel plans are. This is even more the case today when many are taking their first trip in years following the pandemic. Whether for long anticipated vacations, visits with relatives and friends, or for business, we are grateful and recognize our responsibility when people like you entrust your travel to our airline.

Regrettably, things are not business as usual in our industry globally, and this is affecting our operations and our ability to serve you with our normal standards of care. The COVID 19 pandemic brought the world air transport system to a halt in early 2020. Now, after more than two years, global travel is resurgent, and people are returning to flying at a rate never seen in our industry.

This surge in travel has created unprecedented and unforeseen strains on all aspects of the global aviation system. Around the world, there are recurring incidents of flight delays and airport congestion, resulting from a complex array of persistent factors impacting airlines and our partners in the aviation ecosystem. Similar effects are being seen in other industries too, where companies and suppliers are struggling to restart, unclog supply chains and meet pent up demand.

At Air Canada, we anticipated many of these factors and began taking tangible action during the depth of the pandemic to be ready for a rapid restart. Yet, 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 Canada’s operations too have been disrupted by the industry’s complex and unavoidable challenges. The 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.

In response, we took a number of important steps, including introducing flexible ticket policies, new travel self-management tools, improvements to airport operations, as well adjustments to our schedule all to strengthen operational resiliency and to give customers more options. However, to bring about the level of operational stability we need, with reluctance, we are now making meaningful reductions to our schedule in July and August in order to reduce passenger volumes and flows to a level we believe the air transport system can accommodate.

This was not an easy decision, as it will result in additional flight cancellations that will have a negative impact on some customers. But 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. It will also enable us to more reliably serve all customers.

I can assure you Air Canada is also working in close cooperation with airports, government, and its third party service providers, who all are striving to return our industry to pre pandemic standards of operation.

We are convinced these changes will bring about the improvements we have targeted. But to set expectations, it should also be understood the real benefits of this action will take time and be felt only gradually as the industry regains the reliability and robustness it had attained prior to the pandemic.

On behalf of all of us at Air Canada, please accept my sincere apologies for any disruption you have experienced or may experience with your travel plans during this unprecedented period. I also assure you that we very clearly see the challenges at hand, that we are taking action, and that we are confident we have the strategy to address them. This is our company’s chief focus at every level.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We certainly look forward to future opportunities to serve you and regain your loyalty at a time when we can better demonstrate our commitment to taking good care of customers such as yourself.

Sincerely,

Michael Rousseau
President and Chief Executive Officer
Air Canada

[58thecat]

Even when the world was bucking full on this airline was the only one we ever had major problems with, avoided using them then and now too.

[Sundancefisher]

We flew in May.

Horrible Air Canada experience.

We had a 3 hour layover in Toronto leaving and 2 hour 50 minute layover returning in Montreal.

Departure day saw air Canada bump us to a later and later flight until we just had time to make the connector. However the plane was delayed. We arrive at the departure time for our connector and ran there as the plane showed delayed on the screen.

They had given our flight to someone else. That plane was delayed 2.5 hours for catering but we were bumped to another flight with a second 5 hour layover.

That flight was delayed 2.5 hours for catering. Second connector delayed an hour and we missed a day of vacation.

Then they lost our luggage for 3 days.

Our return saw a delay that put us on tight timing. Our layover in Montreal. Upon landing we were flagged for a baggage check. Air Canada took sweet time getting the bag to customs and it took customs 5 minutes to send us on our way. We had half hour to make the flight and arrived just as they were finishing boarding. But they had given our seats away.

We ended up staying over night in Montreal.

Next day… arrived in Calgary… bags missing again.

Air Canada by phone and email was a joke to deal with. Plane staff were great.


Now from what I’ve heard it is 100% worse.

Travel tips would be only fly direct. Don’t go over exemptions. Don’t travel with food internationally. Pack light and carry on if possible.

[Stinky Buffalo]

I've had similar experiences as you have, Sun... I used to travel a lot for work.

Every time I would try and "give them another chance" I would be reminded why I would much rather fly with any other airline. Even over 20 years ago, had my seats given away over and over - even if I was two hours early for my flight. I was treated as if I was on standby. Last flight I took with them, parts of the plane's interior were coming loose and falling off during landing. Like you say, Sun, the plane staff were great, though.

WestJet isn't what it once was, but definitely a better company to deal with. The biggest pain with them is that I always have to go through Calgary to get to where I need to go. It was getting to the point where it was less time-consuming to drive the extra couple of hours to Calgary and depart from there.

One of the last pre-covid flights I took, the screw-ups were so bad that when I finally landed in Yellowknife, I realized that if I would have driven north to Yellowknife instead of south to the airport, I would have arrived there in about the same amount of time...

[teledogs]

I have a flight booked with AC for Aug 5 to Northern NB for my Mom's celebration of life. We leave Calgary at 11:50pm and arrive at noon on the 6th with 2 layovers. I expect it to be much worse than it sounds if it does not get cancelled. AC has always sucked the big wazoo!!

[Coiloil37]

I always had great luck with AC. Eight and a half years of rotating to Australia every month gave me super elite status and business class upgrades. I made that flight across the pond over 120 times and they lost one bag one time and had it back to me the next day. They held planes for me, carts to take me gate to gate and the concierge called me many times to ask if I wanted to change a connection due to something changing on their end due to maintenance or delay. When I called the super elite phone number someone answered the phone. I could carry on but you get the idea.

Then we flew back to the old country a month ago. AC isn’t flying out of Brisbane yet so we flew qantas to Sydney first. That was perfectly normal.

We then had nothing but a gong show with AC. They were over an hour late boarding in Sydney and the staff was extremely unprofessional. The service on the 15 hour flight was non existent. No after dinner drink service, zero mid flight drink service including water, meals were worse then usual, staff was crabbier then usual, it was an experience to say the least. The only thing the same as previous flights was the captain and first officer flying. I recognised both of their names when they got on the intercom and their faces when we walked off.
The six hour layover in Vancouver was a joke. The air Canada lounge wouldn’t let me in with my current 25k status. Even with the guest passes I have they would let me and the missus in but not the kids. Previously they let the kids in without batting an eye.
Then they were an hour late boarding, then we pushed back and sat on the tarmac for another hour. We left Vancouver twenty minutes after we should have been in Edmonton. Again the staff was poorly trained and crabby.
Then we had the privilege of waiting at the carousel and our bags didn’t show up. I opened the claim and he told me they were in Vancouver and would be delivered the next day. The following day I looked at the status online and the bags location was unknown. The next day I got a phone call and they had found one of the three bags in Sydney but weren’t even aware the other two bags existed. Long story short, AC didn’t load the bags in Sydney. It took six days before they were delivered. I opened a claim for the clothes and incidentals over two weeks ago and haven’t heard a word back from them since the initial email indicating they would action my claim within eight days.

Really looking forward to the flight home at this point. I’m sure it’ll be a blast. As long as the flight to Vancouver isn’t canceled and we get out of here all will be good enough. I’m not flying again until they get their growing pains sorted and I’ll probably look at Singapore airlines next time.

[Twisted Canuck]

I got the same email from Air Canada Dean. Everybody is blaming somebody else for the complete gong show that travel has become, the Minister of Transportation says it is because people forgot *how* to travel. That was the most idiotic blame of all. I will say to be fair, that I have usually had great service with Air Canada in the past.

Anyway, I have stacked up a pile of Airmiles/Aeroplan in the last couple years, but don't plan of flying anytime soon. I got a new Napoleon BBQ with some of the miles.

I also had planned to fly to Yellowknife next week, but flying to Edmonto to fly back north to get there seemed dumb. Or driving to Edmonton to catch the flight north, because the layover was ridiculous. Anyway, I'm just taking an extra day and driving up. Maybe I will see a bison.

Oh! One other thing. I was looking into flights to Israel, my wife wants to go (I have zero interest). Getting flights with Aeroplan is pretty simple, layover in Toronto and Paris I believe it was. It was a fair number of Aeroplan points, but when I got to the part on taxes I just about fell out of my chair.

Seems like airport taxes must have gone through the roof or something. It was over $1600 taxes per seat. So, for fun, I looked into just buying a ticket through flighthub for the same travel dates, and found tickets for less then the taxes, no Aeroplan miles required (different airline).

I won't be traveling by air any time soon. There is plenty of stuff to do right here in Alberta.

[Grizzly Adams1]

Westjet and other airlines are resetting their focus as well. Welcome to the new world, people.

Grizz

[flydude]

I was in the Toronto Terminal 1 for 6.5 hrs on Tuesday. I arrived at 8am to a relatively civilized world. By 9AM it was absolutely ridiculous. Line ups half way down the building, couldn't see one Air Canada employee helping anyone in the public areas, people openly venting their frustrations, basic security personnel seemed to be almost nonexistent, simply terrible.

I was asked by a family from Botswana to help check their bags for them which I did. I then spent the next 30 minutes helping out others due to the lack of AC employees. It seemed like most employees were hiding by the exits

I did make it home though.....sort of on time.

[KGB]

Got the same letter from air Canada yesterday. What can I say- at least they don’t blame Putin for their screw ups!
We are in the process to book the flights to Dallas for October, have to attend the wedding. I really really hope that this chit show will be over by then…. The connections we have make me worry… 1 hour in Denver….

[jef612]

I would prefer they cut the number of flights in half and actually made them work properly - rather than overbook each flight and then cancel you 10 minutes before you are supposed to leave.

[Dewey Cox]

They are just laying the groundwork for their next government bailout cheque.

[ganderblaster]

Originally Posted by Dewey Cox

They are just laying the groundwork for their next government bailout cheque.

Yep. Will be the perfect press announcement for what’s his name from as he announces cash for Air Canada in a big government saves the day announcement. The current government is expert at bailing companies out of the mess the government created! Mods please delete if this post is to political.

[midgetwaiter]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Just one more example of how poorly run this airline is, but also clearly shows how fragile the whole North American and European infrastructure is. Air Canada gets to jack up ticket prices big time by restricting flights, and blaming it on bottle necks. More gasoline on the inflation fire that is already raging.

I’d argue that AC is doing the right thing here and I HATE travelling with them. Look at what’s going on with airports recently, if the alternative is cancelling flights day of then this is a much better situation. Would you rather be upset now or upset when your connection gets cancelled and you’re stuck in YYZ for 3 days?

As for the how did we get into this mess, there’s blame to go around. Nobody with any sense is going to clamour for a job tied to tourism when we’ve seen how quickly it can be undermined and every other industry is scrambling to hire. Then consider that a lot of the positions that need to be filled in airports require security screening that takes forever and is all jacked up. Then you have to actually train them, the security screeners when I went through YYZ a couple weeks ago had no clue and were obviously new. There’s a failure to plan here for sure but I don’t think you could have put something in place that would have avoided it without a ridiculous price tag attached. It’s everything from the passport office to baggage handlers.

My trip earlier this month was the first I’ve done since Jan 2020 and I used to travel a lot for work, more than 60% some years. It’s miserable experience and I don’t want to go back to that being my life, in fact I wouldn’t. I’ll go flip burgers first.

[Dean2]

There is some truth to the contention that cancelled early is better than cancelled at the airport. Part I think most of you guys are missing is even at 50% of current volume it is still going to be a massive cluster. Air Canada talks about 120,000 passengers a day, when a year ago it was flying 20,000/day. Pure mus-direction, prior to Covid they were flying a lot more than 120,000 per day. According the the Gov of Canada website there were more than 375,000 people a day flying in Canada for all airlines. By artificially constraining the number of available seats, instead of dealing with the issues at the airports, Air Canada can dramatically increase pricing, as in all tickets will be at minimum full fare, re-bookable ones.

I have zero faith in Air Canada and even less in the groups responsible for baggage handing, security, customs and the rest of the airport services. More than 60% of all Government workers are still working full time from home, and we wonder why there are backlogs and endless lineups for everything they are supposed to deliver.

This is from the Gov of Canada website.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic crippled the aviation industry and brought an abrupt end to 10 consecutive annual increases in air passenger traffic. The total number of passengers enplaned and deplaned at Canadian airports dropped to 45.9 million in 2020, a decrease of 71.8% from the previous year.

From 2019, traffic decreased significantly at Canada's largest airports. Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International and Montréal/Pierre Elliott Trudeau International both saw decreases of 73.6% in passenger traffic, while traffic was down 71.9% at Vancouver International and 69.2% at Calgary International.
Chart 1 Chart 1: Passengers enplaned and deplaned at the top five Canadian airports
Passengers enplaned and deplaned at the top five Canadian airports
Chart 1: Passengers enplaned and deplaned at the top five Canadian airports
Unprecedented widespread declines

In the wake of travel restrictions first imposed in March 2020 in Canada and around the world, passenger traffic fell sharply for the rest of the year. Measures by provincial governments to control the virus, including closing non-essential businesses, further constrained air operators. Indeed, some Canadian airlines suspended operations entirely, while others continued to curtail their operations.
Chart 2 Chart 2: Air passenger traffic, by sector
Air passenger traffic, by sector
Chart 2: Air passenger traffic, by sector

As a result, air passenger traffic fell to levels not seen in more than 40 years, with domestic passenger traffic declining 69.4% (64.8 million passengers) from the previous year.

With the border closed to non-residents in late March 2020, transborder traffic (with the United States) experienced an even steeper decline, down 78.1% (25.1 million passengers). Air Canada, the only Canadian carrier operating scheduled transborder flights at that time, suspended service in April. In May, it resumed its service, albeit sharply reduced, for the remainder of the year.

With the imposition of travel restrictions in mid-March 2020, other international or overseas traffic fell by 72.5% (27.1 million passengers). The Canadian government continued to advise against all non-essential travel outside the country, required mandatory quarantine upon re-entry, and banned discretionary travel to Canada by non-residents. Initially, Canadian carriers maintained a limited number of scheduled flights to international destinations, with a focus on repatriation and the movement of essential goods.
Canada's busiest airports

In 2020, the four busiest airports accounted for roughly two-thirds (66.8%) of all passenger traffic in Canada, including over half (53.3%) of all domestic traffic and even larger shares of transborder (87.2%) and other international traffic (90.6%).

Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International enplaned and deplaned 13.0 million passengers in 2020, down sharply from almost 50 million in 2019. Domestic traffic fell 70.4% (from 17.7 million to 5.2 million) international traffic fell 73.4% (from 17.9 million to 4.8 million), and transborder traffic fell 78.0% (from 13.6 million to 3.0 million).

Next, Vancouver International enplaned and deplaned 7.2 million passengers, about one-third of the traffic in 2019 (25.7 million passengers). Domestic traffic fell 66.9% (from 12.3 million to 4.1 million), international traffic fell to one-quarter of its 2019 level (from 7.1 million to 1.8 million), and transborder traffic fell 79.1% (from 6.3 million to 1.3 million).

For the first time since 2014, Calgary International became Canada's third-busiest airport, enplaning and deplaning 5.3 million passengers, but down from 17.2 million in 2019. Domestic traffic fell 66.4% (from 11.9 million to 4.0 million), international traffic fell 73.2% (from 1.9 million to 0.5 million), and transborder traffic fell 76.8% (from 3.5 million to 0.8 million).

At Montréal/Pierre Elliot Trudeau International, 5.2 million passengers were enplaned and deplaned, down from 19.6 million in 2019. Domestic traffic fell 72.2% (from 6.9 million to 1.9 million), international traffic by 73.0% (from 8.2 million to 2.2 million), and transborder traffic by 76.8% (from 4.4 million to 1.0 million).

At each of these airports, most of the passenger traffic was generated in the pre-COVID months of January, February and early March.

[EZM]

We had a manager's meeting last week in Toronto - I flew WestJet direct and had no issues. Unfortunately most of the people who flew with AC got cancellations, delays, missed connections, were reconnected, and it was a total mess with AC.

Those people who fly regularly seem to get accommodated (and their issues resolved more quickly) as a priority versus those who fly only a few times a year. Felt bad for those people who ended up a day late bouncing all over the place to try and get to where they were going. Lost luggage, and overnight at the airport (as there were no hotels offered) ..... was crazy.

[midgetwaiter]

Originally Posted by Dean2

I have zero faith in Air Canada and even less in the groups responsible for baggage handing, security, customs and the rest of the airport services. More than 60% of all Government workers are still working full time from home, and we wonder why there are backlogs and endless lineups for everything they are supposed to deliver.

Why does it matter if 60% of government employees are working from home? That doesn’t include airport security and border guards, it’s back office admin functions. Lots of companies have shown no decline in productivity with those workers at home, for most duties like that it’s fine.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by midgetwaiter

Why does it matter if 60% of government employees are working from home? That doesn’t include airport security and border guards, it’s back office admin functions. Lots of companies have shown no decline in productivity with those workers at home, for most duties like that it’s fine.

Well the federal and provincial governments sure as hell have shown a drop in productivity. What is there that they deliver that is actually up to date, passports pals, building permits, business licenses, land titles, registry services. Literally every single service is way behind.

There are also a ton of private companies who demonstrate far gefraded customer service so if work from home is so great why the hell does it take so long to get response on emails or issues resolved. Phone response still has hours on wait to get through, inventories suck, and on it goes.

[oldgutpile]

didn't think their service could go down-hill from previous.
The Air Canada Motto has always been: "We're not happy, till you're not happy"!

[midgetwaiter]

Originally Posted by Dean2

There are also a ton of private companies who demonstrate far gefraded customer service so if work from home is so great why the hell does it take so long to get response on emails or issues resolved. Phone response still has hours on wait to get through, inventories suck, and on it goes.

Simple answer, job vacancies are at a record high.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/dail...20621b-eng.htm

Figuring out the cause of this isn’t as simple. The CERB payments are long gone so that’s not it although I’m sure it accelerated the issue. Whatever confluence of factors have lead to this worker shortage is the cause of a lot of your complaints.

[Hawkeye]

I flew from Munich to Toronto and on to Calgary on June 18.

When we were leaving Munich, the pilot indicated it would take us 8 hours to get to Toronto and he was correct within roughly plus or minus 5 minutes. Perhaps the folks at Toronto did not pay enough attention to that, as when we landed, there was no gate for us to park. After about 20 minutes or so, they allow us to park at a gate. HOWEVER, due to the congestion in the airport, they let us off the plane in groups, with those with the tightest connections allowed to leave first. Addressing airport congestion problems by keeping people on planes is NOT really addressing the problem.

I was scheduled to leave Toronto at 9:30, with a second flight due to leave 1 hour later. They decided to cancel the second flight and then the first flight was delayed nearly 1 hour while they figured out who was going on the first flight. How hard can it be to choose who gets a seat?

It's practically slap-stick comedy, but frankly, no one is laughing. Travelling has always had its own set of challenges, but it is becoming increasingly difficult, and not to mention, expensive. The disorganization and incompetence is beyond belief, not to mention the stupidity and arrogance of the federal minister that claimed that the delays in security screening at Canadian airports were due to "people not knowing how to line up and get through the security checks."
Sadly, it may well get worse before it improves
John

[Dynamic]

The entire world literally came for a stop in April/May 2020. The airline industry was essentially shut down. Imagine if your company shut down almost overnight. They lost a massive amount of knowledge and experience in a short time. Many people moved on.

So now on the other side of it the results should not be a surprise. People are travelling. Airlines have been trying to ramp up but now they are fighting to train the people just starting and get everyone "up to speed" who has worked there before. Of course travelling was going to be a gong show, how could it not? I'm guessing this is a last resort. For any industry to literally say enough is enough and willingly decided to stop providing a service says volumes of how messed up things are out there.

[bezzola]

I flew from timmins to Toronto then to Edmonton on the june 28 20 hrs and lost luggage
Told my boss I wouldn’t be going back to the mine till this **** is figured out.

[nelsonob1]

Unfortunately for some of us, they are the only choice.

[britman101]

Hard to believe but it sounds like it has gotten worse for Air Canada today. Hundreds of flights canceled and if you are stranded in Toronto sounds like you are in your own to figure out out how you are going to get to your destination. And if you want a refund from AC it sounds like a gong show. Be prepared for a fight to get your money back.

[ganderblaster]

If it’s like the restaurants when restrictions for unvaccinated lifted then airlines will be swamped with the restrictions for unvaccinated lifted as well.

[pikergolf]

Not just Air Canada, heard on a news report a lot of US airlines are facing the same challenges.

[kingrat]

Ok so they cant handle the amount of people that want to fly so instead of increasing flights they're cutting them? Am I reading that wrong?

[Twisted Canuck]

Originally Posted by kingrat

Ok so they cant handle the amount of people that want to fly so instead of increasing flights they're cutting them? Am I reading that wrong?

Amazing, isn't it? Any travelling I do in the foreseeable future, I will be driving. 54% of flights cancelled or delayed? When your odds are less then 50/50 to get where you paid to go, I'd say it's a bad bet.

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada...adian-airports

[Sundancefisher]

Originally Posted by britman101

Hard to believe but it sounds like it has gotten worse for Air Canada today. Hundreds of flights canceled and if you are stranded in Toronto sounds like you are in your own to figure out out how you are going to get to your destination. And if you want a refund from AC it sounds like a gong show. Be prepared for a fight to get your money back.

It’s 154 a day and 9500 flights total. It’s a gong show and likely they owe compensation.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/cana...ith-cancelled/

I think anyone wanting a job should go apply at the airport.

The country’s largest carrier said Wednesday night it will cut more than 15 per cent of its flights in July and August as the country’s flight network sags under an overwhelming travel resurgence.

The move will see more than 9,500 flights, or 154 per day on average, dropped from the airline’s schedule — already operating at just 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. The flights link mainly to the airline’s Toronto and Montreal hubs, and run along domestic or Canada-U.S. routes. No international flights other than those to the United States were among the cull.