by Jim Byers
Last updated: 8:11 PM ET, Thu May 27, 2021
The president and CEO of Air Canada says bookings are picking up and that he's hopeful about this year.
"There's no doubt it's going to be a better summer than last year," Michael Rousseau said during a Canadian Airports Council panel discussion on Thursday. "It's going to be more domestic-based than international-based."
"There may be some international travel, depending on how fast we change quarantine rules or we change rules on vaccinated versus unvaccinated passengers," Rosseau said. "I think certainly it will be stronger domestically, but that requires our provinces, and that's one of our complexities, is that provinces control health and they have the ability to put restrictions in place like we're seeing in Eastern Canada. So, hopefully all of Canada opens up by July 1."
His comments came just a few hours before a federal government COVID-19 panel suggested dramatic changes to Canada's quarantine rules, including an end to the three-day quarantine hotel requirement.
Rousseau also touched on the U.S. border during the panel discussion.
"That would also provide some benefit to the summer" if the border closure wasn't rolled over for another month on June 21. "But, again, that would depend on establishing protocols potentially for vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers."
Andy Gibbons, Vice President Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs for WestJet, said the big factor in his mind will be Canadian public opinion.
"It's currently our assessment as a company that that's going to change very, very quickly. I think when people come out of COVID and their second doses are scheduled in their laptops and written on their fridge, they're going to ask why Canada has 13 different border policies and 13 different travel policies and they're going to ask where their vaccination certificate is … and why their cousin Tammy in the UK has one and she went skiing in Switzerland, and all these things."
Gibbons said WestJet and others in the industry need guidance from the Trudeau government about when things can reopen.
"All we really want is travel guidance updated based on the latest science," Gibbons said. "In other countries that's a routine exercise. In this country, that has not been the case."
David Goldstein, CEO of Travel Alberta, said Canadian hotels will have trouble hiring workers after the pandemic and that it might take 45 to 60 days to reach proper staffing levels.
"I don't want to sound like I'm desperate, but when you look at the bulk of leisure travel, which is the summer traveller, where do we stand 60 days from now? We've lost another summer."
Philippe Rainvile, President Aeroports de Montreal, said he needs two months to hire workers back.
"The minimum, minimum, is 60 days."
Rousseau said he'd like to see provincial and especially the Canadian government "reinforcing that travel is a good thing., that it's good for the economy, it's good for customers, it's good for employment."
He added that one issue down the road is that airlines that have received government assistance will have to repay their loans, with interest. That could mean reduced investment or higher ticket prices, he warned.
The Canadian Airports Council on Thursday issued a white paper on the state of the aviation industry in Canada. Following that report, they issued a statement saying that action is needed now to save Canada's aviation industry.
"Without a strong federal commitment to a comprehensive aviation recovery plan, both the air sector and Canada's overall competitiveness face considerable risk, according to aviation and business industry leaders who participated in a May 27 forum that examined post-COVID air connectivity and passenger costs. Air transportation is an important industry in Canada, facilitating the movement of people and cargo, and is a catalyst for other industries such as tourism. The sector currently accounts for 256,000 direct jobs and contributes $23.4 billion in direct Gross Domestic Product (GDP)."
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