******** — The governments of Canada and ****** have strengthened travel relations between the two countries with an expanded air transport agreement that will allow airlines like ********** and Air Transat to increase services.
The news was announced by the Honourable ****** Katz, ******’s Minister of Transport and Intelligence, and the Honourable Marc Garneau, Canada’s Minister of Transport, who recently travelled to ****** to hold key meetings with Canadian business leaders established in ******.
With this newly expanded agreement, designated airlines will be permitted to operate up to 19 passenger flights per week (up from 12). The new rights under the agreement are available for use by airlines immediately.
“The expanded air transport agreement between Canada and ****** is a positive development for air transport relations between our countries. We are pleased to expand this relationship with additional flexibility for airlines to serve this growing market,” said Garneau. “By making the movement of goods and people faster and easier, this expanded agreement will continue to facilitate trade and investment between Canada and ****** and help our businesses grow and succeed.”
On ******’s long-standing relationship with Canada, Katz said: “Canada is a true friend of the State of ****** and we are grateful for their deep support. The expanded agreement with Canada is another step in the liberalization policy that the Israeli Ministry of Transportation is leading in the aviation sector, and it opens additional possibilities to Israeli airlines for cooperation agreements with other foreign carriers in Europe and North America.”
Katz also noted that the implementation of the expanded agreement is expected to lead to an improvement in flight service, an increase in the level of competition among airlines, as well as a drop in airfares and an increase in passenger and cargo traffic to ******.
As Canada’s largest international *******, ********** welcomed the news, saying that under the revised agreement it will look to further expand its services between Canada and ******.
“********** welcomes the expansion of the Canada-****** air transport agreement as it will allow us to enhance our network and further advance our successful international expansion strategy. We look forward to increasing our services to ********, which currently comprise of daily nonstop service from Toronto and seasonal nonstop flights from Montreal. We thank the Canadian government and congratulate it on its success negotiating this new agreement, which will enable us to offer more travel options to our customers,” said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at **********.
The ******* has operated flights between Canada and ****** since 1995. In addition to its nonstop Toronto-******** year-round daily service, ********** launched seasonal, nonstop service between Montreal and ******** in June 2017 that resumes in May. It plans to increase the Montreal route to three-times weekly this summer, up from twice weekly last year.
Air Transat, a relatively new player in the *********** market, made its first foray into the region in summer 2017 with direct flights between Montreal and ********. Building on that success, it will offer three direct flights per week out of Montreal this summer, along with service from Toronto supported by connecting flights. The new program launches May 23.
“We congratulate the federal government for reaching an expanded air transport capacity arrangement with ******,” said Jean-Marc Eustache, President and Chief Executive Officer, Transat. “This deal will open up new development and growth possibilities for Canadian-based international carriers such as Air Transat.”
The original Canada-****** Air Transport Agreement was signed in 2015, and was reached under Canada’s Blue Sky Policy, which encourages long-term, sustainable competition and the development of international air services. Under this policy, the Government of Canada has concluded new or expanded air transport agreements covering more than 100 countries.
