Air Canada CEO sees 'darkest period' in aviation history

Air Canada on Monday announced a billion-dollar loss and announced mandatory temperature checks for customers amid the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re now living through the darkest period ever in the history of commercial aviation, significantly worse than 9/11, SARS and the 2008 financial crisis,” CEO Calin Rovinescu said Monday. The US-Canada border remains closed to all nonessential travel. Since mid-March, the airline has slashed its flight schedule by more than 90% and grounded more than 200 aircraft, cutting service internationally to just five airports. The company burned C$22m Canadian in cash per day in March. Air Canada said it lost C$1.05b in Q1, compared with a profit of $345m in the same quarter last year as governments imposed travel restrictions around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The airline said remaining flights will be subject to an infrared temperature check at all airports. It already requires customers to wear face coverings. <br/>