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United CEO Scott Kirby said Monday that 98.5% of its US-based employees have been vaccinated against Covid-19. The carrier expects to see vaccine totals “north of 99%” when it tallies final figures for how many employees have complied with its mandate to be vaccinated or face termination. United had set a Sept. 27 deadline for all US-based workers to receive at least an initial dose of one of the two-shot, US-approved Covid-19 vaccines or the single Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Kirby says the airline has banned 700 passengers to date for not wearing a mask in airports and in flight as required by federal rules. <br/>

Canada is trying to use the lure of travel perks to convince America's frequent-flying elite to fly north on Air Canada, as the country steps up efforts to revive crucial traffic from the United States, a Canadian official said. COVID-19 has battered travel from Canada's largest tourism market. During the first half of 2021, Canada had only about 178,000 overnight arrivals from the United States, compared with 6.8m during the same period in 2019, according to government data. To help reverse that decline, government tourism body Destination Canada on Monday rolled out its first campaign targeting US frequent flyers, in partnership with the country's largest carrier. It is part of broader, C$14m efforts by the tourism commission to boost traffic after Canada recently opened its borders to vaccinated travellers. It is not clear how much the specific frequent flyer campaign will cost. "This is super-focused in terms of our ability to reach frequent flyers," Gloria Loree, Destination Canada's chief marketing officer told Reuters, ahead of the launch. Under the plan, up to 20,000 US frequent flyers with carriers like American Airlines could get matching status when flying Air Canada north of the border.<br/>

Direct passenger flights to Canada from India resumed Monday as Transport Canada lifted a months-long ban imposed due to high COVID-19 case counts. In a post on Twitter, Transport Canada said direct flights from India can land in Canada, but travellers must have a negative COVID-19 test from an approved laboratory at the New Delhi airport no more than 18 hours before their departure. "Beginning at 00:01 EDT on Sept. 27, direct flights from India can land in Canada with additional public health measures in place," the department said. "Travellers must have proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test from the approved Genestrings Laboratory at the Delhi airport taken within 18 hours of the scheduled departure of their direct flight to Canada." Air Canada flight data shows that a direct flight from Delhi landed at Toronto's international airport early Monday morning. Transport Canada announced last week an extension to the ban on all direct commercial and private passenger flights to Canada from India through Sunday. The department said that following the end of the ban, airlines would be checking travellers’ COVID-19 test results and confirming that fully vaccinated passengers had uploaded their information to the ArriveCAN mobile app or website. Travellers who come to Canada from India via an indirect route must obtain, within 72 hours of departure, a negative COVID-19 molecular test from a third country, other than India, before continuing their journey to Canada.<br/>

Passengers of Thai Airways International and Thai Smile Airways are now being offered a drive-thru Covid-19 testing service prior to travelling to on their flights. Intended for passengers who have already purchased air tickets for both domestic and international flights, the service is provided at the headquarters of Thai Airways International on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, said Suvadhana Sibunruang, acting CEO of THAI, Monday. The company Monday signed a memorandum of understanding with Professional Laboratory Management Corp Co, a certified medical laboratory hired to organise the drive-thru Covid-19 tests for passengers of the two airlines. Available until Dec 31, the service hours are from 8am until 2pm from Monday to Saturday, said Suvadhana, adding that an appointment for the drive-thru service is required to be booked at least two days in advance. More details about the Covid-19 testing service can be obtained on the website www.thaiairways.com.<br/>

Air New Zealand has announced it's added a fresh set of flights ahead of Tuesday night's release of more MIQ rooms by the New Zealand Government. An additional set of 'red' flights have been added to the airline's schedule in December for customers wanting to return from Australia before the end of the year. Red flights mean passengers must quarantine, green flights are quarantine free. The airline's 'red' services will have flight numbers beginning with NZ8, the 'green' services will start with NZ1. As quarantine-free travel with Australia is paused up until the end of November, the airline still has green flights available to book from December. However, these flights will be cancelled if the quarantine-free travel pause is extended. If customers currently booked on a green flight wish to transfer their booking to a red flight, the airline recommends they go online to put their flight into credit and then use the credit to rebook onto a red service. The airline's red flights from Australia to New Zealand are available to book now. Customers will have 48 hours following securing an MIQ room to book their flights. Air New Zealand Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty says so long as there are MIQ spaces available in New Zealand, the airline will continue to operate flights to reconnect customers with their friends and whānau.<br/>

The New Zealand government and Air New Zealand have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the feasibility of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production. The carrier and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment are looking to run a closed request-for-proposal process, to invite “leaders in innovation to demonstrate the feasibility of operating a SAF plant at a commercial scale in New Zealand”. “Commercially producing SAF in New Zealand would not only help lower New Zealand’s emissions and reduce waste but will also create jobs and economic opportunities in our regional communities,” adds Air New Zealand. Both parties will also work to address the challenges posed by aviation carbon emissions, as well as build up a SAF industry in New Zealand. Says David Morgan, Air New Zealand’s chief operational integrity and safety officer: “[SAF] is critical to aviation decarbonisation and can reduce aviation emissions by more than 80%. But we can’t do it alone. Air New Zealand and [the ministry] have a shared interest in developing a SAF supply chain in New Zealand and we are confident this process will bring us one step closer to it being a reality.”<br/>