Airlines cancel flights, call for travel restriction rollbacks des[ glimmers of hope

WestJet has cancelled 20% of its flights in March, extending schedule cuts from February amid ongoing uncertainty that continues to drain demand. Interim CEO Harry Taylor said travel advisories and testing requirements were meant to be temporary, but that after two years the industry crisis has come to a head. "It is disappointing that Canada remains stagnant in its approach and continues to make travel inaccessible and punitive for Canadians and inbound tourists," he said Monday. Echoing demands from Air Canada and Toronto's Pearson airport last month, WestJet called for randomized testing upon arrival only, rather than mandatory molecular testing before takeoff and after landing for fully vaccinated international passengers. The Calgary-based company also wants an end to quarantines for travellers awaiting results when they return from abroad. Canada remains the only G7 country to require pre-departure and on-arrival molecular testing, Taylor noted, adding Ottawa must outline a recovery path for the travel and tourism industry. Since early November, WestJet and budget subsidiary Swoop have cancelled 11,285 trips that they had planned for March, or 48%. Meanwhile, compared with its plan in mid-October, Air Canada has scrapped 16,617 or 41% of its scheduled March flights, according to flight data firm Cirium.<br/>