Frustration, anticipation mark industry response to budget's flight delay fixes
The federal government has air travel on its radar after laying out plans in its budget to speed up airport security screening and reduce flight delays, but industry and advocates remain skeptical. Tabled Tuesday by the Liberals following a year of travel turmoil, the budget promises $1.8b over five years for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) to improve passenger screening and shore up security at airports. It also proposes a new rule requiring airlines and airports to share and report data as a way to cut delays and bolster co-ordination within the industry. The budget further allows the transport minister to impose a charge on carriers to help cover the costs of resolving passenger complaints. In theory, the measure would incentivize carriers to brush up their service and thus reduce grievances against them. Both steps would require additional legislation. The aviation industry had a mixed response to the budget. Jeff Morrison, who heads the National Airlines Council of Canada, said it marks a "missed opportunity" to give the sector a boost and includes "no significant measures to improve the journey" for travellers. "As one of the hardest hit industries during the COVID pandemic, NACC hoped for more concrete measures to strengthen the overall air travel system through investment to support infrastructure modernization," he said in a statement from the organization that represents four of the country's biggest carriers, including Air Canada and WestJet. The $400-m-plus in rent that Ottawa collects each year from airports should be reinvested in them, he added. Monette Pasher, head of the Canadian Airports Council, struck a lighter tone, saying the group is encouraged by what she called "incremental" steps to help the sector and improve the passenger experience. "Airports across the country welcome these new measures," she said. "However, there is still more work ahead to get airports fully down the runway to recovery."<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2023-03-30/general/frustration-anticipation-mark-industry-response-to-budgets-flight-delay-fixes
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Frustration, anticipation mark industry response to budget's flight delay fixes
The federal government has air travel on its radar after laying out plans in its budget to speed up airport security screening and reduce flight delays, but industry and advocates remain skeptical. Tabled Tuesday by the Liberals following a year of travel turmoil, the budget promises $1.8b over five years for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) to improve passenger screening and shore up security at airports. It also proposes a new rule requiring airlines and airports to share and report data as a way to cut delays and bolster co-ordination within the industry. The budget further allows the transport minister to impose a charge on carriers to help cover the costs of resolving passenger complaints. In theory, the measure would incentivize carriers to brush up their service and thus reduce grievances against them. Both steps would require additional legislation. The aviation industry had a mixed response to the budget. Jeff Morrison, who heads the National Airlines Council of Canada, said it marks a "missed opportunity" to give the sector a boost and includes "no significant measures to improve the journey" for travellers. "As one of the hardest hit industries during the COVID pandemic, NACC hoped for more concrete measures to strengthen the overall air travel system through investment to support infrastructure modernization," he said in a statement from the organization that represents four of the country's biggest carriers, including Air Canada and WestJet. The $400-m-plus in rent that Ottawa collects each year from airports should be reinvested in them, he added. Monette Pasher, head of the Canadian Airports Council, struck a lighter tone, saying the group is encouraged by what she called "incremental" steps to help the sector and improve the passenger experience. "Airports across the country welcome these new measures," she said. "However, there is still more work ahead to get airports fully down the runway to recovery."<br/>
