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Air Canada has resumed service between Canada and Israel following a six-month pause. The airline says flights between Toronto and Tel Aviv resumed April 9, and a once-weekly flight between Montreal and Tel Aviv will resume in May. The Montreal-based Air Canada, like most other international carriers, suspended service to Ben Gurion International Airport on Oct. 8 after the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas. The airline says that in preparation for resuming service, it has undertaken an extensive safety analysis, including consultations with government authorities, unions representing its flight crews, and security experts. The federal government still advises Canadians avoid non-essential travel to Israel due to the ongoing hostilities and the unpredictable security situation. A number of international carriers, including United Airlines and Ryanair, have also recently announced the resumption of service to Israel. The airline says that in preparation for resuming service, it has undertaken an extensive safety analysis, including consultations with government authorities, unions representing its flight crews, and security experts. The federal government still advises Canadians avoid non-essential travel to Israel due to the ongoing hostilities and the unpredictable security situation.<br/>

Air Canada will resume seasonal service between Vancouver International Airport (YVR) and Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) from October as the carrier continues an Asia-Pacific push with a particular focus on Southeast Asia. The announcement regarding the YVR-BKK route, which will be the only nonstop connection between North America and Bangkok, came just days after Air Canada launched exclusive service between YVR and Singapore. Over the past two years, the airline has operated the YVR-BKK route from December to March, but it has moved up the start of flights for the upcoming northern hemisphere winter season. From Oct. 27, Air Canada will fly the YVR-BKK route 3X-weekly, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). From December through March 2025, the route will be operated 5X-weekly. The airline will use a Boeing 787-9 configured with 298 seats, including 30 in business class and 21 in premium economy, on the YVR-BKK service. “The continuation of this service with an advanced start date signifies the strong partnership between our two countries and opens up new avenues for travelers to explore the diverse offerings of Thailand,” Chompu Marusachot, the director of TAT’s New York office, said in a statement.<br/>

Germany’s Lufthansa said on Wednesday it suspended flights to and from Tehran from April 6 until probably April 11, “due to the current situation in the Middle East”. Countries in the region and the United States have been on high alert and preparing for a possible attack by Iran in response to a suspected bombing by Israeli warplanes of the Iranian consulate in Syria on April 1. “We are constantly monitoring the situation in the Middle East and are in close contact with the authorities. The safety of our guests and crew members is Lufthansa’s top priority,” a spokesperson for the company told Reuters. The spokesperson said the company did not proactively announce the suspension when it went into effect on Saturday. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said on Wednesday that Israel “must be punished and it shall be” for attacking the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus. In an apparent response to Khamenei, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that Israel will respond if Iran attacks Israel from its own soil. The United States and its allies believe major missile or drone strikes by Iran or its proxies against military and government targets in Israel are imminent, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday evening, citing U.S. and Israeli security sources. Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards shot down a Ukraine International Airlines passenger flight on Jan. 8, 2020 shortly after it took off from Tehran Airport at a time of heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over the killing of a top Iranian Guards commander in a U.S. drone strike at Baghdad airport. Later, Tehran said that the shooting-down of the Ukrainian was a “disastrous mistake” by forces who were on high alert. In retaliation for the killing of Qasem Soleimani, head of an elite overseas unit of the Guards, Iranian forces fired missiles at military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq on Jan. 3.<br/>

Portuguese flag-carrier TAP is to expand its training facility at Cascais in west Lisbon, to accommodate additional simulators and other equipment. The Cascais facility – located at the district’s municipal aerodrome – complements TAP’s primary training centre at the main Lisbon airport. Under an agreement with the local authority, the facility will undergo a two-phase expansion. It has two simulators – for the Airbus A330 and A320 – and initially a third, also for the A320, will be introduced. But the second phase of the development will bring in another four simulators, giving the facility seven in total. TAP says these simulators will be installed “depending on partnerships with third parties”. “Our training ecosystem here in Portugal has the opportunity to create a new centre of excellence, instead of paying for expensive services abroad,” says TAP president Luis Rodrigues. Training space will be created for cabin crew and aircraft technicians. Facilities will also be available for TAP’s maintenance division for such activities as engine servicing. Portugalia’s Embraer E-Jet fleet is set to benefit from the measures. “Both the areas of training and maintenance and engineering are of great added value, so it makes sense for us to do this In Portugal as we value our people,” adds Rodrigues.<br/>