The report, issued by the Health Canada-appointed Testing and Screening Expert Advisory Panel of physicians, makes recommendations for continued testing and quarantine measures for international travellers, with differentiated treatment of travellers based on vaccination status. It would hopefully streamline border processing times for passengers as travel restarts in a safe manner, while protecting Canadians.
“Canada’s airports appreciate the work of the expert panel over the past few months to gather scientific evidence on the effectiveness of measures in Canada and elsewhere,” said CAC President Daniel-Robert Gooch. “A sustainable approach, which can handle growing traveller volumes as more Canadians are vaccinated and begin travelling again, is essential to a swift recovery of Canada’s air sector, and the hundreds of thousands of Canadian jobs dependent on international trade and the visitor economy.”
Several of the recommendations, including eliminating the hotel quarantine and provisions on arrivals testing, could be implemented in a way that would alleviate crowding while supporting growing traveller volumes.
“Given continued arrivals PCR testing over an extended period of time is prominent in the Expert Panel recommendations, ensuring testing can be done effectively and efficiently remains a focus of Canada’s airports. Allowing testing to be completed at the travellers’ quarantine location instead of the airport, as the report suggests, would be a big improvement for travellers and alleviate airport crowding,” said Mr. Gooch.
Two primary concerns of airports that were out of scope for the panel but must be addressed are 1) The 2-metre physical distancing requirement within terminals, and 2) Funneling of international travellers to just four airports. Even with international traveller volumes at just five per cent of pre-pandemic levels at the four airports, managing capacity has been a challenge. Allowing masked-travellers to be spaced at 1-metre apart, such as is in place in Europe, and fly directly to their destination, would allow for a more manageable traffic flow as volumes increase.
“Ultimately, we need a plan from the federal government, and an official overall roadmap for restart,” said Mr. Gooch. “Canada’s airports are eager to engage quickly with the Government of Canada on developing this plan, so that it is informed by the industry’s operational insight on the most effective ways to put these recommendations into action.”
Canada’s Air Connectivity and Competitiveness at Risk: Report
Air transportation is an important industry in Canada, facilitating the movement of people and cargo, and is a catalyst for other industries such as tourism. The sector currently accounts for 256,000 direct jobs and contributes $23.4 billion in direct Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The webinar brought together leaders from the aviation and business communities to focus public attention on the importance of an air sector recovery and why it matters to every Canadian traveller, business and community.
The starting point for the discussions was a newly released whitepaper, Holding Pattern: Canada Needs a Swift Recovery and Competitive Air Sector produced for the Canadian Airports Council, which examined the issues that will affect air recovery in Canada, including increased costs to travellers and reduced connectivity. The paper noted that a 25 percent increase in the price of travel would lead to decline of 20 percent in passenger demand. In turn this will impact connectivity, which has plummeted by as much as 90 percent in some regions while leaving other regions isolated with effectively no service at all.
“Passenger throughput at Canada’s airports sits currently at roughly 10 percent of the levels seen in 2019,” said Joyce Carter, CAC Chair and President and CEO of Halifax International Airport Authority. “Until the lost connectivity is restored, many regions will not see the economic benefits associated with air travel – including the spin-off benefits for other industries.”
The cost of maintaining community access with almost no revenue has forced Canada’s airports into a deep financial hole that the government has yet to fully address. COVID-19 travel restrictions have already led to airport losses of $5.5 billion in revenue to the end of this year. On top of that, airports have accumulated an additional $2.8 billion in new debt directly related to operating during the pandemic. This new debt, and its carrying costs, will have to be repaid, piling on additional costs on the price of air travel.
According to the whitepaper, the air sector’s current financial position and resulting cost-saving measures are likely to have an impact on the ability of Canadian airlines and airports to compete with their U.S. and foreign counterparts. This situation poses a real threat, as other major aviation countries are already on their way to recovery, while Canada’s borders have remained closed to international travellers since March 2020.
Webinar participants identified several actions that would reduce the risk that accessing flights or destinations would be more difficult or more expensive for that critical connectivity which will be required for passengers and cargo alike.
Summing up the discussions, Bob Sartor, President and CEO of The Calgary Airport Authority said “Aviation is the connective tissue that helps hold this huge country together and keeps our economy growing. Canadians need a dynamic and financially competitive aviation sector to reap the rewards which will come with a recovery.”
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