Toronto-based Porter Airlines pushes back restart date to May 19, WestJet continues layoffs

By The Canadian Press, News Staff

Porter Airlines is pushing back the date it plans to resume flights again.

The regional airline says it now plans to resume flights on May 19 instead of March 29, which would have been just over a year since it suspended operations due to the pandemic.

Airline chief executive Michael Deluce says the implementation of more restrictive travel rules by governments since the company’s last update makes an early spring restart unviable.

Porter has pushed back its restart date several times during the pandemic.

Deluce says Porter remains optimistic that things are moving in the right direction but says it is possible that the tentative restart date may also need to be changed if vaccinations don’t accelerate to enable the easing of travel restrictions.

Porter suspended operations on March 21, 2020, due to pandemic.

 

Another round of WestJet layoffs 

WestJet says it is laying off an undisclosed number of pilots sending out the notices ahead of the expiration of the current union contract which expires at the end of the month.

The airline announced in early February that it would lay off 120 cabin crew members blaming the measure on the lack of flights to Mexico and the Caribbean.

At the request of the federal government, WestJet and other Canadian carriers agreed to suspend all flights to Mexico and the Caribbean until April 30 in an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Airlines have been in negotiations with the government for months about the terms of a sector-specific aid package, with Ottawa saying that any federal funding for airlines would be contingent on their issuing full refunds to passengers who had their flights cancelled during the pandemic.


With files from 680 NEWS business editor Mike Eppel

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