The Civil Aviation Authority last night rejected, in talks in Ottawa, the demand of Air Canada to make seven weekly flights between the countries this winter, similar to its summer flight schedule. In response, Air Canada threatened to stop El Al flights to Toronto and Montreal. Israel and Canada locked horns on this matter a year ago, too, and the dispute was resolved through government intervention.
The Authority determined that Air Canada will make only four weekly flights to Israel this winter, as it did last year. CAA director Avner Yarkoni proposed that in the winter of 2000-2001, Air Canada would add one more flight, making six weekly flights in 2001-2002, and only in 2002-2003 increase the number of flights to seven a week.
The head of the negotiating team at the Canadian Foreign Ministry, Bill Diamond, rejected the proposal, demanding that the airline be allowed to make a daily flight to Israel regardless of season. He announced that he would advise the Canadian government of Israel's position.
The CAA maintained that El Al cannot competed with Air Canada, since it does not have code sharing agreements with other airlines. Air Canada argued that El Al’s failures do not concern Air Canada’s commercial considerations.
Air Canada general manager in Israel, Ruth Ben-Zur, reported: "The company is resolved to continued with seven weekly flights in winter too, despite the opposition of El Al, backed by the CAA. It is inconceivable that the CAA should hold us hostage to obtain commercial advantages for El-Al, and that because of its failures on the line, relations between the countries should be disrupted.
A senior source at the Canadian Aviation Authority reported" "We will ask the Israeli government to intervene, to prevent a needless crisis. If that request is turned down, the result will be that El Al will be prohibited from continuing to make flights to Toronto and Montreal".
Last year, Canada threatened to forbid El Al to fly over Canada en route for the United States.
Published by Israel's Business Arena August 12, 1999