An Air Canada flight taxis to a runway as a WestJet flight takes off at Vancouver International Airport, in Richmond, B.C., on March 20, 2020.his transportation study tabled in the House of Commons in 2016: “Canadians continue to pay relatively high airfares, in part due to the lack of competition on many routes.”
Easing costs on these fronts could have a galvanizing effect, allowing airports to reduce fees paid by travellers and airlines. As Mr. Emerson put it eight years ago: “Canada is unique among its competitors in charging onerous rents and taxes that undermine competitiveness.” The industry is in retreat. In February, discount carrier Lynx Air filed for creditor protection and ended its operations. Meanwhile, after the difficult pandemic years, Air Canada has cut back in the west and WestJet has done likewise in the east. It’s: as of late last year, Air Canada and WestJet had cut about a quarter of their domestic seats, compared with before the pandemic., similar to its peer agencies in other countries. That change is part of the overhaul of Canada’s competition laws.