Air Canada Rouge suspends operations
Air Canada will cease all operations of its low cost Air Canada Rouge brand indefinitely.
It will lead to the temporary lay-off of 80 workers starting on 8 February although the parent company says it ‘remains a part of Air Canada’s overall business strategy.’
It comes as airlines in Canada were forced to suspend all flights to Mexico and the Caribbean until at least 30 April.
Rouge services were suspended last year at the height of the pandemic, and only restarted again in November 2020.
Rouge operated various services to the Caribbean region including Mexico, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic.
Air Canada recently announced it would be lay off about 1,700 employees and reduced flight capacity.
Airlines are still in talks with the federal government over financial aid with Prime minister Justin Trudeau pledging to help the industry.
"Canada needs and will have a vibrant competitive airline industry after this is all done. That is one of our fundamental understandings," Trudeau told Reuters.
"We’re having great discussions with them (the airlines), we’re continuing to, but we’re just needing to make sure that the package is right for Canadians."
Written by Ray Montgomery, US Editor
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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