From Vancouver Sun – link to source story
Booking info shows no economy seats available on Air Canada’s Delhi to Toronto flights until late May
Bryan Passifiume • April 21, 2021
Anybody hoping to book a seat from Delhi to Toronto on Canada’s largest airline over the next four weeks is pretty much out of luck.
And as Air Canada continues to operate near-or-at capacity flights from world COVID-19 hotspots, concern is growing among those who crew them.
Crew members concerned as Air Canada sells out flights from COVID hotspots
Air Canada flight crew members reported to the Toronto Sun that there’s widespread anxiety concerning flights from Delhi — which since February, has grown into Canada’s single-highest source of international passengers infected with the potentially deadly respiratory disease.
At least half of the four-daily non-stop flights from India’s capital this month carried COVID-positive passengers, according to information posted online by Health Canada.
Between April 1-19, both Air Canada and Air India operated 47 infected flights from Delhi to Canadian airports.
India’s second wave — fuelled by the virulent “‘double-mutant” B.1.617 variant — has unleashed a nightmare in the South Asian country with 300,000 new cases reported on Wednesday.
The 166 infected international flights that landed in Canada so far this month include 27 from the United States, 14 from Paris, 13 from Doha, Qatar, and eight from Frankfurt — destinations served by Air Canada.
One crew member told the Sun Delhi-assigned crews are fearful as they watch co-workers book off to quarantine or recover from COVID — a sentiment shared by their union, which has fielded “multiple” complaints from members regarding those flights.https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q7M5YHMeHWY?embed_config={%27relatedChannels%27:%20[],%27autonav%27:true}&autoplay=0&playsinline=1&enablejsapi=1
“While it has been on our radar as a hotspot for a long time, the union is increasingly deeply concerned about this route,” said CUPE spokesperson Hugh Pouliot.
Booking information shows no available tickets on Toronto-bound AC43 from Delhi for the rest of this month, except for limited business class seats on April 23, 25 and 27.
No economy seats on that flight are available until May 24.
Inquires to Air Canada by the Sun went unreturned by deadline.
Canadian officials have dismissed growing calls to ban flights from India.
On Wednesday, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam gave the first hint the government is considering changing course, describing India as an “emerging situation” under close observation.
“We will be doing that risk assessment again, and using the data that we have now collected at the border to inform our next steps,” she said.
Officials like Tam, Health Minister Patty Hajdu and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau describe Canada’s borders among the world’s strongest, key to preventing spread from international travel.
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Source: https://canadianaviationnews.wordpress.com/2021/04/21/crew-members-concerned-as-air-canada-sells-out-flights-from-covid-hotspots/
