Increased demand and Covid-19’s control measures led the Canadian airline to reactivate the São Paulo-Toronto route in September
By Sérgio Siscaro
Toronto, capital of the Canadian province of Ontario, has once again become closer to Brazil. In early September, the airline Air Canada announced the return of three weekly daytime flights in São Paulo – thus resuming operations that had been suspended since last year, due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. And, given the prospect of an increase in the number of people immunized, one more frequency to Toronto should be added by the company in November.
In an interview given to the Brazilian press in early September, the airline’s vice president of international sales, Virgílio Russi, and the general director of Air Canada in Brazil, Giancarlo Takegawa, informed that the resumption of the route between São Paulo and Montreal , in the province of Quebec, as early as December 8th. As with the Toronto route, there will be three daily flights a week. “For us, Brazil is a key market. We are very optimistic about this recovery – and we are already seeing very strong growth in flight bookings,” said Russi.
The São Paulo-Toronto route leaves Cumbica airport, in Guarulhos, at 9:35 pm on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays; the Toronto-São Paulo flight departs from the Toronto Pearson Airport every Monday, Thursday and Saturday at 08:05 pm. Air Canada uses a Boeing 787-900 Dreamliner aircraft, with 298 seats.
Optimism
Takegawa added by noting how quickly demand for flights to Canada recovered after July 19 – the date on which the Canadian government announced it would reopen its borders to immunized US citizens on August 9 and to the rest of the world on September 7.
“The next day we already noticed the reaction in reservations. At the time, we had an occupancy of 15% for the month of September; today it is almost 100%. Brazil has fantastic strength to react to negative situations, wake up and grow quickly. We have seen a great demand in the market made up of Brazilians studying in Canada – especially now, with the start of the term in September. And also, the segment of friends and relatives of Brazilians living in Canada, and the tourism market in leisure, especially during the winter months”, he stated at the time.
Pandemic care
The return of Air Canada’s operations is accompanied by the incorporation of health control measures. Passengers must prove that they have gone through the complete vaccination schedule with two of the vaccines used in Brazil and accepted in Canada – AstraZeneca and Pfizer (CoronaVac is not on the list). In addition, some passengers will be randomly selected to perform molecular tests on the first day of their stay in Canada.
Russi also recalled Travel Ready, an interactive online tool that helps passengers plan their trips – and also get the necessary information about travel documentation, Covid-19 testing requirements, and more. The platform is available at http://aircanada.com/travelready.
Additionally, the passenger may access the ArriveCAN platform (or download the app) to provide their health information; it is available at https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/ coronavirus-disease-covid-19/splash-arrivecan.html. Another technological solution launched by the airline allows passengers to digitally read and upload their test results, so that it can be validated even before arrival at the airport.
The executive also informed that, as of October 31, Air Canada will demand that all its employees be fully immunized.
