Air Canada suspends flights to Trinidad, tourism officials express disappointment

Trinidad’s Tourism Minister Randall Mitchell has voiced his dissatisfaction following Air Canada’s recent decision to suspend its service to the island.

Air Canada, based in Montreal, confirmed the suspension on Tuesday. This decision comes merely three months after the airline resumed its flights to the country.

Challenges within Air Canada

“Air Canada appears to be having industrial relations challenges presently with ongoing pilot negotiations and/or industrial action, as well as, the availability of pilots to operate its equipment,” Mitchell said.

As a result of these challenges, Mitchell noted that the eagerly anticipated Toronto to Port of Spain route for the upcoming winter schedule, which was previously confirmed with local authorities and had begun ticket sales, will be canceled.

The airline stated, “Air Canada has currently suspended service between Toronto and Port of Spain for 2023. At this point in time, we have no plans for the resumption of this route.”

This announcement follows the airline’s commitment on May 25 of this year to provide four weekly flights to Piarco International Airport, operating with their Airbus A220-300 aircraft.

Caribbean Airlines' upcoming plans

Minister Mitchell highlighted that the state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) is gearing up to bolster its flight capacity on the Toronto-Port of Spain trajectory for the upcoming Christmas season, similar to their approach for the July/August holiday period.

Furthermore, Minister Mitchell shared that by the fourth quarter of 2024, CAL aims to incorporate three additional Boeing 737-8 aircraft into its existing fleet.

This addition would enable the airline to introduce more flights, diversify its flight routes, and potentially offer more competitive fares for its passengers.