An overview of the air cargo sector in Canada, the growth in air cargo traffic and the state of affairs of the sector today.  Perspectives were provided by the freight forwarding community, which expressed concern about a lack of capacity from Canada, as well as airports and air carriers.

Air Canada late last month announced a partnership with Zerofootprint, a not-for-profit organization that operates carbon offset programs.

Customers booking travel on Air Canada, Air Canada Jazz or their regional partners through www.aircanada.com will have an option to purchase a carbon offset for their trip. They will find information about carbon offsets, a calculator to determine the amount of carbon dioxide their trip will generate and the cost to offset it, and a way to pay the cost of offsetting their trip either with their ticket purchase or at another time.

For example, Air Canada estimates it would cost about $19.20 for a passenger to offset their share of carbon emissions on a return flight from Toronto to London and $12.80 for a return flight from Vancouver to Montreal.

Air Canada says it also has instituted an active weight reduction program and adopted more fuel-efficient procedures for take-offs and landings; reduced engine usage on the ground during taxiing and ground delays and cut fuel consumption in the air with more efficient flight plans; expanded its on-board recycling program; employed hybrid technology for ground support vehicles; and continually upgraded its fleet, most recently with the addition of new Embraer and Boeing 777 aircraft, with a resulting 28% improvement in fuel efficiency since 1990 and 82% since 1970.

In addition, Air Canada says it is a lead participant in a voluntary agreement between Canadian carriers and the Canadian government to achieve fuel efficiency improvements of 1.1% per year over the period from 1990 to 2012.

Air Canada recently announced two executive appointments in the airline's commercial division.

Sean Menke, formerly executive vice president and chief commercial officer, will become executive vice president, commercial strategy. In his new role, Mr. Menke will focus on long-term commercial strategy, including distribution and the implementation of the airline's new Polaris reservation management system.

Benjamin Smith, formerly president and chief executive officer, Air Canada Vacations (ACV), is appointed executive vice president, commercial, and will assume Mr. Menke's current responsibilities.

Both Mr. Menke and Mr. Smith will report directly to Air Canada President and CEO Montie Brewer and the appointments were effective May 22.

Reuters reports that the

"In the next 12 to 18 months we will start a business-only airline," a Virgin spokesman is quoted as saying. "We'll serve New York initially and then other U.S. cities."

Virgin reportedly plans flights to New York from Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Milan and Zurich, as well as from London with a fleet that could include some of the 787s ordered recently for Virgin Atlantic.

ICAOis still considering the elements for guidelines to be included in a letter to all states on the carriage of Liquids Gels and Aerosols (LAGS).  But the ICAO Council decided recently to delay a final decision until the European Commission votes on an amendment to its regulation on May 30.

ACI, given the developments in Europe and concerns with aspects of the ICAO proposal as drafted, lobbied hard for a postponement in the ICAO discussions.  A number of European states also supported a delay. 

The ICAO Council, in its preliminary discussion, took note of the developments in Europe including concerns expressed about the ICAO draft paper and decided that the best way forward is to establish a small working group with participation by the states most interested.  This will include the U.S., UK, Singapore and one or two others, who will work to come up with a consensus on LAGs that will be workable and efficient in practice. 

ACI also will have an opportunity to forward views for consideration.  The Council has, however, made it clear that a final decision will be taken by the end of its current session on June 22.

Specifications for certification have been in place since 2001 and the last ICAO assembly had stressed the need for implementation by states and for the introduction of Safety Management Systems (SMS).

Although only 87 states responded to the survey, a total of 401 out of 680 of their international aerodromes had been certified while SMS had been implemented at 45 states and 258 aerodromes. 

A look at the results of the ICAO safety audits also revealed that the level of implementation is low. 

The Air Navigation Commission noted its concern with what it described as a rather dismal picture and has requested that a strong message be delivered at the ICAO Assembly urging that these requirements be put in place.  ACI has offered to assist in pushing states to adopt the required actions.