Air Canada expects flight, baggage delays to ease this year

Air Canada said on Wednesday it was expecting flight and baggage delays to subside through the rest of this year and next as staffing levels improve.

The carrier also expects to see an uptick in business travel after the Labour Day holiday, Chief Financial Officer Amos Kazzaz said at an investor conference organized by brokerage Cowen.

Last month at a conference in New York, Kazzaz said he expected the problems plaguing the airline and the industry to ease into 2023.

Canadian travellers passing through hubs such as Toronto’s Pearson International Airport this summer were greeted vexed by long lineups to clear customs and security on top of delays or cancellations to their flights.

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Staffing shortages were identified as a chief cause of these headaches, as the removal of pandemic-related restrictions spurred a rush back to summer travel that overwhelmed airlines and travel services.

Air Canada responded to the system shock by slashing its summer flight schedule and most airlines, as well as federal agencies in charge of customs and security at airports, also ramped up their staff levels to run flights and speed up processing times.