New travel rules requiring a negative COVID-19 test from passengers before they step on a flight to Canada come into effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Jan. 7.

Transport Minister Marc Garneau laid out the requirement as he announced that Ottawa is ready to respond to the sector's desperate pleas for federal assistance by launching talks later this week.

Garneau expressed dismay this week at a council meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organization that more than three months have passed since Iran told the council it would give the flight-data and cockpit voice recorders to Ukraine within 14 days.

The inquiry follows reports from Global News alleging that Air Canada is intentionally mis-referencing flights or misrepresenting the cause of delays to avoid paying compensation.

Amid nearly 10,000 complaints filed by airline passengers, critics are calling on the Trudeau government to investigate major air carriers.

Canadians have filed nearly 10,000 air travel complaints — an "unprecedented volume" — since the new rules came into effect, the Canadian Transportation Agency said.

Speaking at Pearson Airport outside Toronto, Transport Minister Marc Garneau released an updated version of Air Passenger Protection Regulations, first unveiled last December.

People are now able to travel on Lake Muskoka, the Moon River and the north and south branches of the Muskoka River due to improved safety conditions.

“It’s probably our number one priority as a government at the moment," said Transport Minister Marc Garneau.

The Public Prosecution Service of Canada says the company was sentenced Thursday in Saint John, N.B., provincial court.