To tell you
the truth, I was surprised to learn so much from “The Future of Air Travel:
A Talk with Roberta of Air Canada” on Thursday, December 10th, 2020. Since the start
of the COVID-19 pandemic I’ve read a lot of news, especially reports on
scientific studies and national containment measures, and I’ve thought long and
hard about my protracted, involuntary absence from Canada and when/how I can
travel to Vancouver again. I’m sure many of you understand how much I miss it!
Due to a
technical glitch, the meeting didn’t get recorded, so I thought I’d share some
of my notes with all of you. Roberta Cavallini gave us a very clear overview of
all the bio-safety measures that have been implemented by Air Canada, including
advanced technologies like electrostatic disinfection, HEPA filtration, and
contactless protocols for checking in, luggage tagging and in-flight service.
The biggest
take-away for me, personally, was that Air Canada will continue to waive all rebooking fees for
its customers into 2021. Having heard from others that the dates, times and routes of
booked flights have repeatedly been changed – if not completely cancelled – by
airlines this year, I kept wondering how I could book anything in advance, like
I used to. I’ve always looked for the best price possible for my trips, which
meant taking a risk on dates far into the future and worrying about the need to
pay if I had to cancel or change the date for some reason. Roberta encouraged
us to make bookings early and take advantage of any airfare sales that come up,
because Air Canada will honour that price even if you need or just want to make
changes later – provided the seasonality of the fare is respected. As most
members know, Air Canada Italy has been a CCR sponsor for many years. This
doesn’t just mean we get a discount if we book through Roberta. It means we get personal
assistance with any issues that may come up, now more than ever, so make sure
you write to her at infoitaly@aircanada.ca. But remember you have to be a
current CCR member to qualify for discounts.
Roberta
also had great news for people travelling to Ontario and Quebec as she
confirmed Air Canada will resume regular direct flights from Rome starting the 1st of March. There will be 4 weekly flights to Toronto and 3 to
Montreal.
Readers of
the CCR newsletter will probably have noticed the information from the Canadian
embassy that we’ve included in the last few weeks regarding new requirements
for travellers to Canada, including the use of the ArriveCAN app. As one person told us, her
recent experience shows how important it is to successfully submit all your
details in advance through the app. Otherwise you’ll have to spend a lot of time making
daily calls to government health authorities to report on your condition
throughout your quarantine.
Speaking of
the “self-isolation” period required in Canada, Roberta mentioned that in
September the airline partnered with Toronto’s Pearson International Airport to
carry out the biggest experiment in the world testing incoming
passengers on-site and at 7- and 14-day intervals afterwards. The findings
supported proposals that quarantine be reduced from 14 to 7 days, as have those
from a more recent study at Calgary Airport. Fingers crossed!
Air Canada
has also recently partnered with Shoppers Drug Mart to provide
rapid COVID-19 RT-PRC tests, currently only available at store locations
in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. Due to concerns about their
reliability, these rapid tests are still only accepted by certain travel
destinations, but let’s hope continued improvements will convince authorities
on both sides of the Atlantic to use such methods to streamline travel for all
passengers.
Thanks
again to Roberta for talking the time to speak to us directly at such a busy
and tiring time for everyone working at Air Canada Italy. When introducing her,
Paul read a message sent directly to the Canadian Club of Rome by Air Canada
CEO Calin Rovinescu that emphasized what a great resource she has been for the
airline in Italy for an amazing 29 years of service, and we totally agree! Thanks also to Marielle for
coordinating with Roberta and hosting this event via Zoom.
If you are as interested in scientific and public health issues related to COVID-19 as I am, you won’t want to miss another opportunity to learn more during our Q&A with Dr Allison McGeer on January 19.
