The Government of Canada approved the proposed purchase of Transat A.T Inc. by Air Canada, Transport Canada announced Thursday.
Air Transat said that COVID-19 took a heavy affect on its operations and was a crucial element in Air Transat’s final decision.
Air Transat had announced two weeks ago that they were temporarily shutting down all operations in light of the government’s request, that was until news broke Thursday of the approved sale to Air Canada.
Air Canada announced 1,500 layoffs Tuesday as it continued cutting service, on top of the 1,700 jobs cut in January.
WestJet also laid off staff when the federal government’s request that airlines suspend all flights to Mexico and the Caribbean until April 30.
The government acknowledged that some Air Transat passengers are still waiting for their refunds for flights cancelled due to COVID-19, and they assured Canadians that “refunds are an integral part of the negotiations with airlines regarding any assistance plan.”
Other terms and conditions associated with the proposed asset were:
- Have other airlines take up Air Transat’s routes to Europe
- Preserving the Air Transat brand and office in Quebec
- Continued employment of 1,500 employees
- Commitments to facilitate aircraft maintenance in Canada and to prioritize Quebec contracts
- a price monitoring mechanism
- launch operations of new destinations for the airline within the first five years
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