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Air Canada suspends Vancouver-New Delhi flights, cites Ukraine war
The route, it said, had become “operationally constrained” due to the “extended flying times and a refueling stop that is required due to the current flight paths taken to go around Russian and Ukraine airspace”
Air Canada announced on Wednesday that it is suspending direct flights between the Canadian city of Vancouver in the province of British Columbia and the Indian capital of New Delhi for a period of three months, citing the Ukraine war as a one of the reasons.
While both India and Canada have eased travel restrictions, flights between the two countries have become more difficult because of the Russian attack on Ukraine.In a statement, Air Canada said the suspension of flights will begin on June 2 for those flying from Vancouver to Delhi and from June 4 for the return and continue till early September.
The route, it said, had become “operationally constrained” due to the “extended flying times and a refueling stop that is required due to the current flight paths taken to go around Russian and Ukraine airspace”.
Additionally, summer wind and weather conditions in South Asia are expected to compound these constraints, it noted, making the route “unviable during this period”.
Air India, which also flies between the two locations, has not made a similar announcement.
The affected flights mainly take off from the from the West coast of Canada since they fly over Russia and Ukraine. Direct flights operated by Air Canada from the cities on the east coast, Toronto and Montreal will not be affected as these take different flight paths. Air Canada has as many as 11 such flights to India from these two gateways.
Air Canada said it remained committed to the India market and is targeting resumption of the flights from Vancouver on September 6 and from Delhi on September 8. It said the airline “continues to monitor global situations very closely and may reinstate its Vancouver-Delhi route earlier if conditions permit”.
The announcement comes less than a week after Canada dropped its requirements for mandatory Covid-19 tests for fully vaccinated passengers flying into the country. Those relaxations came into effect on April 1, and coupled with India allowing the return of regular international flights last month, were expected to help travel return to normal.
