Air Canada insists new Taiwan label not linked with Air China deal

Air Canada’s decision to MONTREAL label Taiwan’s capital as being part of China has nothing to do with the joint venture with a Chinese national carrier that was signed Wednesday, says chief executive Calin Rovinescu.

Talks about closer co-operation have been going on for years, long before Air Canada changed its reference to Taipei on its website after the Chinese government wrote to several airlines and western companies seeking the change. “One’s got nothing to do with the other,” Rovinescu has been quoted telling reporters following the signing ceremony in Beijing. It’s inconceivable that Air Canada’s change of approach to Taiwan has nothing to do with the joint venture to a country that is a key part of the airline’s growth strategy, said Charles Chang, president of the Taiwan Chamber of Commerce of British Columbia. “They can’t withstand the pressure of not making a lot of money because with this deal they ’re making a lot of money,” he said from Vancouver.

Chang said he’s also not pleased that unlike the U.S. government, Canada hasn’t been unwilling to denounce China’s move, saying instead that it won’t intervene in what it calls a business policy. In a letter of protest sent to Air Canada last month, Chang said listing Taipei with a CN country code signifying China is not correct and misleading to travellers. Chang has said the airline could face a boycott from Taiwanese travellers on a route between Vancouver and Taipei that was started last June.

Air Canada’s joint venture with Air China is expected to be phased in over the next six months. It said the agreement deepens a long-standing partnership and provides customers with benefits including a range of flights, fare options, flight schedules, joint sales including corporate and marketing programs, aligned frequent flyer privileges and an overall enhanced travel experience. The airlines expanded a codeshare agreement in May and implemented an expanded reciprocal lounge agreement for customers in December last year.

The new arrangement comes as China is set to become the world’s largest aviation market by 2022.