Union says Air Canada may launch new carrier offshore

The union representing Air Canada’s pilots is alleging the airline is exploring the possibility of launching its proposed low-cost carrier offshore, circumventing negotiations to launch it with its current employees.

Capt. Gary Tarves, chairman of the Air Canada Pilots Association master executive council, said this week in a memo to the airline’s pilots that the union has received information suggesting Air Canada plans to launch an offshore subsidiary modelled on the international Jetstar subsidiaries launched by Australia’s Qantas Airways Ltd.

“Put bluntly, the company wants to outsource much of our current flying while failing to provide any assurances as to how many Air Canada pilot jobs would actually remain at the mainline when the dust settles,” he said in the memo. “Some might dismiss this threat as just a trial balloon floated as a negotiating tactic. That would be naive on our part.”

He did not elaborate on the source of the information.

Air Canada would not comment on the allegations.

But Calin Rovinescu, Air Canada chief executive, has repeatedly pointed to the Jetstar model as a successful example of the sort of lowcost subsidiary he is hoping to launch at Air Canada.

He has also said, however, that he believes the low-cost carrier is pivotal to Air Canada’s sustainability and would prefer to negotiate its launch with the airline’s employees, including its pilots.