Canada’s airlines are planning to fly about 80- to 90-per-cent of their prepandemic schedules this summer to meet rising demand.COLE BURSTON/Reuters
The federal government has boosted spending on airport security by $330-million amid a shortage of screening personnel that has caused delays and lineups.
The amount, reported by the Parliamentary Budget Officer on Tuesday, is part of $9.7-billion in supplementary spending not included in the 2022 budget approved in March.
The additional spending for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA), responsible for screening passengers, luggage and cargo at 89 airports, brings the Crown corporation’s budget to about $900-million. This is similar to the amount spent by CATSA in 2019-20, before the pandemic halted much of the world’s air travel.
“The new funding would allow CATSA to better manage the continuing growth in demand for Canadian air travel,” the report said.
As the pandemic shows signs of receding, travellers are returning to the skies in larger numbers for the first time in more than two years.
CATSA agents checked a total of 117,617 passengers at the eight largest airports on May 29, compared with 15,815 on the same day a year ago. On May 29, 2019, more than 160,500 travellers went through CATSA checkpoints at the same airports.
How soon until people regret all the megaspending they’re doing right now?
Canada’s airlines are planning to fly about 80- to 90-per-cent of their prepandemic schedules this summer to meet rising demand. However, airlines, airports and the agencies that provide customs and security checks face a tight job market amid a decades-low unemployment rate.
Airport and airline executives say the COVID-19 questions and random tests compound the delays caused by short staffing, and have called on the government to drop some of the health measures. The industry groups have also urged the Canadian and U.S. governments to hire more people to staff the checkpoints run by CATSA, the Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which provides preclearance at some airports for U.S.-bound travellers.
The International Air Transport Association, which represents most major airlines, recently said Canada should drop vaccine requirements and random COVID-19 testing, and stop requiring travellers to submit health and travel information on the ArriveCAN app.
Air Canada passenger Victoria Pullen said she had to wait 40 minutes to get off her plane after it touched down in Toronto on May 26. “We landed early but could not disembark because there was no crew available to tow us to the gate,” Ms. Pullen said by phone.
Ms. Pullen was returning from New York’s LaGuardia Airport, a hub she said operated smoothly without undue delays.
In contrast, her return to Toronto was marked by delays, packed terminals and frustration. After disembarking, the lineup through customs lasted another 40 minutes, she said, a process slowed by the crowds’ confusion over which self-serve kiosks were available to use.
“That whole experience at LaGuardia was really efficient,” Ms. Pullen said. “Didn’t have to wait for anything. But in Toronto it was just, ‘What is wrong with this airport? Where are the employees? Why can’t we get them?’ I don’t get it.”
John Gradek, who teaches aviation leadership at McGill University, said Canadian airlines are pushing ahead with busy schedules despite the staffing shortages. U.S. airlines, however, are cutting schedules to manage shortages. “It’s going to get worse before it gets better,” he said; the Canadian airlines are “letting the taps flow.” The end result is consumers are going to be unhappy with delays.
The federal government said last week it is working with the agencies that serve the airports to improve the flow of passengers, including reviewing the screening and security processes, and working with CATSA contractors to hire more employees. The government said it will be dropping random COVID-19 tests for international passengers who transfer to a domestic flight. The ArriveCAN app will be updated to include customs and immigration information.
“We are taking action to quickly address delays while continuing to maintain adequate security screening,” the government said in a statement.
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