An Air Canada aircraft flies over the city after taking off from Pearson International Airport in Toronto, Ontario, Canada May 16, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio.
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TOKYO, June 4 (Reuters) – Air Canada (AC.TO) expects demand for flights between Canada and the Asia-Pacific region to recover to near pre-pandemic levels by December next year, a senior regional executive said on Saturday.
Routes between Canada and Asia-Pacific are currently operating at 30% of 2019 capacity, but capacity is expected to double by the end of December, said Kiyo Weiss, the airline’s director of sales for Asia-Pacific.
The airline is also considering adding flights to a new destination in the Asia-Pacific region in the near future to meet pent-up demand for tourist travel, she said.
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“Maybe we will make a decision within a month or so,” Weiss said without elaborating.
The largest Canadian carrier is looking to expand its presence in the region to meet strong demand, especially from Southeast Asia, as the region recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The airline on Saturday resumed direct flights between Montreal and Tokyo Narita Airport, interrupted due to the pandemic.
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Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Edited by Raju Gopalakrishnan
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