Air Canada accused of flooding Nunavut market

Two of Canada's major northern airlines say Air Canada's expansion into Nunavut will overload the territory's airline market.

Air Canada Jazz announced Monday it will introduce daily flights between Iqaluit, Ottawa and Montreal starting March 28.

The national carrier has already begun selling tickets on its website. One-way flights start at an introductory price of $659 before taxes and surcharges.

Iqaluit becomes the last Canadian capital city to be serviced by Air Canada, which already flies to the other territorial capitals of Yellowknife and Whitehorse.

"It gives us the opportunity to link Canada's eastern Arctic into our vast network," Air Canada spokeswoman Angela Mah told CBC News on Monday.

Excess capacity

But officials with First Air and Canadian North say Air Canada's arrival into Nunavut airspace will hurt their financial situation, which could affect their service.

"This would obviously represent an excess of capacity on the marketplace," said Chris Ferris, a spokesman for Kanata, Ont.-based First Air.

Both Canadian North and First Air have since posted limited-time sale fares between Iqaluit and Ottawa.

Canadian North introduced a $659 price, while First Air posted a sale price of $599. Both fares do not include taxes and surcharges.

First Air and Canadian North already offer flights between Ottawa and Iqaluit. Both airlines also fly between the territorial capital cities and small remote communities across the North.

Both airlines are also aboriginal-owned:

• First Air by Makivik Corp., the organization that represents Inuit land-claim beneficiaries in northern Quebec.
• Canadian North by NorTerra Inc., a company co-owned by the Inuvialuit Development Corp. and Nunasi Corp., which represent the Inuvialuit of the Western Arctic and the Inuit of Nunavut, respectively.

Ferris said he was surprised to see Air Canada Jazz moving into a small city like Iqaluit, especialy during tough economic times.

Canadian North president Tracy Medve, whose Yellowknife-based airline flies to communities in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, accused Air Canada of selecting only the most profitable routes, which would still not benefit travellers in smaller northern communities.

"Why are they there? Why are they only going to Iqaluit? Because they're cherry picking the best and biggest routes in the two territories," Medve said.

Invest in region

Medve also noted that northern airlines like Canadian North and First Air invest in the region by hiring local workers and giving back to the communities.

"We don't let resource development companies come into the North and leave nothing behind. We require them to employ local people. We require them to, you know, invest in using local companies for goods and services," she said.

"We do all those things. And for some reason, we don't make the airlines do that. Now, why is that?"

In September, Canadian North announced layoffs and service cutbacks in the N.W.T., blaming Air Canada Jazz and WestJet for flooding the airline market in Yellowknife.

Medve said governments in Nunavut and the N.W.T., as well as the federal government and Inuit organizations, should support the northern carriers by travelling on their planes.

Monday's announcement has generated mixed reactions among the public in Iqaluit, with some hoping the increased competition will lower ticket prices, while others arguing that national carriers like Air Canada still don't care about smaller, remote northern communities.