The Supreme Court of Canada announced today that it will hear an appeal of a case which considered the interaction and potential conflict between the Montreal Convention (a treaty governing international air travel) and Canadian language law rights. Click here to view a recent article regarding this case. Click here to view the announcement from the Supreme Court of Canada. Click here to view the Federal Court of Canada decision that is being appealed.
Canada’s Minister of State (Transport) announced yesterday that new software will be deployed on Canada’s full-body scanners that will enhance passenger privacy at airports. The new software produces computer generated “stick figures” rather than an outline of the passenger’s body, enhancing privacy for air travellers. In addition, the scanner does not collect personal information from the passenger it screens nor is the image correlated in any way with the name of the passenger or any other identifying information. The changes likely arise in response to the decision by the United States to get rid of body scanners that could not be modified to alleviate privacy concerns. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (a public internet research outfit in Washington, DC) claimed…
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On August 24, 2009, the Canadian pilot of a twin engine Piper Aztec flew from North Carolina to Southern Ontario. To clear customs, the pilot made a stop in Brantford, Ontario. After the Canadian Border Services Agents did not arrive, the pilot decided to fly the short remaining leg to his farm. The pilot started the left engine, but had difficulty starting the right. He shut down the aircraft and attempted to find the problem. Eventually he determined that the right engine was not going to start. He considered his options and decided to attempt a take-off with only one engine. The pilot started his take-off roll. After the wheels of the aircraft lost contact with the ground, the asymmetrical…
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A Halifax passenger booked with Air Canada to fly from Halifax to Beirut, via Montreal. The flight segment from Montreal to Paris was cancelled due to a maintenance issue. Air Canada scheduled a replacement flight which left Montreal later than the originally scheduled departure time. To compensate for the delay, Air Canada offered the passenger an upgrade on the Montreal/Paris segment of the rescheduled flight as well as $1,300 in flight vouchers. The passenger rejected Air Canada’s offers and elected instead to book flights with another carrier which arrived in Lebanon sooner than the rescheduled Air Canada flight. In order to secure those flights, the passenger had to travel business class. The passenger sued Air Canada for the full cost…
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Congratulations to the British Columbia Aviation Council for another successful Silver Wings Awards Banquet! This year, the Banquet took place at YVR’s South Terminal and was hosted by Jaeger Mah, the winner of the Vancouver International Airport’s Live@YVR contest. As always, the highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Council’s annual industry awards and aviation student scholarships. Industry award recipients included West Coast Helicopters, the Vancouver Airport Authority, Canadian Rockies International Airport (Cranbrook) and Conair Aviation. The winner of the Council’s Lifetime Achievement Award was Lynne Denison-Foster for her many years as a leading aviation educator at BCIT. This year’s Ernie Alexander Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Sean Samuel (pictured above) of BCIT’s Airline & Flight Operations Program. Sean…
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A Canadian resident sought information from KLM about its policies and practices relating to the management of his personal information as a passenger. The airline was slow to respond and ultimately provided a minimal response. The passenger complained to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada that KLM was in breach of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”). Notwithstanding KLM’s foreign incorporation, the Commission took jurisdiction over the complaint on the grounds that there was a real and substantial connection between the complaint, the parties and Canada. In particular, the complainant was a Canadian resident; KLM offers services within Canada; and the complainant originally booked his flight from Toronto. In its defence, KLM asserted that its…
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The aviation partners of Paterson, MacDougall LLP and Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP are pleased to announce that the 14th Annual Aviation Conference will be held on Thursday, January 31, 2013, at the Sheraton Toronto Airport Hotel and Conference Centre. The 14th Annual Aviation Conference continues its tradition of excellence in providing an opportunity for exceptional speakers to come together with attendees from all areas of the aviation industry to examine and discuss topical issues that affect our industry. The conference will include panel discussions on developments in the areas of aviation law, government initiatives, insurance, commerce and regulation that affect all of us in Canada and internationally. Stay tuned for more details.
Mr. Gontcharov travelled by air from the Dominican Republic to his home in Toronto. During the flight, he complained to the flight attendant that he was cold and requested that she either turn the heat up or provide him with a blanket. After a second request, the flight attendant told him the blanket would cost ten dollars. This discussion escalated into a confrontation so that when the aircraft landed, Mr. Gontcharov was escorted off the aircraft by two local police officers. Mr. Gontcharov sued the airline alleging that he had come down with severe bronchitis following the flight and had suffered psychological injuries as a result of his “wrongful arrest”. Claims arising in the course of international carriage, are governed…
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The pilot of Rockwell Aviation SR2 Thrush Commander crop duster aircraft was charged under s. 7.3(1)(e) of the Aeronautics Act with willfully operating an aircraft that had been detained by Transport Canada. During the course of the trial, the pilot claimed that his right to be secure from unreasonable search under s.8 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms had been violated when the Transport Canada Inspectors inspected the aircraft and ultimately placed a notice of detention attached to the controls of the aircraft. The pilot claimed that any actions taken by the Transport Canada Inspectors regarding the aircraft were done without a search warrant and without the pilot’s permission. The Transport Canada Aviation Enforcement Inspector indicated that he…
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In a previous post, we wrote about a lawsuit arising from the 2003 crash of a Cirrus SR-22 in low visibility near Hill City, Minnesota. In the lawsuit, the next of kin of the pilot and passenger claimed that Cirrus and a university failed to provide the pilot with adequate flight training on the subject aircraft. The appeal court found that the claim for inadequate training could not succeed as Cirrus did not owe a duty to the pilot to provide training. In addition, the claims were barred by the “educational malpractice doctrine”. The policy behind this doctrine is that courts are considered to be inadequately suited to determine the standard or quality of education provided by an institution. In…
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