THE US Transportation Department has awarded rights to six US airlines to operate new services to Vancouver, which become available during the second year of the liberalised US/Canada air-service pact.
The Department has also opened the bidding, for seven new carriers, to bid for services to Quebec and is looking for a carrier to take the Washington-Quebec service, dropped by ValuJet as unprofitable.
The new Vancouver flights include American Airlines from New York and Miami; America West from Las Vegas; Alaska Airlines from San Diego; Delta from Cincinnati and Atlanta; Northwest from Minneapolis; and United from Denver and Los Angeles. They may begin operating the services in February 1996.
All carriers will operate new services to Vancouver, except Northwest, which adds two daily flights in the Minneapolis-Vancouver market. Those same US carriers, excluding Alaska but with Reno Air, took advantage of the open-skies deal in February.
Source: Flight International
