Statistics 2023-2024

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An efficient transportation system for Canada

Rail

Rail disputes resolved by method
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Facilitation 12 23 33 33 18
Mediation 12 17 14 20 41
Arbitration 15 10 7 5 10
Adjudication 0 4 2 3 2
Total 39 54 56 61 71
Railway regulatory activities
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Railway crossing agreements filed 10 14 13 2 6
Railway line locations and construction of railway crossings approved 1 0 1 2 2
Railway notices of discontinuance received 0 2 2 1 0
Net salvage value applications determined 0 1 0 0 0
Certificates of fitness processed 3 1 1 33 6
Rail Help Line calls received 152 94 239 143 146

Air

Air carriers holding Agency licences

Licensed air carriers
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Canadian 529 532 545 558 559
U.S. 498 530 568 570 584
Other 299 289 274 266 246
Total 1,326 1,351 1,387 1,394 1,389
Classification of licences held by Canadian air carriers (2023-2024)
  Small aircraft Medium aircraft Large aircraft All cargo
Domestic 507 20 17 40
Non-scheduled international 229 18 16 25
Scheduled international 6 37 237 117
Total 742 75 270 182
Types of licences held by Canadian, U.S. and other foreign air carriers (2023-2024)
  Canadian U.S. Other Total
Domestic 530 0 0 530
Non-scheduled international 247 490 255 992
Scheduled international 260 41 127 428
Total 1,037 531 382 1,950
Air licensing activities
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
New licences 107 122 64 94 79
New licences - Canadian 46 65 35 49  
New licences - Foreign 61 57 29 45  
Amendment of licences initiated by the applicant 47 68 65 33 52
Amendment of licences initiated by the Agency 0 1 47 9 9
Suspensions initiated by the applicant 27 30 42 56 30
Suspensions initiated by the Agency 192 234 511 408 181
Exemptions/rulings 16 10 12 13 50
Reinstatements 170 164 162 171 94
Cancellations 117 70 51 52 84
Code share authorities 22 21 19 16 27
Wet lease authorities 19 16 4 6 39
Total 824 858 977 858 579

Air charter permits

Number of permits issued
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Passenger non-resaleable entity charters 916 765 545 270 465
Cargo non-resaleable entity charters 44 52 231 124 127
Passengers resaleable 38 29 16 1 65
Total 998 846 792 395 657
Other air charter permit activities
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Exemptions granted to the charter regulations 1,005 917 898 460 910
Amendments to charter permits 27 21 37 9 37

Air charter permits and notifications

Permits - Approved by the Agency
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Passenger non-resaleable 434 359 246 146 230
Passenger resaleable 38 29 16 1 65
Passenger foreign origin 482 406 299 124 235
Cargo 44 52 231 124 127
Total 998 846 792 395 657
Notifications processed by Agency Staff
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Passenger non-resaleable 1,547 1,683 1,433 566 738
Passenger foreign origin 1,332 1,316 1,345 458 539
Cargo 332 316 352 497 247
Total 3,211 3,315 3,130 1,521 1,524
Exempted to apply for permit in advance
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Ambulance 4 3 10 2 23
Cargo 0 0 0 0 10
Total 4 3 10 2 33

Marine

Marine disputes resolved by method
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Mediation 0 0 0 1 1
Adjudication 0 3 1 4 4
Total 0 3 1 5 5
Marine coasting trade applications
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Approved 42 39 39 29 61
Denied 0 0 1 5 3
Withdrawn 4 0 5 2 1
Other 0 1      
Total 46 40 46 36 65
Total contested 0 3 10 9 4
Total uncontested  46 37 36 27 61

Consumer protection for air travellers

New complaints and backlog of complaints at year end
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Complaints received 43,549 42,068 12,158 13,275 19,392
Backlog at year end 71,109 44,319 13,409 16,515 13,467
Note: These statistics only include complaints that were submitted to the Agency – they do not reflect the total number of air travel complaints against air carriers. Many travellers resolve their complaints directly with the carrier.
Complaints processed
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Total processed under pre-CRO 
(to September 29, 2023)
5,930 11,158 15,264 10,227 9,143
Total processed by CRO
(from September 30, 2023)
10,829        
Total 16,759 11,158 15,264 10,227 9,143

Air travel complaints per 100 flights – by airline

This dashboard provides Canadians with additional information about the air travel sector. The data shows the number of air travel complaints submitted to the CTA per 100 flights operated by Canadian and foreign airlines.

Context

  • The tables include airlines with an average of one or more complaints per 100 flights to/from/within Canada submitted to the Agency during one of the quarterly periods. Airlines that did not meet this criteria or that did not operate at least 100 flights over the reporting periods are not included on the list.
  • The complaint data is based on the information submitted by passengers and may not have been reviewed by the Agency at the time of publishing.
  • Complaints are submitted to the Agency after the passenger has attempted to resolve the issue directly with the airline. Airlines have 30 days to respond to the passenger.
  • The data is based on the number of flights by airline and does not reflect the number of passengers per flight or the size of the aircraft.
  • The data used is based on all of the air travel complaints submitted to the Agency; the numbers do not imply whether or not an airline actually met its regulatory requirements.
  • Most complaints (98%) are resolved informally through facilitation or mediation; other complaints move to a formal adjudication process.
  • Airlines identified in the complaint may change based on the information supplied by the passenger and the airline during the complaint review process.
  • Complaints related to accessibility are not included in these tables.
Number of complaints per 100 flights operated by Canadian airlines
Airline Average
(April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024)
Air Canada 5.0
Air Transat A.T. Inc. 2.8
Canada Jetlines 5.7
Flair Airlines Ltd. 14.3
Lynx Air 18.9
Porter Airlines 1.4
Sunwing Airlines Inc. 11.9
Swoop Inc. 13.7
Westjet 5.2
Source: The complaints data is compiled by the CTA. The number of flights operated per airline during the time period is provided by a third party (Cirium).
Number of complaints per 100 flights operated by foreign airlines
Airline Average
(April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024)
Aer Lingus Limited 2.7
Aerovias de Mexico S.A. de C.V. 2.5
Aerovias del Continente Americano S.A. 3.1
Air India Limited 17.9
Air New Zealand Limited 4.7
ALIA - The Royal Jordanian Airline plc (Royal Jordanian) 3.5
All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd. 2.2
American Airlines, Inc. 1.9
Austrian Airlines AG 8.2
British Airways Plc 4.7
Caribbean Airlines Limited 2.9
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited 5.6
China Airlines Limited 3.3
Compagnie Nationale Royal Air Maroc 29.8
Compañia Panameña de Aviacion, S.A. 1.9
Condor Flugdienst GmbH 7.6
Corsair 1.1
Delta Air Lines, Inc. 1.2
Deutsche Lufthansa Aktiengesellschaft (Lufthansa German Airlines) 18.1
EgyptAir 20.4
Emirates 4.3
EPE SPA Air Algérie 11.0
Ethiopian Airlines Group 4.6
Etihad Airways P.J.S.C. 15.5
Eva Airways Corporation 2.5
Fly Play hf. 3.3
Icelandair ehf 1.6
JetBlue Airways Corporation 4.4
Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, N.V. (K.L.M. Royal Dutch Airlines) 7.1
Korean Air Lines Co. Ltd. 2.0
Nihon Koku Kabushiki Gaisha (Japan Airlines Co., Ltd.) 1.8
Pakistan International Airlines Corporation 6.6
Philippine Airlines, Inc. 9.9
Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT SA (LOT Polish Airlines SA) 7.1
Qatar Airways Group (Q.C.S.C.) 24.8
Sata Internacional - Serviços e Transportes Aéreos, S.A. 4.7
Société Air France 11.4
Société Tunisienne de l'Air 23.8
Swiss International Air Lines Ltd. 7.2
Transportes Aéreos Portugueses, S.A. 8.2
Türk Hava Yollari Anonim Ortakligi (Turkish Airlines Inc.) 16.5
United Airlines, Inc. 1.6
Source: The complaints data is compiled by the CTA. The number of flights operated per airline during the time period is provided by a third party (Cirium).
Number of complaints closed (by carrier)
Carrier Nationality Total
Air Canada Canada 2,269
WestJet Canada 1,944
Flair Airlines Ltd. Canada 1,020
Swoop Inc. Canada 297
Sunwing Airlines Inc. Canada 278
Air Transat A.T. Inc. Canada 116
United Airlines, Inc. United States of America 116
American Airlines, Inc. United States of America 115
Société Air France France 97
Lynx Air Canada 90
Deutsche Lufthansa Aktiengesellschaft (Lufthansa German Airlines) Germany 85
Türk Hava Yollari Anonim Ortakligi (Turkish Airlines Inc.) Turkey 75
Transportes Aéreos Portugueses, S.A. Portugal 68
Qatar Airways Group (Q.C.S.C.) Qatar 63
British Airways Plc United Kingdom 53
Porter Airlines Inc. Canada 50
Delta Air Lines, Inc. United States of America 48
AEROVIAS DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V. Mexico 44
Air India Limited India 40
Compagnie Nationale Royal Air Maroc Morocco 33
Etihad Airways P.J.S.C. United Arab Emirates 30
Société Tunisienne de l'Air Tunisia 30
ABC Aerolineas, S.A. de C.V. Mexico 29
Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, N.V. (K.L.M. Royal Dutch Airlines) Netherlands 23
Philippine Airlines, Inc. Philippines 21
EGYPTAIR Egypt 19
Compañia Panameña de Aviacion, S.A. Panama 15
Canadian North Inc. Canada 11
Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT SA (LOT Polish Airlines SA) Poland 9
Qantas Airways Limited Australia 9
Corsair France 8
Ethiopian Airlines Group Ethiopia 8
Austrian Airlines AG Austria 7
Emirates United Arab Emirates 6
Alaska Airlines, Inc. United States of America 5
Pacific Coastal Airlines Limited Canada 5
PAL Airlines Ltd. Canada 5
Brussels Airlines NV/SA Belgium 4
Caribbean Airlines Limited Trinidad and Tobago 4
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited Hong Kong 4
Icelandair ehf Iceland 4
Swiss International Air Lines Ltd. Switzerland 4
Aerovias del Continente Americano S.A. Colombia 3
Air China Limited China 3
Air Liaison Inc. Canada 3
Air New Zealand Limited New Zealand 3
Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Pakistan 3
Oman Air S.A.O.C. Oman 3
Pascan Aviation Inc. Canada 3
Aegean Airlines S.A. Greece 2
All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd. Japan 2
Calm Air International LP,  représentée par son commandité/as represented by its general partner, Calm Air GP Inc. Canada 2
China Airlines Limited Taiwan 2
China Eastern Airlines Corporation Limited China 2
Condor Flugdienst GmbH Germany 2
LATAM Airlines Peru S.A. Peru 2
Nihon Koku Kabushiki Gaisha (Japan Airlines Co., Ltd.) Japan 2
JetBlue United States of America 2
Sata Internacional - Azores Airlines, S.A. Portugal 2
Air North Charter & Training Ltd. Canada 1
Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A. Italy 1
El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. Israel 1
EPE SPA Air Algérie Algeria 1
Kenya Airways Ltd  Kenya 1
Korean Air Lines Co. Ltd. South Korea 1
LATAM Airlines Group S.A. Chile 1
Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) Sweden 1
Sichuan Airlines Co., Ltd. China 1
South African Airways SOC Limited South Africa 1
Taca International Airlines, S.A. El Salvador 1
TONG CONG TY HANG KHONG VIET NAM-CTCP / VIETNAM AIRLINES JSC Vietnam 1
Van City Seaplanes Ltd. Canada 1
Total   7,215
Note: This table is a mandatory report and is included in the Appendix of the Annual Report.

Accessible transportation for Canadians

Starting in 2022-2023, the Agency has adopted a new methodology for resolving and recording accessibility complaints.

Complaints received
2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
396 260 149 69 67
Accessibility complaints processed by dispute resolution method
  2023-2024 2022-2023
Mediation 220 126
Adjudication 13 12
Accessibility complaints processed by transportation mode
  2023-2024 2022-2023
Air 230 137
Rail 2 0
Marine 1 0
Bus 0 1
Nature of accessibility complaint
  Total
1P1F 7
Air Travel Issue 89
Allergy 1
Mobility Aids and Assistance 163
Oxygen 3
Refunds 4
Refusal to Transport 1
Seating Accommodation (non-1P1F) 12
Service and Emotional Support Animals 19
Terminal and Equipment Accessibility 10
Training and Communications 34
Other 24
Total 367

Accessible Canada Act (ACA) reporting

2(a) Reporting to Parliament (Amendments to subsection 42(2) of the CTA)
Requirements for Agency's annual reporting 2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021
Number of inspections conducted to verify compliance and prevent non-compliance 190 52 2 1
Number of orders made under section 181.2 0 0 0 0
Number of orders, in writing, made under sections 26, 60 to 62 0 0 0 0
Number of notices of violation issued under section 180 11 4 1 3
Number of inquiries made under any of sections 172, 172.1 and 172.3 13 12 19 11

Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Policy and Priorities

The CTA is committed to ensuring effective monitoring and enforcement of industry compliance with legislative and regulatory provisions, which is in the interests of travellers, shippers, and transportation companies that follow the rules and should not face unfair competition from those that don't. Agency enforcement officers conduct periodic inspections and targeted investigations to verify that service providers comply with the Canada Transportation Act, the Air Transportation Regulations and the Personnel Training for the Assistance of Persons with Disabilities Regulations, among the list of Acts and regulations for which we have primary, shared and\or sole responsibilities.

Agency officers also regularly verify that any person or corporation that advertises air fares complies with all-inclusive air price advertising regulations.

Inspections and investigations
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
Carrier inspections 164 16 41 7 15
Facility inspections 30 43 1 0 8
Carrier monitoring at terminals 67 77 0 2 81
Targeted verifications of suspected non-compliance 51 44 205 n/a 63
Website monitoring 79 26 34 109 40
Targeted investigations 112 79 41 23 27
Total 503 285 322 141 234

Note : Inspection numbers include only those completed in 2023-24 fiscal year. Inspections initiated in 2023-24 that have not yet been completed will be captured in 2024-2025.

Contraventions
  2023-2024 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021 2019-2020
1. Notice of violation - with Administrative Monetary Penalty 75 33 11 8 14
2. Notice of violation – with warning 0 0 0 2 0
3. Cautionary notices 185 9 56 49 7
Total amount of penalties (in dollars) 1,343,930 725,380 253,975 54,500 780,000
Notes: The numbers related to the following categories - "Notice of Violation - with Administrative Monetary Penalty"; "Total number of violations found"; and "Total amount of Administrative Monetary Penalties" - are subject to change where Notices of Violation or specific violations are withdrawn or reversed by the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada.
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