An Air France flight bound for Paris was diverted to Montreal last night after an anonymous threat was received, airport officials confirmed.
Flight 083 from San Francisco made an unscheduled stop in Montreal just after 11:20 p.m. ET, said Francois Asselin, a spokesman for Aéroports de Montreal.
Air France confirmed around 4:45 a.m. that the threat was a false alarm.
The plane left for Paris around 6 a.m.
“We were told we had to be diverted for operational reasons by the captain,” passenger Thomas Serval told CBC News. “We were anxious when we landed safely.”
The Boeing 777-300ER was carrying 231 passengers and 15 staff members. The pilot decided to land in Montreal out of precaution, and the plane stayed on the tarmac for some time with passengers on board.
Police and firefighters were called to the scene at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, according to standard procedure.
Gilles Raymond told The Associated Press that he and his fellow passengers spent at least an hour on the plane during verifications after being originally told the diversion was for “technical reasons.”
“Everyone is pretty relaxed,” Raymond said while still inside. “There was no panic, no stress. Everyone is waiting in their seats. Some people are sleeping, and some are checking their phones or eating ice cream that the flight attendants gave them.”
It is not the first time the airline’s flights have been diverted since the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people and left hundreds injured.
On Nov. 17, flights bound for France were diverted to Halifax and Salt Lake City, Utah due to anonymous threats later found to be baseless after a sweep of the planes.
CBC News
WOW Air launches Montreal and Toronto flights
An Icelandic low-cost carrier is out to create some turbulence in the Canadian market with plans to offer deeply discounted fares on transatlantic flights out of Toronto and Montreal.
WOW air, founded by serial entrepreneur Skuli Mogensen, is launching two new routes from Montreal and Toronto to the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, starting at $99 one-way.
The upstart airline is the latest Europe-based company to offer low-cost fares on long-haul routes across the Atlantic as the continent’s budget carriers extend their territory outside home base.
WOW, founded by Mr. Mogensen in 2011, says it has already had success with the launch in early 2015 of transatlantic services from Boston and Washington, D.C.
There is ample room for low-cost entrants in the transatlantic space, Mr. Mogensen said in an interview Thursday.
“Transatlantic is really ruled by a handful of very large legacy carriers with their alliances and cartels,” he said. “They will will not give it up freely. They just don’t have the structure and strategies to allow them to compete against pure play, low-cost carriers.”
WOW’s flights out of Toronto’s Pearson airport and Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau airport are set to begin next May.
The catch is that passengers wanting to go on to other cities such as London or Paris will have to wait “about an hour” in Reykjavik and pay an additional $149 one-way for an additional flight to their final destination.
Asked about the pricing structure, Mr. Mogensen said the $99 fare “depends on the season, on the load.”
“If you’re flexible on departure dates and book in advance you should always be able to find cheap fares. $99 or below $200 should always be available in any given week,” he said.
“When we announced our U.S. routes last year, we promised that it was just the beginning of our growth into North America,” said Mr. Mogensen, who spent several years in Montreal as head of tech company OZ Communications Inc., which was eventually sold to Nokia.
“These great Canadian cities [Toronto and Montreal] will become our newest destinations but I look forward to announcing even more in the not-too-distant future.”
The Canada-to-Iceland routes will use WOW’s existing fleet of new Airbus A321s, seating 200, while A320s will serve on the flights from Reykjavik to London, Paris, Berlin, Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Dublin.
Both Montreal and Toronto services are to be year-round, with departures four times a week, the company said Thursday.
Passengers will be allowed one “free” carry-on bag, but it must weigh no more than 5 kilograms. There are extra fees for additional carry-ons, checked bags, in-flight meals and other items.
The Globe And Mail
Air China debuts Beijing/Pekin – Montreal service
MONTREAL–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dignitaries and top government officials led by the Chinese ambassador to Canada, His Excellency Luo Zhaohui and Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre welcomed the arrival of Air China’s inaugural flight, CA 879, from Beijing today. Quebec’s Minister of Trade and Commerce and his delegation returned to Montreal from their trade mission on board the first Beijing-Montreal flight. Minister Jacques Daoust also spoke at the press conference.
Operated by Air China’s new-generation B777-300ER, the new thrice weekly nonstop service connects Montreal not only to Beijing but also to the rest of Asia.
Today’s elaborate welcome ceremonies at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL) showed the importance of this new service. It is expected to boost the local economy and tourism industry in the region. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the total number of trips abroad from China is estimated to have increased by 11 million to 109 million in 2014. China is the largest outbound market since 2012 with a total expenditure of US$ 129 billion in 2013.
“This is a great day for Aéroports de Montréal, a proud moment that we will all remember for a long time to come,” said a beaming James Cherry, the airport authority’s President and CEO, soon after exiting the plane arriving from the Chinese capital. “The direct route between Montréal and Beijing, the very first scheduled transpacific direct link out of Montréal–Trudeau, is a reality at last. China has never been as close as it is today.”
Montreal is the newest in a string of expansions in North America by China’s national carrier. However, it’s only the airline’s second gateway in Canada and the first in more than 20 years after Air China launched its Vancouver service.
“Today we stand on the cusp of history as we become the first airline to connect Montreal, China and Asia directly. We are honored to be the bridge that brings together the people and culture of our two great destinations,” Mr. Wang Yingnian, Air China’s Chief Pilot, said.
“This new service strengthens Air China’s presence in the China-Canada market where there is a robust demand for air travel, especially in Montreal, Canada’s second largest city,” he added.
Featuring state-of-the-art green technology, the B777-300ER delivers better fuel performance and is much quieter than any other aircraft. With a spacious three-cabin interior, ambient lighting and an enhanced entertainment system, the triple seven offers a smooth, comfortable experience. Air China’s B777-300ER features eight luxury suites in the Forbidden Pavilion (first class), 41 fully-flat sleeper seats in the Capital Pavilion (business class) and 259 economy seats with individual TV monitors and in-seat audio-video on demand.
By the end of 2015, Air China will have nonstop services between Beijing and nine gateways in North America: New York (2x daily); Newark (4x/week; Los Angeles (3x daily); San Francisco (daily); Houston (daily); Washington Dulles (4x/week); Honolulu (3x/week); Vancouver (daily) and Montreal (3x/week).
Business Wire