Canada's Aviation Sector Applauds Government Of Canada Decision To Lift Visa Requirements For Citizens Of Chile

OTTAWA, Nov. 22, 2014 /CNW/ - The National Airlines Council of Canada (NACC) and the Canadian Airports Council (CAC) welcome today's announcement by the Government of Canada to lift visa requirements for citizens of Chile.

"The lifting of visa requirements for Chileans will mean more opportunity to expand business, trade and travel with an important partner and supports the government's priority to expand economic engagement in the Americas," said Marc-André O'Rourke, Executive Director of the NACC. "It is encouraging to see the government take action to make it faster and easier to visit and do business in Canada," added O'Rourke.  

"Canada's airports welcome the opportunity to grow our travel and trade from Chile through easier, visa free access," said Canadian Airports Council President Daniel-Robert Gooch. "There are tremendous opportunities for growth from Latin America, particularly when we lowers travel barriers."

Given the opportunities surrounding the upcoming Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), the aviation sector encourages Canada to continue to take steps to continue to ease visa requirements where appropriate to grow investment, trade, and tourism.

About the National Airlines Council of Canada

The National Airlines Council of Canada is the trade association representing Canada's largest national and international passenger air carriers: Air Canada, Air Transat, Jazz Aviation LP and WestJet. We promote safe, sustainable and competitive air travel through the development of policies, regulations and legislation that foster a world-class transportation system. Collectively, our member airlines carry over 50 million passengers annually, directly employ 46,000 people and create over 260,000 jobs.

About the Canadian Airports Council

The Canadian Airports Council (CAC), a division of Airports Council International-North America, is the voice for Canada's airports community.  Its 45 members represent more than 120 airports, including all of the privately operated National Airports System (NAS) airports and many municipal airports across Canada. Canada's airports are independently operated by non-share capital corporations that are fully responsible for self-funding their operating and infrastructure costs.  In 2012, Canada's air transportation industry had a $34.9 billion economic footprint, supported 405,000 jobs, and contributed more than $7 billion to federal taxes.

SOURCE: National Airlines Council of Canada

Melissa Pasi, Manager Public Affairs and Research, National Airlines Council of Canada, Tel.: [phone], [email protected]; Daniel-Robert Gooch, President, Canadian Airports Council, Tel.: [phone], [email protected]