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‘The world was changing before my eyes’: Airline execs recall how they navigated 9/11
Air Canada grounded 300-plus planes as Canada closed its airspace, and the attacks helped push Canada 3000 into bankruptcy and Air Canada into restructuring.
- On September 11, 2001, Transport Minister David Collenette authorized the unprecedented closure of Canadian airspace following the attack on the U.S. Pentagon, grounding 300-plus Air Canada planes and diverting 224 flights carrying 33,000 passengers to 17 Canadian airports.
- With no radio communication and uncertainty about additional attacks, then-deputy minister Margaret Bloodworth stated, "This was the third plane, and we didn't know how many more there were." Collenette ordered 270 planes over the Atlantic Ocean to return to Europe.
- Plummeting demand forced Air Canada to cut 6,600 workers and post a $1.25-billion loss in 2001, while an 18-month restructuring wiped out $13 billion in debt through aggressive cost-cutting and regional jet fleet changes.
- Bankruptcy protection processes led to the disappearance of Canada 3000 and Canadian Airlines, allowing Calgary-based WestJet to expand its domestic network and become the country's second-biggest carrier.
- The attacks permanently shifted travel protocols, introducing the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority and the 100 millilitres liquid limit, while Gander, N.L., gained global recognition for hosting 6,500 stranded passengers, inspiring the Broadway musical "Come From Away.
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources12
Leaning Left5Leaning Right0Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Left, 50% Center
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left, 50% of the sources are Center
50% Center
L 50%
C 50%
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