Wednesday, October 2, 2024 Air Canada has been penalized $250,000 by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for operating codeshare flights over restricted Iraqi airspace.
According to the DOT, between late 2022 and January 2023 , Air Canada operated a “significant number of flights” between the UAE and Canada in low-altitude airspace that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had designated as off-limits for U.S. airlines.
The DOT asserted its authority to issue the fine because the flights were marketed to customers under a United Airlines designator code. The agency noted that several flights continued to operate even after the Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) notified Air Canada of the violation and initiated an investigation. Since October 2020 , U.
S. carriers have been prohibited from flying below a certain altitude over Iraqi airspace due to safety concerns. In response to the violation notice, Air Canada stated that it took “immediate action” and emphasized that the incidents were “unplanned, brief, and limited in number.
” Additionally, Air Canada terminated its codeshare agreement with United Airlines for the Dubai to Toronto route last year..