Some passenger groups expressed concern, namely passengers with disabilities. We reassured them by explaining the additional measures, much as we are doing here today. Some groups expressed concerns with regard to safety. There again, the measures we have implemented in Canada, namely a closed cockpit policy and an enhanced passenger screening process, have led us to believe that the flight attendant to passenger ratio has no impact on the level of safety onboard our aircraft.
The airlines are very supportive of this measure but would like it to go farther. They would prefer a 1:50 passenger seat ratio or a 1:40 passenger ratio on every flight. Unless they have changed their mind, they would like to have the opportunity to adapt to every flight. That was their initial position. They wanted as much flexibility as possible.
The in-flight crew, namely the representatives of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, with whom you will meet later on, are vehemently opposed to any change of the ratio. Perhaps they fear job cuts but we don't believe that's a likely outcome. In fact, if airlines are more competitive, they will penetrate new markets and create more jobs.
For every company, it will be a matter of reviewing its own fleet to decide which regime better suits its operation. It's not obvious that a company using a number of different aircraft types will want to change regimes, because there are costs associated to the certification of aircraft.