Evidence of meeting #126 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was airline.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:30 a.m.
Capt Scott Wilson
I'd be happy to take that on to answer.
Yes—
9:30 a.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
I just need a short answer, because I have a follow-up question. The answer, then, is yes. Okay.
Has there ever been any discussion with people who profess to be affected by this noise about the whole issue of active noise cancellation in their homes? There are things you can buy that are basically like noise-cancelling headphones, which could cancel the noise in a bedroom, for instance.
9:30 a.m.
Capt Scott Wilson
I'm familiar with the technology on board the aircraft. Our fleet of Bombardier Q400s has active noise cancellation capability in the cabin. I'm not aware of how it applies or of any technology that actually does it in the home. It's a good point, but I'm not aware of the technology in the home.
9:30 a.m.
Liberal
9:30 a.m.
Capt Scott Wilson
Good thought.
9:30 a.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
Let's talk about noise itself. Maybe you're not quite the right people to ask, because you may not track this, but do you have a profile developed of the people who are most susceptible to noise—men versus women, age, etc.?
9:30 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
I don't have that information. I don't believe we've studied it. It was addressed in one report by the World Health Organization, but I don't have the information in front of me at this time.
9:30 a.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
Just from past experience when I used to program radio stations, I know that women handle noise or annoyance differently from men; they will react differently. As well, we've come through an era—I would call it the ear-damaged generation—when people have been subjecting themselves to very loud stereos in their cars or personal devices and everything else.
You would wonder whether perhaps part of what you're experiencing, with the level of complaints going up even with quieter planes, is with people who have somehow altered their hearing with these other devices, making them more susceptible to the noise. I'll ask you to comment on that.
Also, if you're a member of the flight crew and you're in the cabin, you're dealing with a constant level of noise throughout the whole journey, whereas if you're on the ground, it's sporadic. There's noise, then there isn't noise, and then there's noise again. Has that been examined in the course of trying to come up with an overall management plan for noise at airports?
9:35 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
Again, I'm not the expert on your first question.
On the second question, the newer airplanes are considerably quieter in the cabin. I'm not aware of any studies that have been made of the effect of what the noise does to an individual. We have Health Canada guidelines for our cabin crew, our passengers, and our pilots, and we generally follow those as guidelines.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
Do you participate at all in the planning of airports, particularly the alignment of runways versus what's going on in the surrounding area? It would be one thing, for instance, to have a flight path coming in over a light industrial area such as you normally see close to airports, and another to have one coming in over a new development of townhouses.
9:35 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
We consult with the local airport authorities to assist them wherever we can. We offer our simulators up for testing of new approaches. We work with Nav Canada also.
We're a participant, but we're not the lead group on it.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
Are you ever invited to or asked to participate in zoning decisions by municipalities near airports?
9:35 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
We are not, so far as I'm aware. I believe that's handled by the airport authority.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
9:35 a.m.
Matt Jeneroux Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you for being here today, and for coming right before Christmastime as well. We appreciate it.
We recently had the Minister of Transport here, and he made an interesting comment along the lines of the carbon tax. He says he hasn't heard from anybody that the carbon tax has been detrimental.
Have you guys heard that the carbon tax has been detrimental? Can you perhaps comment on what the carbon tax means to your particular industry?
9:35 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
I'm not the right person to answer that question. We'd have to bring together three or four different departments to give you the correct answer. I can get that answer for you, but I take care of the day-to-day flight operations of the aircraft, and that information lies in other departments.
9:35 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
You have no personal opinion, Mr. Strom. Is there maybe something that you've heard around the office?
9:35 a.m.
Vice-President, Flight Operations, Air Canada
I don't like offering an opinion unless I have the facts to deal with.
9:35 a.m.
Capt Scott Wilson
I'd be aligned with Mr. Strom that way, in terms of offering an opinion in an area that's not my expertise.
However, I will strongly point out that we've talked about both the very strong level of capital investment in airframes and engines that produce the lowest level of noise possible and the greatest amount of efficiency. Therefore, on anything from a tax perspective, I'd also hope that it would be offset by looking at the level of investment that an airline is making.
9:35 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
Your companies are part of the National Airlines Council of Canada. Is that correct? There was a letter sent from your association to Minister McKenna, with a cc to Minister Garneau and Minister Morneau, highlighting the negative impact of the carbon tax.
Let me ask this a different way, then. Do you think that perhaps a study on the impacts of the carbon tax, at a committee like this, would be useful for your airline or for the association?
9:35 a.m.
Capt Scott Wilson
I would concur.
