Transport committee  No, I agree with that answer. As I said a little earlier, the opportunity to create a centre of excellence in Montreal as the location for maintaining this new series of airplanes is a huge one. I'm sure I'm not the first to have mentioned that.

Transport committee  No. I'd very much like to associate myself with that answer.

Transport committee  I've looked at it, and I've given the legislation the widest, most beneficent reading. As I said at the outset this legislation gives Air Canada the opportunity to continue to carry out maintenance in the three centres identified in the legislation, in the three provinces now ide

Transport committee  I'd like to add that I don't know anything about Mexico's capacity. I wasn't able to find anything when I was researching for this appearance, but clearly Air China Technics and Ameco in Beijing are two of the up-and-comers when it comes to the whole area of aircraft maintenance.

Transport committee  No, thank you.

Transport committee  I'd like to echo that. If you'd asked me that question a number of years ago, when I was an officer of Canadian Airlines, my answer may have been slightly different, relative to the benefits of privatizing Air Canada. In the fullness of time, it was the right decision. I think th

Transport committee  No, I don't have any information on that.

Transport committee  I don't think anybody's suggesting that there isn't a robust presence in this country. There are a number of maintenance operations across Canada that continue to thrive in maintaining a number of different aircraft types. I can tell you that here in Calgary at the SAIT, which is

Transport committee  Thank you very much. I'll start on that one and then ask Mike to comment. You brought both Mike and me together to talk to you about some of the policy issues as they relate to aviation policy as opposed to dealing with rather complex issues that are more in the political and th

Transport committee  I was just simply going to say that I don't think you protect jobs by legislation. I think like in any marketplace companies have to step up and show value, and by doing so you create centres of excellence. With the Bombardier C Series being built in Montreal and with the orders

Transport committee  Perhaps I could just venture a start to the answer. I'd just like to point out to the honourable member that when we're talking about sending this work offshore we're talking about sending it to companies like Air France Industries, to Airbus, to Boeing, to British Airways Engine

Transport committee  I don't have any information on that either. Sorry.

Transport committee  There are pockets of maintenance expertise in Canada, which have grown and waxed and waned over the years. To answer your question as to whether it is growing or not, I don't think I can give you any information that would be of value.

Transport committee  I think what I was saying is that this particular amendment, given a wide reading, would allow Air Canada to enter into that wider competitive environment that it's going to find itself in when it comes to having to seek out the best possible price—which Mike talked about—for the

Transport committee  When I worked with Canadian Airlines we actually worked with Air Canada, at the recommendation of the Honourable John Crosbie, to sit down and try to determine, on behalf of the country, which carrier would be the best operator of services into different countries in the world. W