MONTREAL, Jan. 25, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - Transat A.T. Inc. welcomes the announcement by Canada's Minister of Transport, the Honourable Marc Garneau, and his Israeli counterpart, Yisrael Katz, of a new air transport capacity regime pursuant to which the number of weekly frequencies between the two countries will be increased from 12 to 19 weekly return flights.

"We congratulate the federal government for reaching an expanded air transport capacity arrangement with Israel. This deal will open up new development and growth possibilities for Canadian-based international carriers such as Air Transat," said Jean-Marc Eustache, President and Chief Executive Officer, Transat.

Air Transat made its first foray into the Middle Eastern region in the summer of 2017 when it launched direct flights between Montreal and Tel Aviv. Building on that success, it will be offering three direct flights per week out of Montreal this summer, along with service from Toronto supported by connecting flights. The new program begins May 23.

Besides flights, Transat markets a full range of vacation packages to Israel, making the country a choice vacation destination for customers. If offers Canadians guided tours to fully explore the destination, packages including round-trip flight, accommodation, transfers, and selected meals, along with à la carte products for customized holidays.

About Transat 
Transat A.T. Inc. is a leading integrated international tourism company specializing in holiday travel. It offers vacation packages, hotel stays and air travel to some 60 destinations in 26 countries in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. Based in Montreal, the company has 5,000 employees. Transat is firmly committed to sustainable tourism development, as reflected in its multiple corporate responsibility initiatives over the past 10 years, and was awarded Travelife Partner status in 2016 (TSX: TRZ).

Recent distinctions and awards

Named world's second-best leisure airline at the Skytrax World Airline Awards (2013–2017) and best in North America in the same category (2012–2017)

Placed second among airlines on Forbes magazine's 2017 ranking of Canada's Best Employers

Named one of the Best Corporate Citizens in Canada by the research firm Corporate Knights (2014–2017; 16th in 2017)

Named the number one carrier in North America for energy efficiency by Atmosfair (2011–2016)

Ranked among the Top 10 call centres in North America by BenchmarkPortal (2012 and 2015)

Voted Best Leisure/Charter Airline (2008–2017) and Best Tour Operator (2014–2017), at the Agents' Choice Awards presented by Baxter Travel Media

Voted Best Airline (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017) and Best Tour Operator (2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), at the Trophées Uni-Vers awards organized by the Association des Agents de Voyages du Québec

SOURCE Transat A.T. Inc.