"It's our firm belief the more bilateral or multilateral agreements signed with other carriers, the more that will directly benefit the paying customer," [Lawrence Cannon] told a parliamentary committee in June.

"Canada is wildly uncompetitive worldwide," said Fred Gaspar of the Air Transport Association of Canada. "The government regards the commercial air industry as a source of short-term revenue."

"What we're aiming for is a direct flight from Amman to Montreal and probably later on to Toronto. It will help a lot of communities ... not only Jordanians, but probably Syrians, Lebanese and Egyptians," [Nabil Barto] said.