OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney was forced to take a charter flight to Egypt for the historic signing of an agreement to end the Israel-Hamas war because there were no air crews available to fly a Canadian Armed Forces jet.
The trip to Sharm-el-Sheikh was planned on short notice and the CAF members who usually crew flights on the Airbus passenger jets or smaller Challenger jets were deployed elsewhere, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
“With the summit being planned by the United States on an urgent timeline and invitations from the President being made so close to departure, overlapping existing operational needs resulted in the option of a Canadian Armed Forces airbus flight and related crews being unavailable for this transport,” the PMO said in a statement.
No aircrafts available
The PMO says it cleared the decision to charter an aircraft from a private company with the office of federal ethics commissioner Konrad von Finckenstein. The government received multiple quotes on the cost of the charter flight.
“The government proceeded with the lowest-cost option that met all operational and safety requirements ,” the PMO said, adding that the cost was lower than the estimated cost of flying on the CAF Airbus.
It is unclear why, even on short notice, the Canadian Armed Forces did not have at least one aircraft available. Online flight tracking services show at least one of the Airbus passenger jets that Carney usually flies on is currently in Japan.
In 1999, then-prime minister Jean Chretien drew criticism for failing to attend the funeral of King Hussein of Jordan alongside many other world leaders who travelled to Amman to pay their respects.
Chretien was on a family ski holiday in Whistler, British Columbia, when Hussein died. Then-Chief of Defence Staff Maurice Baril later took the blame, explaining that the CAF’s Challenger jets were unavailable to fly Chretien to Jordan on such short notice.
Media not invited
Although prime ministers usually give the media a chance to accompany them on the Airbus when they travel abroad, Canadian journalists were not invited on Carney’s trip to Egypt.
The prime minister travels by government aircraft for security and scheduling reasons, and to avoid putting travellers on commercial flights at risk.
Carney left Canada on Sunday and flew to the Middle East overnight. He was scheduled to arrive in Egypt on Monday at 6 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, according to an itinerary provided by his office.
The PMO did not provide the name of the aircraft charter company, but flight tracking data shows a Bombardier Global Express executive jet operated by Chartright private jets leaving from Ottawa on Sunday and headed to Egypt.
Carney joined other world leaders at the peace summit, including U.S. President Donald Trump, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
In his remarks at the ceremony, in Sharm-el-Sheik, Donald Trump wrongly referred to the “president” from Canada, who he says called to ask whether it was worth coming to Egypt for the peace summit.
“He knew the importance of this. He said, ‘I want be there,’” Trump said, noting how difficult it was for world leaders to attend with limited notice.
“I appreciate you being here very much, Mr. President,” Trump added.
Immediately after Trump’s remarks, Carney approached the podium and the two leaders appeared to joke about Trump’s slip.
