A former pilot flew commercial planes for nearly 17 years allegedly without the required license, Ontario police said.

Subscribe to read this story ad-free

Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.

A “complex fraud and forgery investigation” uncovered that a commercial airline pilot who spent the entirety of his career — from 1998 to 2025 — flying planes for Air Canada, had forged a license required of him when he was promoted to captain in 2009.

The investigation, dubbed “Project Icarus,” suggests “a deliberate effort to circumvent systems designed to safeguard the public. When that occurs, accountability is essential,” Chair of the Peel Police Services Board Nando Iannicca said.

Officials said the man flew Boeing 767, 777 and 787 passenger jets for more than 900 domestic and international flights, carrying tens of thousands of passengers without the required license.

“Our investigation has led us to believe that this was all done without the appropriate licensing, more specifically, without an airline transport pilot license, which is a requirement to fly passengers,” Deputy Police Chief Nick Milinovich said. “Instead, we believe the accused misrepresented his qualifications to both his employer and the regulator.”

Milinovich said it was believed that the former pilot had filed a false police report “in relation to an event found to have not occurred through this investigation with respect to stolen pilot documentation.”

No further information was provided about that incident.

The criminal investigation was launched in January after Air Canada notified Transport Canada about a regulatory investigation it had conducted into the captain — something the airline said it did voluntarily.

Fraud Bureau Detective Sergeant Chad Mitchell said the “catalyst” of the investigation took place in March 2025 at Pearson International Airport during a routine evaluation of the former pilot’s credentials and performance.

“Anomalies were detected” in the license he presented during the evaluation, which led to the regulatory investigation by the airline and then the criminal investigation.

The investigation found that the pilot didn’t have an airline transport pilot license for the entire time he served as captain for Air Canada.

“This high-level license is a requirement to operate the type of aircraft the accused flew at the rank of captain,” Mitchell said.

The pilot was arrested on June 1, Mitchell said. His first court appearance in Brampton will be on June 29.

He is charged with seven counts, including fraud, uttering forged documents and public mischief.

Air Canada issued a statement responding to the allegations that said “safety was not compromised by this incident,” noting that all of its pilots must “undergo mandatory recurrent training every six months to validate their flying competency, including a flight check with a certified Transport Canada check-pilot every 12 months.”

Officials also said Tuesday that they do not believe anyone else was involved in the scheme. They added that the pilot retired early in 2025.

Even still, the airline acknowledged that a proper license is still required in order to fly, and said it “takes this matter with utmost seriousness.”

“Throughout his employment with Air Canada, the individual in question was a fully trained pilot who held a valid Commercial Pilot License, and he successfully met or exceeded the required recurrent training, demonstrating a high level of competency to safely operate large aircraft,” Air Canada continued.

The airline noted, however, that even though the captain was trained to operate aircraft, “regulations require that captains of large aircraft operated by airlines in Canada hold an airline transport pilot license (ATPL), obtained by passing a series of written exams.”

The pilot in question was “removed from active duty,” the airline said.

The Air Line Pilots Association, in a statement provided to CTV News on Monday, said the matter is subject to an “ongoing investigation.”

Toronto police have arrested a Sri Lankan influencer, charging him with four counts of criminal harassment following a series of incidents involving the non-consensual filming of strangers. 

Police allege the 45-year-old man repeatedly approached individuals in public spaces across Toronto, filming them in ways that caused them significant discomfort.

According to a statement released by the Toronto Police Service, he was taken into custody on December 10, 2025, and recently appeared at the Ontario Court of Justice on February 4, 2026. 

The police also shared four different incidents of criminal harassment. 

On June 8, 2025, a woman was attending an event near Dundas Street West and Dufferin Street when she caught a man filming her. When she asked him to stop, he got confrontational, continued harassing her, and refused to leave despite security’s orders, police say. The accused left before officers arrived, and no injuries were reported.

On August 21, 2025, around 2:45 pm, the same individual allegedly approached a TTC employee at Union Station, filmed them without consent, and made harassing comments about their ethnicity. 

A third incident happened on September 27, 2025, around 3 pm at David Pecaut Square, where the accused allegedly approached a victim in line, continued filming despite requests to stop, and got confrontational.

In another case, on May 26, 2025, police say the accused approached a female officer on Yonge Street and Shuter Street, filming her and commenting on her appearance

Toronto police have released his image and believe there may be more victims. They are urging anyone with information to contact the Toronto Police Service or provide anonymous tips via Crime Stoppers. 

Under the Criminal Code of Canada, criminal harassment can lead to a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison if prosecuted by indictment.

Source: NDTV

–Agencies

Carney said his recent agreement with China merely cuts tariffs on a few sectors that were recently hit with tariffs.

Trump claims otherwise, posting that “China is successfully and completely taking over the once Great Country of Canada. So sad to see it happen. I only hope they leave Ice Hockey alone! President DJT”

The prime minister said under the free trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico there are commitments not to pursue free trade agreements with nonmarket economies without prior notification.

“We have no intention of doing that with China or any other nonmarket economy,” Carney said. “What we have done with China is to rectify some issues that developed in the last couple of years.”

In 2024, Canada mirrored the United States by putting a 100% tariff on electric vehicles from Beijing and a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum. China had responded by imposing 100% import taxes on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood.

Breaking with the United States this month during a visit to China, Carney cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on those Canadian products.

Carney has said there would be an initial annual cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports coming into Canada at a tariff rate of 6.1%, growing to about 70,000 over five years. He noted there was no cap before 2024. He also has said the initial cap on Chinese EV imports was about 3% of the 1.8 million vehicles sold in Canada annually and that, in exchange, China is expected to begin investing in the Canadian auto industry within three years.

Trump posted a video Sunday in which the chief executive of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association warns there will be no Canadian auto industry without U.S. access, while noting the Canadian market alone is too small to justify large scale manufacturing from China.

“A MUST WATCH. Canada is systematically destroying itself. The China deal is a disaster for them. Will go down as one of the worst deals, of any kind, in history. All their businesses are moving to the USA. I want to see Canada SURVIVE AND THRIVE! President DJT,” Trump posted on social media.

Trump’s post on Saturday said that if Carney “thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken.”

“We can’t let Canada become an opening that the Chinese pour their cheap goods into the U.S,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on ABC’s “This Week.”

“We have a (United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement), but based off — based on that, which is going to be renegotiated this summer, and I’m not sure what Prime Minister Carney is doing here, other than trying to virtue-signal to his globalist friends at Davos.”

Trump’s threat came amid an escalating war of words with Carney as the Republican president’s push to acquire Greenland strained the NATO alliance.

Carney has emerged as a leader of a movement for countries to find ways to link up and counter the U.S. under Trump. Speaking in Davos before Trump, Carney said, “Middle powers must act together because if you are not at the table, you are on the menu” and he warned about coercion by great powers — without mentioning Trump’s name. The prime minister received widespread praise and attention for his remarks, upstaging Trump at the World Economic Forum.

Trump’s push to acquire Greenland has come after he has repeatedly needled Canada over its sovereignty and suggested it also be absorbed into the United States as a 51st state. He posted an altered image on social media this week showing a map of the United States that included Canada, Venezuela, Greenland and Cuba as part of its territory.

President Donald Trump’s extra 10% duty on Canada added fuel to the debate over his legal authority on trade, just as the Supreme Court is about to consider a challenge to his global tariffs.

About 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants have voted down the employer’s wage offer that the union and airline agreed to last month but another walkout is not expected.

The adage “time heals all wounds” is not holding true for Canadian travelers and their desire to vacation in America.

Visits to the United States from Canada are down 25.2%, year to date, with a 37% year-over-year drop in arrivals by car in July alone, according to Tourism Economics.

“Canadians were already concerned over their personal finances, but they’ve taken the rhetoric and policy announcements from the U.S. administration very personally,” said Amir Eylon, president and CEO of market research firm Longwoods International, which has been regularly surveying Canadian consumers.

“Unfortunately, things have gone from bad to worse,” he added.

A whopping 80% of Canadian travelers whose travel decisions are being influenced by U.S. policy and politics say U.S. tariffs and economic policy are the major negative influence. Seventy-one percent say political statements by U.S. leaders are a key negative factor, up from 64% in April, according to Longwoods International’s mid-July survey.

Instead of visiting the United States, where AAA says Labor Day weekend travelers will be enjoying lower year-over-year prices for everything from gas, hotels and flights to car rental costs, disgruntled Canadians are planning to travel within their own country or book flights to other nations.

“They’re choosing destinations such as Mexico, the Caribbean and Western Europe,” Eylon said.

It is not just Canadians who are staying away.

Geopolitical and policy-related concerns have also led to a decrease in visitors from Western Europe and Asia, experts say. Overseas arrivals to the U.S. dropped three months in a row, including a 3.1% drop in July, bringing the year-to-date decline to 1.6%, according to Tourism Economics.

Overall, the “sentiment drag has proven severe,” the group said in a data update released last week. In December, it had forecast an approximate 9% increase in overall international arrivals to the United States for 2025. It now expects an 8.2% decline.

Overseas visitor numbers throughout the United States may dip even further due to the $250 visa integrity fee set to go into effect on Oct. 1. The new charge would be layered on top of other visa fees and apply to most anyone applying for a nonimmigrant visa for travel to the United States, including visitors from China, Mexico and Brazil. 

The U.S. Travel Association calls it “a misguided junk fee” that will hike the upfront costs of visiting the U.S. by 130% just as the cities across the country already reeling from the loss of international visitors are preparing for major global events such as the 2026 FIFA World Cup, America’s 250th birthday and the 2028 Summer Olympics.

The fee, part of Trump’s signature tax and spending law, requires coordination across agencies before it’s implemented, said a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, who defended the measure. “President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill provides the necessary policies and resources to restore to our nation’s immigration system.”

Autumn of discontent

Destinations across the United States are bracing for further travel dips in the fall and are adjusting expectations and carefully crafting or holding off on new campaigns.

“Our international visitors were forecasted to grow by 15% in 2025 but are now forecast to drop by 10%,” said Dave O’Donnell, vice president of strategic communications for Meet Boston, the organization that markets and promotes tourism in greater Boston.

In response, the group is planning winter campaigns and media missions to Mexico, the United Kingdom and, most notably, Canada. The group plans to host an event in Toronto in September, O’Donnell said.

In Rochester, New York, 90 minutes from the Canadian-U.S. border, 12% to 15% of visitors have traditionally come from Canada.

Summer numbers aren’t in yet, but “we know some Canadians are choosing to stay home or travel to alternative destinations beyond the U.S.,” said Rachel Laber Pulvino, vice president of communications for Monroe County’s tourism agency, Visit Rochester.

Rochester’s tourist attractions include the George Eastman Museum, the Strong National Museum of Play and the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House. The city’s summer and fall tourism promotion plans have shifted from traditional tourism marketing messages to a “softer” approach, Laber Pulvino said, including a “Dear Canada” campaign launched earlier this summer. 

“It is essentially a love letter to our neighbors to the north. Our message is simple: When you’re ready, we will be here,” she said.

Canadians made 20.4 million visits to the United States in 2024. This year, the steep pullback of Canadian visitors is expected to most negatively affect northern cities such as Seattle; Portland, Oregon; and Detroit. In those cities, overall international visitors are expected to decline this year by about 27%, 18% and 17%, respectively, according to Tourism Economics.

“We typically like to be at the top of lists, but not this one,” Michael Woody, chief strategy officer for Visit Seattle, said.

Woody said the projected dip is “certainly concerning” for Seattle. But, he added, Seattle is having a great summer thanks to an uptick in domestic visitors, summer concerts by Lady Gaga and several other headliners, and a cruise season that the Port of Seattle estimates is bringing about 1.9 million passengers to the city.

“We’re looking forward to when Canadian visitor numbers bound back, but that’s driven by so many factors that we don’t have any control over,” he said.

In Portland, tourism has remained flat compared with last summer, largely due to a decline in Canadian visitors, said Jackie Hagan, director of communications for Travel Portland. But, heading into fall, Hagan said the tourism agency is taking a wait-and-see approach to reaching out to Canadian visitors.

“It’s important for us to acknowledge and respect their current decisions not to travel to the U.S., while also expressing that we look forward to their return when the time feels right,” she said.

How’s it going in Florida?

Not all states and cities are wringing hands over international visitor statistics.

Recently released data from Visit Florida Research estimates that 34.4 million visitors traveled to the Sunshine State in the second quarter of 2025, up 5% over the same period in 2024. That includes 640,000 Canadians — down 20% year over year — and 2.3 million overseas visitors, up 11.4% year over year.

In a statement celebrating the uptick in overall visits, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said, “People from all over the world come to the Free State of Florida to take advantage of our top-tier attractions, great weather, and our commitment to public safety.”

Greg Fisher, founder and CEO of Destin, Florida-based tour- and activity-booking site TripShock, is surprised that visitor numbers are up.

The tour operators his company works with report that business is either flat or down so far in 2025, he said. “Many of us in Florida are left wondering where these visitors are actually going and what they’re spending their money on,” he said.

Perhaps they are going to the Palm Beaches. There, international visitation for the first half of 2025 is up 2.56% year over year, according to Milton Segarra, CEO of tourism marketing organization Discover the Palm Beaches.

While Canadian visitors to the area dipped 4.4% year over year, international markets such as Brazil, the United Kingdom, Germany and Colombia saw growth, he said.

Segarra tied the increased visitation to factors such as new tourism offerings “and, of course, the global spotlight as President Trump’s selected home base.” Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home is in ritzy Palm Beach.

The Air Canada strike has ended after flight attendants reached a tentative agreement with the airline, both parties said early Tuesday.

“The Strike has ended,” the Canadian Union of Public Employees said in a Facebook post, advising its membership to “fully cooperate with resumption of operations.”

Air Canada said it would gradually restart operations Tuesday, but that a return to “full restoration may require a week or more.”

“The suspension of our service is extremely difficult for our customers,” Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada, said in a statement. “We deeply regret and apologize for the impact on them of this labour disruption.”

More than 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job early Saturday over pay and scheduling disputes.

The Canadian Industrial Relations Board directed Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flight attendants to “resume their duties” by 2 p.m. ET Sunday after Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu imposed binding arbitration and extended the existing contract until a new agreement is reached.

But the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) called the order “blatantly unconstitutional” and said its members would remain on strike.

In a statement, union secretary and treasurer Candace Rennick said the government’s order was “a disgraceful misuse of power that reeks of systemic bias and corporate favoritism.”

The airline estimated Monday that 500,000 customers’ flights had been canceled because of the strike.

This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates.