http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuot...9278457_newsml

"Earlier this past week, Air Canada, a unit of ACE Aviation Holdings Inc. (ACErv.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) , and no-frills carrier WestJet Airlines Ltd. (WJA.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) both posted record passenger traffic figures for November.

The bitter rivals are benefiting from what National Bank Financial analyst David Newman calls a "rational, but competitive, duopoly in Canadian skies" since the demise of discount carrier Jetsgo in March.

In particular, their load factor rose again in November to record levels for that month. The key measure -- the ratio of seats sold on average on the airlines' planes -- improved even though the carriers added to fleet capacity as they broaden their reach across Canada and into the United States.

Montreal-based Air Canada's traffic figures grew largely on transborder routes to the United States and on international traffic across the Atlantic and Pacific.

The November load factor at WestJet was the Calgary, Alberta-based airline's best in more than seven years for that month, and according to Tim James, an analyst at Octagon Capital, it may be a sign of higher pretax profits to come."