Air Canada plans gender-neutral greeting, Porter, United create gender X category

In an effort to be more inclusive, Air Canada plans to drop gender references when welcomingpassengers. That means no more onboard announcements openingwith, "Ladies and gentlemen."

The move follows a growing awareness and acceptance including in the travel industry that some individuals are non-binary, meaning they don't identify as male or female.

However, Air Canada along with most other airlines still requires passengers to designate themselves as female or male when booking flights, something activists say needs to change.

"That just feels dishonest and also disrespectful that we're forced to have to pick an identity that we don't identify with," said Gemma Hickey, a transgender activist in St. John's who identifies as non-binary.

A fewcarriers, including Canada's Porter Airlines,have added a gender-neutral booking option. Many others, including Air Canada, have pledged to do it. Hickey said Air Canada's plan to revise its greeting is a good first step.

According to an employeememo issuedlast month, Air Canadasaid it will soon switch to the gender-free term "everyone" when greeting passengers.

"We want to ensure an inclusive space for everyone, including those who identify as gender X," said the memo.

Since June, the federal government has allowed people who don't identify as female or male to have an Xprinted on their passport, travel document, citizenship certificate or permanent residentcard.

Most provincesnow also offer the X gender option for government-issued ID cards such as driver's licences.

Hickey was one of the first Canadiansto get a passport with an X. But typically when booking a flight, that option still doesn't exist.

"I'm not sure what the holdup is," said Hickey, who emailedCanada's major airlines in June2018, lobbying for a non-binary gender category. "It doesn't feel like I'm being respected as a person."

However, Hickey had a positive experience recently when booking a flight withPorter. The airline adoptedthe Xoption, along with a gender-neutral onboard greeting, in the summer of 2018.

"It made me feel great to be able to choose [X] on an airline," said Hickey.

Porter made the change"to better reflect the preferences of travellers" and to stay in step withgender categories offered on government documents, saidspokespersonBradCicero in an email.

In March, U.S. airlineUnited added the X,plus a Uoption, which stands for "undisclosed" gender.

"We are so proud to be the first U.S. airline to offer these inclusive booking options for our customers," said United's Chief Customer Officer Toby Enqvist in a statement.

In June, Air Italy became the first European airline to include the Xgender category.

Back in Canada, WestJetsaysit's making the necessary changes to its system to offer the Xoption.

The airline said that "due to the complexity of changes required," it anticipates the category won't be available until 2020.

WestJetis also re-evaluating its onboard greeting which refers to passengers as "ladies and gentlemen."

"We are continuously assessing and evolving our practice and policies to maximize inclusiveness," saidspokesperson Morgan Bell in an email.

Air Canada didn't respond to requests for comment. In February, it told The Canadian Press that it was looking intowhether other governments and airline partners would recognize the Xdesignation for international travellers.

"We are actively working on this, and we do intend to eventually offer a non-binary option to our customers," said spokespersonPeter Fitzpatrick.

Will other countries accept an X passport?

On itswebsite, the federal governmentwarns there are no guarantees that when people travel, the countries they visit will accept an Xgender identifier on their passport.

Hickey, who uses the pronoun "they," said that, travelling with a passportmarked with an X,they have visited four European countries plus Japan with no hassles.

In fact, Hickey said the genderdesignation actually helps cut the confusion when travelling, caused byappearing masculine but havinga feminine-sounding first name, Gemma.

"My identity isn't called into question anymore," said Hickey. "People don't ask me any questions about that because the Xexplainsmy name as well as how I present."

Not all transgender activists are campaigning for an Xoption. Fran Forsberg of Saskatoon has two transgender children and wishes people could buy a plane ticket or get a passport without having to indicate agender.

"It's nobody's business, and it's irrelevant," said Forsberg, who was recently involved in a court challenge which forced Saskatchewan to allow people of all ages to remove the gender on their birth certificates.

"I wished they just abolished [gender markers] altogether," she said.

Hickey believes that's a possibility, butfor now, ishappy with the Xoption, because it provides recognition to a marginalized group.

"It's important that we have that visibility because we've been invisible."