Porter Airlines Has Resumed All Of Its Year Round Destinations

Less than a month after emerging from hibernation, Porter Airlines has resumed all of its year-round routes today. The Canadian regional airline flies to destinations across Ontario, other provinces, and the US. After a long-drawn grounding, the airline is back in the sky and has some exciting plans up its sleeve. Let’s find out more.

Done

In a statement today, Porter Airlines announced that it officially resumed flights to all 18 year-round destinations. This comes as the airline resumed services to four cities in Ontario (Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Timmins, and Windsor), along with Saint John and Fredericton in New Brunswick today.

Porter Airlines only restarted flights on September 8th, 2021, following an 18-month pause due to the coronavirus. The carrier chose to remain in hibernation until all travel restrictions were lifted instead of operating in a challenging and volatile travel environment. The decision seems to have worked out, with the carrier going from four cities on Sept. 8th to 18 cities on Oct. 6th.

The airline resumed international flights to its sole international market of the US in mid-September. The air border between the two countries opened in August after Canada allowed fully vaccinated Americans to enter (the land border remains closed even today). In the US, Porter Airlines serves New York (Newark), Chicago Midway, Boston, and Washington Dulles. 

The carrier also flies several seasonal routes over the summer to cater to tourism demands. While these flights have not flown in two years, Porter Airlines lists Mt. Tremblant, Que., Muskoka, Ontario, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Stephenville, Newfoundland, as seasonal flights.

Stay informed: Sign up for our daily and weekly aviation news digests.

More coming

While Porter Airlines might have reached all 18 of its routes, the carrier isn’t stopping. In April, the regional airline placed an order for 30 Embraer E195-E2s along with options for 50 more. While the customer was unknown at the time, Porter confirmed in July that it was the one to place an order and plans to become the first North American operator for the E2.

Porter currently flies a fleet of 29 de Havilland Canada Q400s turboprops. The E2s will allow the airline to boost capacity across the network, provide more comfortable seating, and extend its range further across the continent in the future.

The E2 will also open up new markets such as Mexico and the Caribbean, both of which are major leisure destinations for Canadians. While most airlines have attempted to shrink their operations due to COVID, Porter has been looking forward during its pause.

In the process

While all 18 destinations might be back on the map, Porter still has some ways to go before calling it a full recovery. The airline plans to recall more of its staff in the coming months, with only 1,000 serving today, and add more flights as passenger numbers rise. However, today’s announcement is a shot in the arm for the airline and signals that the worst of the pandemic may almost be behind us.

What do you think about Porter Airlines’ plans? Let us know in the comments!

Source: https://simpleflying.com/porter-airlines-all-destinations/