Thanks to @thenoflyzone for the map. It's pretty much a map of every existing intra-Quebec route south of La Grande.

AC launched 767F service to YHZ yesterday - 5x weekly YHZ-YYZ.

https://www.newswire.ca/news-release...812627230.html

https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/180...hter.jpg?w=500

It's actually a great policy and political move.

The potential for backfiring will be in how to make it happen logistically and practically.

YOW's March pax stats are out. It's the second best month since the start of the pandemic. The airport's 12 months rolling total has now surpassed 1.5 million - every 1/2 million will be a milestone. YOW is still much slower to recover than other airports as March 2022's numbers represent 40.1% of March 2019. Similar to the question of will YUL re-overtake YYC, will YOW do the same with YWG for 6th?

Sector / Mar-21 / Mar-22 / % Change
Dom: 21,855 / 161,216 / +637.7%
TB: 0 / 10,204 / #DIV/0!
Int'l: 0 / 14,252 / #DIV/0!
TTL: 21,855 / 185,672 / +749.6%

Sector / YTD 2020 / YTD 2021 / % Change
Dom: 75,111 / 362,448 / +382.5%
TB: 0 / 20,743 / #DIV/0!
Int'l: 0 / 34,327 / #DIV/0!
TTL: 75,111 / 417,518 / +455.9%

12 Months Rolling / % Change vs Year End 2020
Dom: 1,431,287 / +38.7%
TB: 31,985 / -80.4%
Int'l: 49,924 / -70.4%
TTL: 1,513,196 / +11.0%

The most meaningful indicator these days

Month-Over-Month Change
Sector / Feb-21 / Mar-21 / % Change
Dom: 103,471 / 161,216 / +55.8%
TB: 5,271 / 10,204 / +93.6%
Int'l: 10,432 / 14,252 / +36.6%
TTL: 119,174 / 185,672 / +55.8%
Avg/Day: 4,256 / 5,989 / +40.7%

The 12,000 sqft domestic arrivals facility opened at the Region of Waterloo International Airport today, with the first arrival being Flair Airlines 824 from Halifax. 700,000 passengers are expected to use Waterloo in 2022.

Region of Waterloo Airport Twitter

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FQ4IPtDX...jpg&name=small

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FQ4IP0bW...jpg&name=small

Wow, that was a fast expansion.

That hall looks like it's about as big as the original terminal!

The new domestic arrivals hall is 12,000 sq. ft. and the holdroom expansion, set to open on June 1, will be 20,000 sq. ft. From Google Earth, the current terminal appears to be approximately 25,000 sq. ft., so this is certainly a significant expansion!

Very utilitarian. It does not look at template built to worship the aviation goods like many airports.

I like it.

Today YOW welcomes WS flanker brand Swoop to the airport for the first time arriving from YEG & YXX.

It looks a bit like an ULCC terminal. But that's not a knock. If all else is equal and I have the choice of flying to a palace of a terminal with a AIF of $25 a pop or the ULCC terminal for free, I'll take the ULCC terminal every time.

AC Q1 2022 results. They're still losing money, but some interesting updates.

https://investors.aircanada.com/2022...ancial-Results

...

The new freighters will be delivered brand new, straight from Seattle.

https://www.aircargonews.net/airline...evenues-climb/

Here's some other details:

https://www.newswire.ca/news-release...869012360.html

AC Q1 2022 highlights:
-Operating loss = $550M
-Net loss = $974M
-PW1100 engine will power the XLRs
-Q1 load factor: 66.3% in Q1 2022 vs 43.5% in Q1 2021 = +22.8%

Does this mean any old 767s out there are all spoken for? There's gotto be a point when the supply chain is restored and items such as PPE can be shipped by traditional methods.

767s are in short supply because they're still economical as paid-off mid-to-long haul passenger aircraft. Older and well-used ones close to a big maintenance overhaul might be worth more as parts for the existing fleet than a dedicated hauler, once conversion costs are factored in.

Given the fact that Boeing is still having 787 delivery issues, there's still COVID-related hangover for airline cash-flow, and pilot training issues are all reasons airlines also may be modifying their expected 767 retirement dates.

Cargo airlines are definitely looking for deals, but they're not as cost-sensitive to fuel as passenger airlines, so they don't need the latest and most fuel-efficient aircraft. Capital costs factor in more, hence why a lot of cargo airlines are still using older aircraft like the 747, 757, A300, MD-11 and even a few old DC-10s.

That will make the CFM Leap (the 737 MAX engine) the odd duck out in their narrowbody fleet, given that the A220 is exclusively P&W GTF powered.

So, I await AC's eventual order for P&W-powered A320neos some year in the future.

YQB finally posted 2021 results.

https://www.aeroportdequebec.com/en/...s-2021-results

353,203 passengers, -34% compared to 2020. That's the highest Y.O.Y decrease compared to all the other Canadian airports that have posted results thus far. They also lost 2 positions in the rankings.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...in_Canada#2021

They're expecting quite a rebound this year, with anywhere from 700,000 to 1 million passengers.

Cargojet quietly quadruples order for 777 freighters

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ca...777-freighters

Not only that but:

With a fleet that size, they'll a) probably expand freighter service to a few more cities and b) probably increase every existing Canadian market. I wonder if they'll aim to fly a few more non-Canadian routes?

I just hope the next cargo downturn isn't just around the corner.