YYC February 2021 Stats
Domestic: 174,309 -78.4%
Transborder: 10,903 -92.8%
International: 4,260 -93.2%
February Total: 189,472 -85.8%

2021 Year to Date: 445,684 -83.39%

International traffic dropped more than 50% compared to January! I imagine March will be a further 50% drop.

AC also loaded YVR-YHZ for this summer as well, starting July 3 on Sat/Sun.

AN124 at YEG
https://twitter.com/MaybeeSteve/stat...70220529098754

You'd think summer 2022 would be more realistic. Take YOW for example. Today AC have 5 departures out of YOW. For July they're showing 42 daily departures...still a far cry from a 'normal' summer schedule, but are they really going to have an 8-fold increase in traffic in the next 4 months?

I checked and it appears YUL are 'stealing' from YOW the seasonal Sask triangle route...unless that returns for YOW in 2022.

YYC are doing remarkably 'well'. Look at YOW for February:

YOW's February pax stats:

Sector / Feb-20 / Feb-21 / % Change
Dom: 290,829 / 19,182 / -93.4%
TB: 63,333 / 0 / -100.0%
Int'l: 67,150 / 0 / -100.0%
TTL: 421,312 / 19,182 / -95.4%

Sector / YTD 2020 / YTD 2021 / % Change
Dom: 569,079 / 53,256 / -90.6%
TB: 125,210 / 0 / -100.0%
Int'l: 133,405 / 0 / -100.0%
TTL: 827,694 / 53,256 / -93.6%

12 Months Rolling / % Change vs Year End 2019
Dom: 516,214 / -87.1%
TB: 37,883 / -94.5%
Int'l: 34,977 / -91.8%
TTL: 589,074 / -88.5% <-- this was still almost 1 million last month

The meaningful indicator
Month-Over-Month Change
Sector / Jan-21 / Feb-21 / % Change
Dom: 34,074 / 19,182 / -43.7%
TB: 0 / 0 / #DIV/0!
Int'l: 0 / 0 / #DIV/0!
TTL: 34,074 / 19,182 / -43.7%

YYC handled almost 10 times the traffic of YOW. Normally YYC's handling 3.5 times the traffic of YOW.

Its interesting the media has picked up on AC's plans to resume Mexico/Caribbean flights in May but not WS (and WS has more destinations / flights planned).

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/air...outh-1.5961148

AC planned ops:

YYZ-MEX 3x weekly
YYZ-KIN 1x weekly
YYZ-BGI 1x weekly

WS planned ops:
YYC-CUN 1x weekly
YYC-PVR 4x weekly
YYC-SJD 2x weekly
YYZ-CUN 1x weekly
YYZ-MBJ 1x weekly

Also this is interesting:

Nice of them to have faith in the government removing some of the restrictions by early May.

WestJet has announced the planned resumption of seven routes:

• St. John's-Halifax: 6x weekly (May 6, 2021)
• Charlottetown-Toronto: 11x weekly (June 24, 2021)
• St. John's-Toronto: 1x daily (June 24, 2021)
• Fredericton-Toronto: 1x daily (June 26, 2021)
• Quebec City-Toronto: 1x daily (June 28, 2021)
• Sydney-Halifax: 1x daily (June 28, 2021)
• Moncton-Toronto: 1x daily (June 30, 2021)

While not included in the press release, services to Lloydminster, Medicine Hat, and London (ON) are also bookable as of June 24.

Press Release

Interesting that they want to have more service on YYG-YYZ than YYT-YYZ.

WestJet today also discussed the hotel quarantine and hopes it will be dropped by May 1.

https://www.travelweek.ca/news/will-...ion-passports/

^Wishful thinking.

I don't see the Liberals dropping that requirement until fall, at the earliest. I'd like to be proven wrong though.

I don't see a chance for dropping the requirement until most Canadians are vaccinated, and that won't happen until later summer or early fall at the earliest.

Otherwise, what's the excuse they'll use for dropping the requirement? Would they slap at their own face saying the measure is not useful? Or lying about the pandemic situation is under control and the new cases are dropping fast, which obviously is not the case?

Exactly. It is in their best interest to do nothing until the virus is under control. Anyways, it's unlike our government in general to react too quickly to something.

Several example of this. They still haven't bailed out airlines. They set the hotel quarantine requirements 9 months into the pandemic.

Like you said, they won't do anything until the end of this year, at the earliest.

I think I read somewhere the airlines only agreed to suspend flights to Sun destinations as long as they reduced quarantine periods after the suspension period and moved to a more testing based (kind of like what happened briefly at YYC) plan.

But I do agree - the feds don't seem interested in opening up borders anytime soon.

Also there's reports the US is planning to drop most international travel restrictions in mid-May including at both land borders. I figured the US would eventually stop agreeing to the border closures, which would put pressure on Canada to re-open their end (which I don't see happening until July at the earliest).

The same WestJet interview spoke on vaccine passports too, so maybe they'll open up travel to vaccinated individuals in the summer? Either way the tourism industry will not survive another summer like last year - unless there's significant domestic travel or government help.

Government help will be announced very soon I think.

AC announcing zero emissions goal by 2050 in the middle of a pandemic is odd. They did it to please the government and meet their requirements.
WS announcing resumption of regional services (especially to the Maritimes, which still has travel restrictions) is odd. They did it to please the government and meet their requirements.

All of this means 1 thing. Help is on the way.

Booking YYC-YYZ this August with points and it is equivalent to $320 return right now... damn

WS announced 11 new domestic routes, starting in June.

https://westjet.mediaroom.com/2021-0...-11-new-routes

YYZ-YMM
YLW-YXE
YLW-YQR
YXE-YYJ
YWG-YYJ
YEG-YKA
YEG-YYF
YEG-YCD
YXS-YXX
YOW-YYJ
YYZ-YQQ

In a video message, WS CEO Ed Sims sayings their looking at new aircraft and again looking at expansion opportunities for 7M8 and 789 aircraft both internationally/domestically.

https://www.acl-uk.org/wp-content/up...port-S21-1.pdf

A new LHR report for S21 was published and it looks like WS did obtain slots good enough to operate 2x daily. Report lists YYC/YVR as destinations, just as the Heathrow website listed.

I would imagine the two new transcon routes will be a success even in these dark times. YMM-YYZ is a reinstatement route after a 3-4 year absence. Victoria's the only P/T Capital that's never been connected with a direct flight or nonstop to the Nation's Capital on at least a seasonal basis. Remains to be seen though if all the others return in the next 1-3 years.

Lets hope they jump on it. LHR is a much better option for them longer term.

Supposedly begins week of May 3, according to your document.

However, nothing bookable so far, and May is just around the corner.

Highly unlikely WS flies to LHR in 2021. This is basically the same as those ad-hoc slots WS received for W20 season. They won't use them.