Saskatoon and Regina Air Service

[roryn1]

That’s a great sign! I was just checking airport stats and that would put us halfway to what Winnipeg and Halifax do!

[Temperance]

Originally Posted by PhotoJim

The scheduling isn't awesome. The European flights are going to depart in the morning, which implies a very late evening arrival in Europe. Most North America-to-Europe flights depart in the evening, arriving in the morning or very early afternoon European time. To make the flights from Regina or Saskatoon, very early morning flights to Calgary are going to be required.

Personally I wish someone would do what Air Canada used to do, and fly out of Calgary at about 10 pm. That way you have time to make an after-work flight on a weekday (e.g. Friday) and be in London or Paris or Dublin by early afternoon Saturday, and be over the jet lag by Sunday.

I've done these transatlantic flights a lot and personally I actually hate the overnight ones. I never sleep on the plane so I just arrive much more tired. But maybe I'm in the minority on that one.

[Missinglink]

Originally Posted by roryn1

That’s a great sign! I was just checking airport stats and that would put us halfway to what Winnipeg and Halifax do!

I suspect you will see that blue line for YQR will continue to go down a lot more until they can get a proper US connection. I used the Delta connection at least 3-4 times a month, for most part I drive to Minot now as YYZ or YYC connections don't work and price is unacceptable.

[Pinus]

Originally Posted by roryn1

That’s a great sign! I was just checking airport stats and that would put us halfway to what Winnipeg and Halifax do!

For 2017, Halifax was over 4 million passengers and Winnipeg was over 4.3 million passengers. So no, that would not put Saskatoon at the halfway mark to either of those airports.

[roryn1]

Sorry piinus here’s the stats:

[Pinus]

Originally Posted by roryn1

Sorry piinus here’s the stats:

Well rooryn1, but I'll take my info straight from the horses website myself.

https://www.waa.ca/media/news/articl...017-fourth-qua

4,305,744

Either way, Saskatoon's passenger count will not be half of either Winnipeg or Halifax.

[PhotoJim]

Originally Posted by Temperance

I've done these transatlantic flights a lot and personally I actually hate the overnight ones. I never sleep on the plane so I just arrive much more tired. But maybe I'm in the minority on that one.

I don't sleep on the plane either, but I get to Europe, stay awake until about 9 pm (as painful as it might be ), and the next morning, my jet lag is gone.

[kalin_10]

I'm looking for a response from someone who is well versed in route mapping/airline expansion (education & or real on the job experience)

I don't understand why Saskatchewan as a whole is often a void in Airline expansion plans. It's as though Saskatchewan is the Bermuda Triangle of North America... a waste land of prairie grass.

Where this question is originating from is the review of Jetlines Growth Period 1-3. I find it interesting that Saskatchewan is not included in any of the growth periods; however, there is expansion to small airports such as Lethbridge & Red Deer as well as US/International destinations.

For marketing themselves as Canada's ULCC, how can this be when they have only 8 destinations in Canada but 10 internationally?

[Stormer]

Originally Posted by kalin_10

I'm looking for a response from someone who is well versed in route mapping/airline expansion (education & or real on the job experience)

I don't understand why Saskatchewan as a whole is often a void in Airline expansion plans. It's as though Saskatchewan is the Bermuda Triangle of North America... a waste land of prairie grass.

Where this question is originating from is the review of Jetlines Growth Period 1-3. I find it interesting that Saskatchewan is not included in any of the growth periods; however, there is expansion to small airports such as Lethbridge & Red Deer as well as US/International destinations.

For marketing themselves as Canada's ULCC, how can this be when they have only 8 destinations in Canada but 10 internationally?

Here's a guess: It costs a lot to set up infrastructure in each airport and it is often not worth it for a ULCC for a smaller airport. Places like Lethbridge and Red Deer likely offered them a very good deal, plus there is less competition than YQR/YXE.

[PhotoJim]

Originally Posted by Stormer

Here's a guess: It costs a lot to set up infrastructure in each airport and it is often not worth it for a ULCC for a smaller airport. Places like Lethbridge and Red Deer likely offered them a very good deal, plus there is less competition than YQR/YXE.

This is pretty much it. Regina and Saskatoon both have excellent service to many Canadian destinations (the only decently-sized city where we lack non-stop service to is Montreal).

On the other hand, there's an obvious opportunity in Regina (and nearly as obvious a one in Saskatoon) for US flights, and these holes remain unfilled.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by PhotoJim

On the other hand, there's an obvious opportunity in Regina (and nearly as obvious a one in Saskatoon) for US flights, and these holes remain unfilled.

I find it a little peculiar how little transborder service there is between MB/SK and the US.

Even with Winnipeg there is really just DL to MSP that provides any substantial capacity. UA goes to ORD/DEN but ORD was reduced to something like 2 or 3 flights a day on a very small regional jet, and DEN is just once a day I think.

There are some WestJet, Flair and possibly other carriers to the US, but it's mostly point to point vacation market stuff where no one is connecting in the US (e.g. flights to PHX, PSP and the like)

There are obviously a lot of travellers from this region flying to the US. I find it a bit surprising that AA and AS, for example, don't run a couple of feeders from here to their hubs. You would think that an airline like AA in particular could carve off some of the business that is otherwise going to AC through YYZ or WS via YYC. It wouldn't revolutionize things for us, but it would give travellers the option of another airline and possibly another alliance.

[casper]

Originally Posted by esquire

I find it a little peculiar how little transborder service there is between MB/SK and the US.

Even with Winnipeg there is really just DL to MSP that provides any substantial capacity. UA goes to ORD/DEN but ORD was reduced to something like 2 or 3 flights a day on a very small regional jet, and DEN is just once a day I think.

There are some WestJet, Flair and possibly other carriers to the US, but it's mostly point to point vacation market stuff where no one is connecting in the US (e.g. flights to PHX, PSP and the like)

There are obviously a lot of travellers from this region flying to the US. I find it a bit surprising that AA and AS, for example, don't run a couple of feeders from here to their hubs. You would think that an airline like AA in particular could carve off some of the business that is otherwise going to AC through YYZ or WS via YYC. It wouldn't revolutionize things for us, but it would give travellers the option of another airline and possibly another alliance.

The US airlines have basically abandoned turbo props (the Dash-8) that are a regular feature in Saskatchewan airlines. They are also abandoning the 50 seat jets. That basically means your looking at a 70-90 seat aircraft. Ideally you do a minimum of two flights a day and operate daily. That bring you to 150 passengers a day. That is a good number of passengers to attract on day one.

Seattle (AS hub) is a poor airport for connections from a Canadian airport with no pre-clearance. You just need to arrive at the same time a flight or two from Dubai or Asia and you can easily end up in a line for an hour before getting through customs/immigration. Your also fly as far West as you can go in the US. Only makes sense for a connection to California or Oregon. I don't think AS is going to be a strong player.

AA is more interesting. WS and Delta are partnering and AC and United are partnering. That just leaves AA on its own.

[Brutopian]

Originally Posted by Missinglink

I suspect you will see that blue line for YQR will continue to go down a lot more until they can get a proper US connection. I used the Delta connection at least 3-4 times a month, for most part I drive to Minot now as YYZ or YYC connections don't work and price is unacceptable.

I've said this before, but...why would somebody who lives in Regina drive 392km to Minot when they can simply drive 258km to Saskatoon to catch a Delta flight to Minneapolis?

[Missinglink]

Originally Posted by Brutopian

I've said this before, but...why would somebody who lives in Regina drive 392km to Minot when they can simply drive 258km to Saskatoon to catch a Delta flight to Minneapolis?

I'll try and not be to complicated for you with my explanation. First off MOT has 5 daily departures/arrivals and YXE has 2. This offers a lot of flexibility for making a connecting flight. By driving to MOT I've already cleared costumes and don't have to deal with the Gong show at MSP. Either way I have to drive and usually spend a night in a hotel, which even with exchange is cheaper in MOT. Also the airfare is usually cheaper and the gas for the car is far cheaper even with the exchange. And by using your numbers a difference of 134 km is nothing in the big picture. Myself and a lot of other people would give anything for YQR/MSP connection to be back but that's never going to happen. We can't even retain some seasonal charters.

[casper]

Originally Posted by Missinglink

I'll try and not be to complicated for you with my explanation. First off MOT has 5 daily departures/arrivals and YXE has 2. This offers a lot of flexibility for making a connecting flight. By driving to MOT I've already cleared costumes and don't have to deal with the Gong show at MSP. Either way I have to drive and usually spend a night in a hotel, which even with exchange is cheaper in MOT. Also the airfare is usually cheaper and the gas for the car is far cheaper even with the exchange. And by using your numbers a difference of 134 km is nothing in the big picture. Myself and a lot of other people would give anything for YQR/MSP connection to be back but that's never going to happen. We can't even retain some seasonal charters.

What makes it cheaper to some extent is when you fly you get user charges added into the cost of the ticket for agriculture inspection, 9/11 Security (what ever that is), US customs/immigration. The same coming back into Canada.

When you drive across the boarder or fly domestically you don't pay any of those charges.

[Brutopian]

Originally Posted by Missinglink

I'll try and not be to complicated for you with my explanation. First off MOT has 5 daily departures/arrivals and YXE has 2. This offers a lot of flexibility for making a connecting flight. By driving to MOT I've already cleared costumes and don't have to deal with the Gong show at MSP. Either way I have to drive and usually spend a night in a hotel, which even with exchange is cheaper in MOT. Also the airfare is usually cheaper and the gas for the car is far cheaper even with the exchange. And by using your numbers a difference of 134 km is nothing in the big picture. Myself and a lot of other people would give anything for YQR/MSP connection to be back but that's never going to happen. We can't even retain some seasonal charters.

Thanks for the overview. I guess my lens for making travel decisions usually comes down to: "Do I have more time than money, or money than time?" The older I get, the more tuned in I've become to, first and foremost, conserving my time. If I lived in Regina, I would have to look at these kinds of travel decisions on a case by case basis to see if I want to spend the extra 2.5 hours (268 kms) of time driving to and from Minot (vs driving to and from Saskatoon). Maybe, on balance, when looking at the whole of the trip from a time perspective, driving to and from Minot would make sense for me. And maybe not.

[one_brick_at_a_time]

I wish Westjet or Air Canada had daily non stop to and from Regina and Saskatoon on a Q400.

[Stormer]

Originally Posted by one_brick_at_a_time

I wish Westjet or Air Canada had daily non stop to and from Regina and Saskatoon on a Q400.

Except security, pre-boarding requirements, taxis, etc. could make it almost as long as driving.

[PhotoJim]

Originally Posted by Brutopian

I've said this before, but...why would somebody who lives in Regina drive 392km to Minot when they can simply drive 258km to Saskatoon to catch a Delta flight to Minneapolis?

Or 298 km to Williston (Sloulin Field - IATA: ISN), which has flights from both Delta and United. Smaller than Minot, but an hour closer; barely further than Saskatoon is. Closer, if you're in Weyburn or Estevan.

[Crisis]

Originally Posted by one_brick_at_a_time

I wish Westjet or Air Canada had daily non stop to and from Regina and Saskatoon on a Q400.

Originally Posted by Stormer

Except security, pre-boarding requirements, taxis, etc. could make it almost as long as driving.

I haven't used it in the last couple of years, but as far as I know, Transwest/West Wind is still offering its Express Air service between Saskatoon and Regina. Smaller aircraft (King Airs?), but no long screening process and a 45 minute flight time. Pretty efficient, really.