Porter Airlines returns to the Ottawa Airport after 18 months
After nearly 18 months of suspended operations due to COVID-19, Porter Airlines is once again flying high and with service to Canada’s capital city.
Ottawa is included in the initial schedule, along with Toronto, Montreal and Thunder Bay. Porter Airlines, which is headquartered at Billy Bishop Airport in downtown Toronto, first suspended flights in March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic. Since then, the commercial carrier, known for it’s turbo-prop airplanes, has repeatedly pushed back its return to the skies due to changing pandemic waves.
“Our passengers and team members have been waiting for this day to arrive,” says Michael Deluce, Porter Airlines President and CEO. “We currently have over 900 team members who have put in countless hours to get everything ready for our return to service, with more being recalled or hired every week. Ottawa was Porter’s first destination when we started flying 15 years ago, so it’s fitting to have it on the schedule for the day of our return.”
With direct flights from Ottawa to Toronto for around $150, Porter's return has landed optimism for officials at the Ottawa Airport, which has seen sharp declines in service and revenue throughout the pandemic.
“As YOW’s third-largest carrier by seat volume pre-COVID, Porter Airlines is a valuable partner,” says Mark Laroche, president and CEO of Ottawa International Airport Authority. “We are delighted to welcome their team back after such a lengthy absence and look forward to growing together.”
Porter introduced a COVID-19 vaccination policy for it’s employees that requires them to be fully-vaccinated or present a negative COVID-19 test result within 72 hours of the start of their shift.
Flights operating out of Ottawa to other destinations, aside from the initial schedule, will return in phases: Halifax, N.S. on Sept. 13, Moncton N.B. on Sept. 17 and Fredricton and Saint John N.B. on Oct. 6.
Flights to the U.S., based out of Billy Bishop Airport, are expected to resume on Sept. 17.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Why these immigrants to Canada say they're thinking about leaving, or have already moved on
For some immigrants, their dreams of permanently settling in Canada have taken an unexpected twist.
DEVELOPING Live updates from the Trump hush money trial: Stormy Daniels, bookkeeper testify
Adult film star Stormy Daniels is on the stand a second time Thursday as former U.S. president Donald Trump’s hush money case continues in Manhattan. Follow live updates here.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Here are the ultraprocessed foods you most need to avoid, according to a 30-year study
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
Ontario man frustrated after $3,500 paving job leaves driveway in shambles
An Ontario man considering having his driveway paved received a quote from a company for $7,000, but then, another paver in the neighbourhood knocked on his door and offered half that rate.
BREAKING Sheldon Keefe out as head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have fired head coach Sheldon Keefe. The team made the announcement Thursday after the Original Six franchise lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Boeing 737 catches fire and skids off the runway at a Senegal airport, injuring 10 people
A Boeing 737-300 plane carrying 85 people skidded off a runway at the airport in Dakar, Senegal's capital, injuring 10 people, according to the transport minister, an airline safety group and footage from a passenger that showed the aircraft on fire.
Breast cancer screening should start at age 40, Canadian Cancer Society says
The Canadian Cancer Society says all provinces and territories should lower the starting age for breast cancer screening to 40.
Man accused of killing two children at Quebec daycare to stand trial in April 2025
The man accused of murdering two children and injuring six others after a city bus crashed into a Montreal-area daycare is scheduled to stand trial over five weeks beginning in April 2025.