I have to admit – June 15 cannot come fast enough.
That is the day Pascan’s new connection through the Montréal Metropolitan Airport links up with Porter’s national network.
This means, for instance, that Saint John passengers can hop on a plane just before 7 a.m., and be in Calgary by 10:20 a.m. – or Vancouver before lunch. All on a single ticket with their bags checked through.
I have been talking about this kind of connectivity since I arrived. Seeing it actually happen is something else.
And here is something I want people to know before they book: the Pascan experience is not what you might expect. These are not the puddle-jumpers some people remember from years past. These are 30-seat aircraft with generous seat pitch – genuinely comfortable, even for tall passengers.
The service is warm, the product is premium, and the flight time from Saint John to the MET is short. I do not think people in this region fully realize yet what Pascan has built.
The MET itself is worth knowing about too. Located in Longueuil, just 15 kilometres from downtown Montréal, it is one of the most passenger-friendly terminals in Canada.
No long corridors, no crowded gates. A lounge atmosphere, parking 25 metres from the door, and a 30-minute arrival window. It is a genuinely different experience.
Now, I also want to confront something that’s been grabbing headlines across Canada and around the world. Jet fuel costs have roughly doubled in recent months because of global instability, and that has put real pressure on airlines.
Fuel represents 20 to 40 per cent of what it costs to operate an airline, and when those costs spike, carriers make hard calls. We have seen some of that with Air Canada’s schedule adjustments. It is not a local problem and it is not a permanent one, but it is real, and I think people deserve a straight answer about it.
Even though these cost spikes have increased airfare to a degree, you can still find affordable flights. Generally speaking, the earlier the book, the more affordable fares can be.
Air Canada connects Saint John to virtually anywhere in the world through Toronto, and Flair gets you to Toronto for around $100 if you book early. Check aircanada.com, flyporter.com, flyflair.com and pascan.com for the best rates.
What gives me confidence is what we are bringing to our conversations with airlines.
Our flights are full, our on-time performance leads Atlantic Canada, and this region has real economic momentum behind it. Saint John is a headquarters city – home to major companies and a business community that generates real demand for air travel.
That is not a story that gets told often enough to the people making decisions about where to fly.
We have pulled it together into a campaign we call YSJ Means Business, and we are taking it to the airlines.
In the meantime, we have essentially doubled the Canadian destinations available from Saint John this summer. St. John’s to Vancouver, with Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg in between – all accessible from YSJ, with one short connection at Canada’s newest terminal.
Like I said, I cannot wait.
Court Edeburn
President & CEO
Saint John Airport
