Air fares, first quarter 2019
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Released: 2019-09-25
$233.90
First quarter 2019
1.1% 
(year-over-year change)
Base air fares in Canada, domestic and international combined, averaged $233.90 in the first quarter, up 1.1% from the same quarter in 2018 and reversing the downward trend that began in the second quarter of 2018.
Base fares do not include the goods and services tax, air transportation taxes or user fees, such as airport improvement fees or fuel surcharges. Average air fares are calculated for each flight stage—that is, when the passenger boards the aircraft at one airport and departs the aircraft at another airport.
The average domestic fare was up 1.2% from the first quarter of 2018 to $165.50, reversing the downward trend of the previous three quarters. The average international fare edged up 0.3% to $286.90. This marked the first increase in the international sector following three consecutive year-over-year quarterly declines.
Average domestic air fares increased in 8 of the 10 selected cities where passengers boarded the plane (enplanement). Increases ranged from 0.7% in Winnipeg to 10.1% in Regina, while Toronto (-1.2%) and Calgary (-0.5%) posted modest decreases.
Toronto ($193.60) remained the city with the highest average domestic air fare, followed by Vancouver ($190.00), Winnipeg ($168.60) and Montréal ($166.40). These four cities recorded average domestic fares above the national average. Meanwhile, Saskatoon ($146.80) posted the lowest average domestic air fare for the third consecutive quarter.
Chart 1
Average domestic and international air fares
Chart 2
Average domestic air fares for 10 major Canadian cities
Note to readers
Average air fares are base fares and do not include the goods and services tax, air transportation taxes or user fees, such as airport improvement fees or fuel surcharges. All fares in this release are base fares.
Average air fares are calculated for each flight stage. When the passenger boards the aircraft at one airport and departs the aircraft at another airport, this is considered a flight stage.
The Fare Basis Survey covers Air Canada (including Air Canada Rouge, Jazz, and Air Canada's Canadian regional code-share partners), Air Transat and WestJet.
The data in this quarterly release are not seasonally adjusted.
The Fare Basis Survey is being redesigned.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; STATCAN.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.STATCAN@canada.ca).
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