Weekly transborder aircraft movements trending upward
Archived Content
Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please "contact us" to request a format other than those available.
Released: 2021-08-11
Flights between Canada and the US severely curtailed
The number of flights between Canada and the United States recorded as transborder aircraft movements (i.e., takeoffs and landings), were severely reduced by COVID-19 restrictions first imposed back in March 2020. Major Canadian airlines reduced the number of international flights in late March 2020 and continued operating on a restricted schedule for most of the year. Despite steady growth for the rest of 2020, transborder movements remained historically low.
Into 2021, tighter border restrictions were introduced to combat new waves and variants of the virus. As of January 7, all international arrivals by air are required to provide carriers with a negative COVID-19 test result prior to boarding. And effective February 21, international arrivals are required to take a test upon arrival and stay in a government-approved hotel for three nights before completing their mandatory 14-day quarantine at home.
Weekly transborder movements trending upward
Despite the restrictions, there has been an increase in transborder movements since early March 2021. In fact, for the first time since March 2020, the number of transborder movements reached over 2,000 in the week starting July 3, 2021. This is partly the result of the easing of some border restrictions; beginning with fully vaccinated Canadians and permanent residents returning by air not being required to quarantine as of July 5, 2021.
As we ease travel restrictions and enter into the busy summer travel season, July is setting highs since the beginning of the pandemic, with an average number of transborder movements at 2,305 per week, almost 900 more per week than in July 2020. This growth in transborder traffic is expected to continue as the list of travellers eligible to enter Canada was expanded to include fully vaccinated US citizens and permanent residents starting August 9, 2021 and other fully-vaccinated non-residents as of September 7, 2021.
Data on the actual number of persons entering into Canada during July, 2021 are available from the Leading indicator of international arrivals to Canada.
Weekly data on aircraft itinerant movements for all sectors are now available for July 24 to 30, 2021.
Infographic 1
Total transborder aircraft movements in Canada, December 2019 to July 2021
Note to readers
With the introduction of travel restrictions and subsequent flight cancellations, Statistics Canada has been producing weekly aircraft movement estimates to assess the impact of this situation on Canadian airports with NAVCANADA air traffic control towers. These weekly estimates are drawn from the same source as the monthly Aircraft Movement Statistics program (2715), for which data are available two months after the reference period. Because the weekly estimates are released before the two-month period is over, there are some differences in methods and data processing. As a result, the weekly estimates are not of the same quality as the monthly statistics and should be viewed only as preliminary estimates.
With each release, data for previous periods may be revised.
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).
- Date modified: