Aviation
Air Passenger Origin and Destination, Canada - United States Report, 2015Aviation
Air Passenger Origin and Destination, Canada - United States Report, 2015

Highlights

In 2015, more than 21.9 million passengers traveled on scheduled air services between Canada and the United States, a 1.9% increase compared with 2014.

1. In 2015, the distribution of transborder scheduled air passenger traffic by province varied slightly from that observed in 2014. The number of revenue passengers in and out of British Columbia in 2015 (4,291,321 passengers) was greater than the number entering and exiting Alberta (3,886,584) for the first time since 2010.
2. The majority, or 38.8%, of all reported scheduled air passenger traffic between Canada and the United States continued to flow in and out of Ontario in 2015. British Columbia accounted for 19.5% of all reported transborder traffic, followed by Alberta and Quebec with 17.7% and 15.0%, respectively.
3. British Colombia experienced the largest gain in passenger volumes between Canada and the United States (+ 366,836 passengers). Passenger traffic in Alberta was down 287,219 passengers followed by Saskatchewan which reported a decline of 49,509 passengers compared to 2014.
4. In comparing 2014 and 2015, the largest percentage increases in scheduled air passenger traffic between Canada and the United States were experienced in British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, both increasing by 9.3%. New Brunswick recorded the second largest year over year percentage increase (+8.9%).
5. Five provinces experienced decreases in transborder traffic in 2015: Saskatchewan (-9.1%), Alberta (-6.9%), Newfoundland and Labrador (-5.8%), Yukon (-5.6%) and Nova Scotia (-2.8%).

1. The distribution of transborder traffic across the United States changed slightly in 2015 compared to 2014. The number of revenue passengers travelling to and from New York in 2015 (1,871,297 passengers) was greater than those travelling to and from Nevada (1,863,323) for the first time since 2010.
2. Transborder travel continued to be primarily to/from the states of California and Florida. Together, these two states accounted for 37.4% of all traffic, with California reporting 19.3% and Florida 18.1%. These states were followed by New York & Nevada, which were each responsible for 8.5% of transborder scheduled air passenger traffic.
3. Overall, the majority of states recorded higher transborder passenger volumes in 2015. The state which experienced the largest gain in volume of passengers travelling between the United States and Canada was California (+291,447 passengers). In contrast, Illinois recorded the largest decline in volume of passengers (-35,688).
4. In comparing 2014 and 2015, the largest percentage increase in transborder passengers was observed in Oregon (+11.4%).
5. Conversely, the states which reported the largest percentage decreases in transborder scheduled air passenger traffic were South Carolina (-10.5%), Wisconsin (-10.2%) and New Jersey (-4.9%).

Factors which may have influenced the data

2015

Throughout 2015,

The Canadian dollar fell steadily against the American dollar closing at 74.96 cents US in August; the first time it had fallen below the 75 cent mark since August, 2004.

Air Canada began service between Toronto, Ontario and Atlantic City, New Jersey and Austin, Texas.

American Airlines suspended service between Edmonton, Alberta and Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas and Los Angeles, California.

Delta Airlines suspended July and August flights between Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and New York, New York. They added a daily service between Edmonton, Alberta and Seattle, Washington.

National Airlines started a bi-weekly service between Windsor, Ontario and Orlando, Florida.

Porter Airlines inaugurated a non-stop flight from Toronto, Ontario to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and added seasonal service between Toronto, Ontario and Melbourne, Florida.

United Airlines reduced service between London, Ontario and Chicago, Illinois from 2 flights daily to 1 flight daily. They also ended daily service between London, Ontario and Newark, New Jersey and between Denver, Colorado and Regina and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan airports.

WestJet began new non-stop service between Calgary, Alberta and Houston, Texas and between Abbotsford, British Columbia and Las Vegas, Nevada. They began seasonal service between Waterloo, Ontario and Orlando, Florida and between Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and Orlando, Florida.

January 26, a lake-effect snow band off Lake Ontario effected Halton and Hamilton, Ontario, forcing about 40 flight cancellations in and out of Toronto, Ontario.

Significant winter storms struck Atlantic Canada in February, forcing numerous flight cancellations and delays.

February 2, a winter storm hit the Toronto, Ontario area forcing flight cancellations at Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International Airport and Toronto/Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.

February 16, Kelowna International Airport in Kelowna, British Columbia experienced flight delays and cancellations due to fog.

Throughout March, major snowstorms struck Atlantic Canada forcing flight delays and cancellations.

April 13, an accident at the Halifax/Robert L. Stanfield International Airport caused the closure of a runway for approximately 10 days.

May 4, Seattle, Washington based Kenmore Air suspended its service to Nanaimo, British Columbia.

May 30-31, Fort McMurray, Alberta experienced numerous flight cancellations and delays due to fire in nearby Saprae Creek.

June 1, the main runway at St. John’s International Airport, Newfoundland and Labrador closed for approximately 4 months to allow for several upgrades resulting in flights being delayed or diverted.

June 6-13, Canada hosted the FIFA Women’s World Cup for soccer. 

July 2 & 8, technical glitches forced United Airlines to ground flights for at least two hours.

July 3, dozens of flights out of Toronto, Ontario’s Lester B. Pearson International Airport were cancelled due to a labour dispute between airlines and their fueling companies.

July 10-26, the Pan American Games were held in Toronto, Ontario.

July 17^th, Air Canada announced an extension of seasonal flights to year round service between Calgary, Alberta and Portland, Oregon.

August 7-15, the Parapan American Games were held in Toronto, Ontario.

August 16, problems with a software upgrade caused the cancellation of about 440 flights in the Washington, District of Columbia and Baltimore, Maryland areas.

September 17, American Airlines was forced to ground flights out of Chicago, Illinois, Dallas, Texas and Miami, Florida for the day.

October 4, downgraded hurricane Joaquin hit the southern Atlantic coast of the United States causing South Carolina to declare a state of emergency.

November 23, the United States issued a global travel advisory to its citizens citing the risk of heightened terrorist attacks.

December 27, a major snowstorm hit central Canada cancelling and disrupting hundreds of flights in the Toronto, Ontario and Montréal, Quebec areas. The storm also caused delays and cancellations in the Chicago, Illinois and Detroit, Michigan areas.

December 29, a major snowstorm caused delays and cancellations in the Atlantic Provinces, southern Ontario and western Quebec.

2014

Throughout 2014,

The price of crude oil dropped by nearly 50 per cent however the value of the Canadian dollar decreased. This limited Canadian air carriers from maximizing savings as Canadian air carriers purchase jet fuel in US dollars.

Air Canada and WestJet started charging $25 for a first checked bag.

Air Canada launched non-stop seasonal service from Toronto, Ontario to Mont-Tremblant, Quebec.

Air Canada rouge launched new routes from Vancouver, British Columbia to Las Vegas, Nevada, Los Angeles, California, Anchorage, Alaska, San Francisco, California and Phoenix, Arizona and from Toronto, Ontario to Honolulu, Hawaii.

American Airlines began service between Edmonton, Alberta and both Dallas-Forth, Texas and Los Angeles, California. Service also began between Vancouver, British Columbia and Los Angeles, California.

United Airlines withdrew direct flights from both Regina and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to/from Chicago, Illinois.

United-Continental Airline flights from Edmonton, Alberta and Moncton, New Brunswick to New York, New York were discontinued as were its flights between Kelowna, British Columbia and Los Angeles, California.

WestJet commenced non-stop, twice weekly service between Fort McMurray, Alberta and Las Vegas, Nevada.

January 7, Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Toronto, Ontario experienced a ground stop caused by extreme cold which prevented North American flights from landing for approximately eight hours.

February 24, a major winter storm hit the south-west coast of British Columbia forcing flight cancellations and delays at both Vancouver International and Victoria International airports.

March 3, Kenmore Air out of Seattle, Washington launched twice-daily, non-stop service between Nanaimo, British Columbia and Seattle, Washington.

March 12, a winter storm in Eastern Canada forced dozens of flight cancellations and delays at Eastern Canadian airports.

May 14, Porter Airlines began charging for checked baggage.

June 28, Calgary International Airport in Calgary, Alberta opened the longest runway in Canada capable of landing the largest aircraft in the world with fewer payload restrictions.

July 5, tropical storm Arthur caused the cancellation and delay of flights in and out of Halifax, Nova Scotia.

August 27, American Airlines and US Airways pulled flight listings from Orbitz-run websites because of a dispute over fees that the travel company charges to list and sell the flights.

September 26, approximately 2,000 flights to/from O’Hare and Midway airports in Chicago, Illinois were either cancelled or delayed following a fire in a Federal Aviation Authority radar centre.

October 8, Porter Airlines signed an interline agreement with its first American airline, JetBlue Airways Corp., allowing passengers seamless transfer between one airline and the other to destinations such as Boston, Massachusetts, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Las Vegas, Nevada and San Francisco, California.

November 19, light snowfall combined with blowing snow delayed and cancelled a number of flights departing Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International Airport, Toronto, Ontario.

November 30, all flights in and out of Vancouver International Airport, Vancouver, British Columbia were briefly grounded due to a water leak at the air traffic control center.