Swoop, Canada’s leading ultra-low-cost airline, today launched its inaugural flight to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport from Toronto Pearson International Airport. Swoop flight WO746 took off from Toronto this morning at 6:30 a.m. ET and arrived in Chicago at 7:20 a.m. local time. “As Canada’s ultra-not-expensive airline, we are thrilled to continue our network expansion across North America this summer, connecting Toronto and Chicago with affordable fares,” said Bert van der Stege, Head of Commercial and Finance, Swoop. “Today’s celebration reinforces our commitment to Canadian travellers, unlocking opportunities to explore highly-sought destinations at ultra-affordable prices.” EDITOR’S NOTE: I dearly love Chicago Read more
May 2022
Slowdowns at Canadian airports are “unacceptable” and are harming the country’s economy, Mississauga civic and business leaders said today. Speaking at a press conference at Toronto Pearson Airport, officials said the Trudeau government needs to take urgent action to address delays at Pearson and other airports. The speakers said Ottawa needs to dump random COVID-19 testing at Canadian airports, and also needs to eliminate lengthy conversations between Canadian Borders Services Agency (customs workers) and arriving passengers. Doug Allingham, Chair of the Board of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, said chats with custom officers have traditionally taken about 30 seconds per Read more
The Trudeau government says it’s adding more airport screening officers and customs workers to help ease congestion at Canada’s crowded airports. Senior federal ministers issued a statement late Friday to say that the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) “has been working with its contractors to increase the number of screening officers at passenger screening checkpoints. Currently, there are approximately 400 additional screening officers in different phases of their training across the country who will be deployed between now and the end of June.” With Transport Canada’s support, “these recruits will benefit from progressing more quickly through a more flexible Read more
Fabulous food from around the world. Sparkling, wild musical entertainment. Great events. Gorgeous parks with plenty of space to spread out. And more sports than you shake a hockey stick at. If you’re looking to plan a weekend staycation getaway this year, look no further than Mississauga. I recently spent the better part of a weekend in this city, just west of Toronto. And I came away hugely impressed with the sheer variety of things to do, and the quality of the experience. The pandemic closed off a lot of the things that make our cities so enjoyable to visit, Read more
The Trudeau government is working hard on Canadian airport congestion problems, and an announcement is likely coming soon, Tourism Minister Randy Boissonnault said today. Speaking at a press conference at Rendez-vous Canada, a tourism session being put on by Destination Canada, Boissonnault said he’s been speaking daily with Transport Minister Omar Alghabra and other ministers about lineups at Toronto Pearson and other airports. “Minister Alghabra I think will have announcements on that,” he said. “We are very seized by this idea of increasing the number of agents we have at Canadian airports. And it’s not just airports. It’s the Great Read more
