U.S. President Joe Biden wants American lawmakers to limit certain airline and hotel fees. Speaking before a session of the White House Competition Committee, Biden said Congress should restrict airline seat-assignment fees imposed on families trying to sit together, so-called resort fees that many hotels now tack on to the bill, excessive service charges on tickets for concerts and sporting events, and fees to switch or cancel internet, cable or cellphone service. These unfair fees add up,” he said. “Some airlines charge extra to pick your seat, including for parents who just want to sit next to their child on Read more
Canada Jetlines
A new era has launched for Porter Airlines, and for Canadian travellers. Toronto-based Porter on Wednesday (Feb. 1) began flying jets for the first time as part of a massive expansion effort that threatens to shake up the industry. Porter on Wednesday flew its new Embraer E195-E2 jets from Toronto Pearson Airport to Montreal Trudeau and Ottawa International, its first ever jet flights. Until this week, Porter had flown exclusively out of the Toronto Island/City Centre Airport using De Havilland propeller planes. Service on the Toronto Pearson-Ottawa route has four daily, non-stop return flights. Porter is offering three daily, non-stop Read more
Porter Airlines on Friday flew a group of media folks on a test flight out of Toronto Pearson to show off their new jets and premium service. I was invited to take the flight but I was flying home from New York City and couldn’t make it. I was, however, able to find a segment from reporter Richard Southern on CityNews. Speaking to Southern on camera, Porter CEO Michael Deluce said he enjoyed a salmon poke lunch on board the test flight. “The entire platform is about disrupting economy travel,” Deluce said. “There’s long been a lot of dissatisfaction about Read more
The House of Commons committee that handles transportation issues this week will launch special hearings this week to examine the travel chaos that ruined the holidays for hundreds of Canadians. CTV reports the first hearing will take place on Thursday and is expected to see Transport Minister Omar Alghabra field a series of questions about what transpired and what accountability there will be. Airlines and VIA Rail also are expected to appear at before the committee. Major storms in Vancouver just prior to Christmas forced WestJet and other airlines to cancel a number of flights. Another storm moved into Ontario Read more
Canadians have a new way to fly between Toronto and Halifax. Porter Airlines is introducing the newest route with its Embraer jets, with multiple daily, non-stop, roundtrip flights between Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) and Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ). Porter has been serving the Halifax community since 2007. Passengers can now choose to travel with Porter using two Toronto airports on this popular route, including the downtown convenience of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. Pearson service begins February 23, 2023. Porter recently announced it would fly its new jets between Toronto Pearson and Calgary, as well as Pearson to Read more
