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Porter Airlines orders up to 80 new planes, will start flying out of Toronto's Pearson airport
Porter Airlines could shake up the Canadian airline industry after announcing plans to launch jet service to destinations in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean with an order for up to 80 aircraft with a list price of $5.8 billion US. (www.cbc.ca) More...
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Please make Barbados a destination!
I wonder how long the enhanced service provided at the Island airport will last at the expensive Pearson facility. Also, how does their business plan work with the need to hire more jet trained mechanics, air crew, maintenance services, customs, etc. in a high cost airport, as well as the huge competition from Air Canada, Westjet and other airlines.
Europe?
E-195 E2 range is about 2600nm so Europe is likely not on the table unless they're doing YHZ-GLA (2200nm) or something like that. Also disappointed to see they won't be getting C-Series (aka A220) or flying out of Toronto Island. The 'NIMBY' folk around the island airport seem to think Q400's are somehow quieter than modern E-jets, I would love to see the data on that.
Hi Bob: I'm one of those who live near the island airport. The way I see it is that the problem with the airport is that it is bad for mental health of those nearby. The pollution is bad, the take off and landing noise is bad, the vehicle congestion brings many bad things as we all know but the biggest issue is the constant whining of the airplane engines while they sit idling. This goes on all day and evening and although it is not as loud as the 20 seconds of a landing or take off it is the real killer. It takes a real toll on the nervous system even with windows closed. The body feels it and it has consequences to health even though it just becomes background noise. With the absence of this perpetual noise during the pandemic, everyone has become more relaxed. Just look at the overwhelming increased use of the waterfront parks where people can enjoy themselves like never before. People can carry on conversations without having to compensate for background noise (the sound of the Gardiner Express Way is minimal when comparing). When the constant noise was going on I would be sitting inside at my desk and sometimes there would be a short break when all engines would be off, I would then notice that my body would suddenly relax. I had not been aware of the tension until then. Sometimes there are important reasons for what seems like NIMBYism.
Hi Dennis - I must comment that people who choose to live near an airport should perhaps not be complaining about the noise. The airport has been there for almost 100 years, it's not like it showed up after people moved to the island. If it is a mental health issue as you suggest, then maybe it's time to move to a home that's not near an airport? The e-jets are quieter (IMHO) than the piston and turbo-prop aircraft in general, something that does not seem to be clear to the folks who are preventing the development of the airport.
Although the Island airport has been there for 82 years, for much of that time it was used by relatively quiet small private and corporate planes. Most of the airlines using it in the 1960s to 1980s had limited success and didn't last long nor did they create much aircraft and passenger volumes. The rapid redevelopment of Toronto's with residential high-rise apartment buildings throughout the 1960s to the present day preceded the expansion of the airport and the successful Porter airline with more than one hundred flights daily. The excellent Dash 8-Q400 aircraft are relatively quiet in their landing approach but extremely noisy on take-offs with the sound reverberating along the waterfront curtain of buildings with hundreds of thousands of residents. Unfortunately, the whole history of the convenient Billy Bishop airport has been one of conflict and intrigue involving politicians, appointed bureaucrats, corporate interests and resident groups.
I think the problem of a major airport downtown is a lot bigger than so called technical solutions like “we now have jets that are quieter.” Previously I mentioned that the constant whine of engines is an underlying problem that does not go away just because the engines are quieter, this is a symptom of a larger problem. We need to take a broader look at what we want for a modern city. For economic success it needs to be built for health, well being and a clean environment. This is the future. No matter how you pitch it, a large industrial operation downtown will never cut it. I can hear future citizens saying, “what were they thinking?”
