Don't hold your breath for Air Canada's return to the Island Airport. Porter's incredibly sweet deal with the Toronto Port Authority (just how did they manage that?) means that isn't in the cards:  "Citing an improved ferry service to the island built last year, Jazz said last summer that it would re-launch an expanded service from the airport to Ottawa and Montreal. But the plans were put on hold after the port authority forced Jazz to sign a new commercial agreement, the details of which are protected by a confidentiality clause and have never been disclosed.

A source familiar with the ongoing litigation said the confidential document effectively limits Jazz to just six take-off and landing slots per day over a six-day week, or the equivalent of three round-trip flights per day.

Moreover, the document prohibits Jazz from flying to destinations other than Montreal and Ottawa, the source said. By contrast, four-month-old Porter already operates 19 weekday round-trips from the airport to Ottawa and Montreal, another 12 round-trips on the weekends, and is planning to launch new routes this year into the United States."

From:, Chris Sorensen, "New Regional Porter Airlines Flying Solo," National Post, February 16, 2007, retrieved at http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=bad82746-beba-4309-9344-7

Brian Iler, chair
CommunityAIR