The Canadian airline is developing an extensive network with new Embraer E195-E2 aircraft.
By AARON KARP
Canada’s Porter Airlines is in the midst of dramatically changing its overall business strategy, moving from being a regional carrier with a very defined mission to flying a more far-flung network reaching into western Canada and the US, and eventually into the Caribbean and Mexico.
The carrier had long been an all-De Havilland Dash 8-400 operator focused on flying to eastern Canada and the near US from its Toronto Billy Bishop Airport (YTZ) base. The unique model took advantage of Billy Bishop’s proximity to downtown Toronto and the efficiency of the 78-seat turboprop aircraft, making it particularly attractive to business passengers.
While Billy Bishop and the Dash 8-400 remain key components of the carrier’s plans, the airline’s order for 30 Embraer E195-E2 aircraft in July 2021 changed Porter’s trajectory. The carrier now has upped that to 50 firm orders with two aircraft arriving each month well into 2025 (the airline also has 50 E195-E2 options).
Taking delivery of the Embraer jet aircraft allowed Porter to launch transcontinental flights from Toronto Pearson (YYZ) to Edmonton (YEG) and Vancouver (YVR) in February.
“What we love about the E195-E2 is it allows us to communicate a value proposition that no other airline in North America can promise [for long-haul flights], which is ‘no middle seats’ in economy,” Porter CCO Kevin Jackson told Routes in an interview ahead of Routes Americas. “We know from some significant market research we did in ‘21 and ‘22 of economy travelers that ‘no middle seats’ was a game changer for them. From a product perspective, we love the two-by-two seating. From a network perspective, we love the range of this aircraft.”
The 132-seat E195-E2 has a range of just over 2,500 nm, enabling a flexibility that has Porter planning an expansive route network. And the aircraft is joining Porter’s fleet as the Canadian airline market, nearly completely shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, is seeing a return to a robust demand environment.
“We were sitting at 10% of historic demand all the way through April 2022 because of the Omicron variant that hit [in late 2021] and just knocked us back,” Jackson said. “Once we got into April 2022, we started to see demand in Canada rebound with a heavy focus towards leisure. And by the time we got to July, I would say we were hitting our stride. Our network was fully recovered by the end of Q4 2022. We reached 2019 levels of passenger demand by the end of 2022.”
Jackson said passengers used to flying on the carrier’s Dash 8-400s will see similarities with the E195-E2 from a service perspective.
“I had a chance to talk to passengers on our inaugural E195-E2 flights, and I ask people when they sit on board the aircraft, ‘Does this feel familiar to you? Does this feel like Porter when you sit on the E195-E2?’ And overwhelmingly the answer is yes,” he said.
“From the cabin layout to the approach to service, the E195-E2 and the Dash 8-400s are very complementary from a brand and product perspective. It gives us product continuity.”
Speaking of the Pearson routes to Edmonton and Vancouver, which will both be operated 3X-daily by April, Jackson said: “Bookings are strong. We have found that, surprisingly, a lot of people in Canada’s west are familiar with Porter if they had family in the east or they had lived in the east.
“Our brand precedes us in that sense. … Demand is strong. We're very pleased with how the routes are ramping up. As we increase our fleet and increase our crew capacity, we'll be adding more density to those markets over time.”
Jackson said Porter’s transcontinental routes are expected to attract both leisure and business passengers. “We're now in the heart of the booking period for business demand,” he said. “We are seeing that close-in booking grow week over week as people are becoming aware of the service and are utilizing it.”
But the Canadian transcontinental routes are just the start of Porter’s long-haul ambitions.
“Certainly, our number one focus right now is building up a domestic network, partly because that is where our strength is—domestically—from a brand perspective,” Jackson said.
A domestic network “also creates feed into the various hubs,” he added. “We intend to build either hubs or focus cities at Toronto Pearson, Ottawa and Montreal Trudeau. … Then I would say you'll start to see us later in 2023 announce some US markets. We are targeting the top 20 US markets. … Then the Caribbean—I'll call it a late 2024 strategy as we start to get into the winter of ‘24/’25. You'll start to see us deploy into the Caribbean as the network swings south for the winter.”
Sun routes enabling Canadians to escape winter weather have long been a staple of the Canadian airline market, and Porter plans to open sun routes with E195-E2s. Jackson also sees Mexican routes coming online in the 2024-2025 timeframe.
Jackson emphasized that the Dash 8-400 operation will still be critical for Porter, both at Billy Bishop and at Montreal Saint-Hubert Airport (YHU), where the airline is partnering with the airport to develop a net-zero passenger terminal spanning 225,000 sq. ft. (21,000 sq m).
The terminal will be fully electric, according to the airline. It will house nine gates, with construction expected to start in the 2023 second quarter and be completed by late 2024.
Porter will utilize a combination of Dash 8-400s and E195-E2s to operate domestic routes from YHU. Other airlines will also be able to use the airport.
Porter views Saint-Hubert as a second airport for Montreal, just as Billy Bishop has become for Toronto since the airline launched service from YTZ in 2006.
“Porter has an established model with this strategy,” Jackson said. “We did it at Billy Bishop in 2006 and today it is a 3 million annual passengers airport in downtown Toronto serving over 20 destinations. So, Porter has a track record of going into airports that have an opportunity to become a second airport.
“Obviously, Montreal is served today by Trudeau Airport. But a population base of about 5 million people and a growing city really can support a second airport. What's great about Saint-Hubert is it is equidistant to downtown Montreal as Trudeau. … It can become a strong second airport for those traveling to and from Montreal.”
Porter will manage parking concessions, fuel farms and ground handling at Saint-Hubert. “That airport could support 4 million passengers a year,” Jackson said.
