Air Canada announced Tuesday that it will be suspending all routes to Saint John indefinitely, effective January 11, 2021.
“For us, that means the temporary suspension of all flights in and out of the Saint John Airport,” said YSJ CEO Derrick Stanford in a release.
The airport will continue to operate for private air service and emergency medical use until air service returns.
Air Canada also announced that effective on the same date, it will be suspending all flights until further notice in Sydney, and suspending four routes until further notice in Deer Lake, Charlottetown, Fredericton and Halifax.
This news follows WestJet’s October announcement suspending 80 percent of the airline’s Atlantic Canada capacity, and an earlier announcement in June by Air Canada indefinitely suspending 11 routes in Atlantic Canada along with the closure of stations in Bathurst, N.B., and Wabush, N.L.
“This is the third major round of cuts to air service for our region in the last six months,” said Derrick Stanford, president of the Atlantic Canada Airports Association and CEO of Saint John Airport, in a release. “Service has been whittled down to an unsustainable level for our airports. Our industry cannot survive and operate in these conditions, and we are seeing the worst-case scenario playing out here today. This will have a huge impact on our region’s economy, on the ability of families to reconnect, on the movement of essential workers, and on airport employees and businesses.”
Monette Pasher, executive director of the Atlantic Canada Airports Association, says the new suspensions “cut at the heart of communities” and cut the Atlantic region off from the rest of the country.
“We are going to have a long hard road ahead of us to rebuild air access for our region,” said Pasher in a release. “Repercussions of these cuts will be felt for years to come in many Atlantic Canada cities, towns and rural communities.”
Pasher said the industry has been calling for federal support for the nation’s airlines for months now.
“The air sector was mentioned in the Fall Economic Statement released on November 30th, and although our region and small airports are grateful for the financial support and look forward to hearing how it will help keep our communities connected,” she said.
“Unfortunately, though, there was not enough support for medium-size or large airports and no news for air carriers other than the wage subsidy support. Half of the employees in our industry are out of work, and as a hardest-hit sector, more support is required urgently for airports and airlines in order to get through this pandemic.”
Cherise Letson is an associate editor and staff writer at Huddle Today, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.
