Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport (YOW/CYOW)

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by CityTech

Hmm. Maybe I'll try an American connection then next time and see how it goes.

I generally prefer the transatlantic leg to be the first one and the domestic/EU leg to the second one. If I can, my preference is to YOW->FRA/LHR->destination to go there, and destination->YYZ->YOW on the way back (I've done this with CDG, DUB, and PRG). My logic is that if the first leg is delayed and I miss the second flight, it's a lot easier to get rebooked on a short domestic flight than it is to get rebooked on another transatlantic. Imagine a VIE-FRA-YOW flight where VIE-FRA is delayed and you miss the flight to YOW.. you'd have to either get rebooked through YYZ or YUL or something or wait a whole 24 hours for the next flight to YOW!

Totally agree with that when buying a paid ticket.

[Dominion301]

I see YVR today made a big splash about hitting the 25 million passenger mark today: https://www.newswire.ca/news-release...703058351.html

The YOW Airport Authority are doing something similar for hitting the 5 million mark, which is also a milestone. 5 million is really the threshold from being a small airport to a medium sized airport: https://www.facebook.com/FlyYOW/phot...type=3&theater

SO YOW are giving away 5 prizes packages, including 1 prize of a trip for two to any destination served nonstop from YOW.

[VaskoYOW]

Couple of days ago, I emailed Flair Airlines and asked them, if they had any plans of starting service to and from YOW....because I do believe there is a market here for them. And apperantly Ottawa is on their radar as they plan to start service in the summer. Here is the email I received from Flair.

"Thank you for your message. We do have plans to start flying to Ottawa during Summer, it is still in transit and being planned, hopefully It wont take long and it will work it out.

In the meanwhile, Please sign up to our Newsletter in order to receive notifications for promotions, routes and schedules. You can join us under www.flairair.ca main page, scroll down to TRAVEL KNOW IT ALL and sign up."

Thank you,

Hannah,
Customer Support
www.flairair.ca
Phone: 204.888.4357 I SITA: YLWFAXH I
Email: support@flairair.ca

[Vixx]

I really am crossing my fingers that Flair starts servicing from Ottawa. A YEG-YOW flight is something I would use very often due to my particular situation.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by YOWetal

This is overblown. On the way back via YYZ you need to clear midway. Outbound via the US you do it in Ottawa. So basically a wash.

You’re saying two extra American customs and security clearances plus an Ottawa clearance is the same as one clearance in Toronto or Montreal?

[NOWINYOW]

Originally Posted by acottawa

You’re saying two extra American customs and security clearances plus an Ottawa clearance is the same as one clearance in Toronto or Montreal?

There's no hard and fast rule to least or greater number of security clearances on a single journey. This can change based on Airline(s) used and airports where you transfer. Customs is only once per country entry.

Depending on the airline(s) used, there can be more than one security clearance. For example, flying Ottawa to Dallas or even to Frankfurt, if the flight is Ottawa - Newark - XXX, there could be one or two security clearances. If flying AC, then connecting to UA at Newark, you would have to re-clear security in Newark again. However, flying Ottawa - Newark - XXX all on United there's only the single security in Ottawa.

Even on Domestic journeys (usually when booked through Expedia etc) one could end up with two security lines. For example, if the journey is all on AC or WJ, only one security clearance in YOW. However, if flying AC to Toronto then transfer to WJ, you would re-clear security in Toronto.

When booking internationally, it's important to pay close attention to the airlines you'll be using and the transfer airport to achieve the lowest number of security and custom lineups.

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by VaskoYOW

Couple of days ago, I emailed Flair Airlines and asked them, if they had any plans of starting service to and from YOW....because I do believe there is a market here for them. And apperantly Ottawa is on their radar as they plan to start service in the summer. Here is the email I received from Flair.

"Thank you for your message. We do have plans to start flying to Ottawa during Summer, it is still in transit and being planned, hopefully It wont take long and it will work it out.

In the meanwhile, Please sign up to our Newsletter in order to receive notifications for promotions, routes and schedules. You can join us under www.flairair.ca main page, scroll down to TRAVEL KNOW IT ALL and sign up."

Thank you,

Hannah,
Customer Support
www.flairair.ca
Phone: 204.888.4357 I SITA: YLWFAXH I
Email: support@flairair.ca

It's about time that YOW gets on their radar. YOW-YWG and YOW-YEG and YOW-YXX or YOW-YHM-YXX all seem like no-brainers. Maybe they've finally gotten enough complaints about no service to the capital. I read an article about Red Deer undergoing a $9 million terminal expansion to facilitate the entry of an ULCC to an airport that lost it's only air service (AC to YYC) at the end of October. Flair was quote as saying their expansion focus for the coming year is 'in the east'.

[Dominion301]

Transport Canada have opened up a 150 day consultation period for the First Air-Canadian North proposed merger.

[Reecemartin]

[Deleted]

[Dominion301]

Apparently there was a Titan Airways military charter from Latvia on New Year’s Day. Would imagine it was their 763.

https://www.airliners.net/forum/view...?f=3&t=1411991

[Dominion301]

I had a look at AC’s developing summer schedule and in addition to what was already pointed out about how it appears 1x daily YYC frequency is moving over to YVR, here’s what’s currently showing up:
-MCO is showing as all A319 this summer
-YQB will stay at 2x this summer on DH1s. For the past probably 10 years, it’s been 1x in summer.
-YUL only sees 7x with 1x DH1 and E90 and the rest are on Q400s/CR9s.
-Rapidair is showing as 17x on weekdays with 1x 763, 6x 320 and the rest on E90s. On Saturdays there’s 1 MAX and 2 on Sundays.
-YXU is getting upgauged from 2x DH1 to 1x DH3 and 1x CRJ. The last time YOW-YXU saw jet service was probably around 1988. What’s odd is ex-YOW there are two afternoon departures at 1500 (CR1) and 1940 (DH3) with no morning nonstop. ex-YXU’s schedule makes sense with 0610 (DH3) and 1700 (CRJ) departure times).
-YOW-YFC moves to a morning departure at 0905 on the DH3 (was a CRJ last summer, so no capacity change there).

So the DH3 is flying YXU-YOW-YFC-YOW (on ground from 1313 to 1940)-YXU. There’s an almost 6.5 hour gap for this aircraft. Either a DH3 frequency to YUL is missing that will rotate DH3s, or AC are soon going to announce a new route for YOW. A YQG, YSB or YSJ turn are all possible with that gap, as is an extra daily to YFC, YQM or YYG. Windsor seems most likely given AC added YUL-YQG last year and fits perfectly with 30-45 minute turns at either end. A new route on AC at YOW hasn’t happened in eons.

Overall though, AC capacity this summer is looking like it will be down slightly over 2018 thanks to less YUL frequency and much less YYC capacity...unless a 321 or two appears eventually as more of the schedule gets loaded.

[mxg308]

Today marks the first day that DL goes 2x daily on YOW-LGA. No more CR9s but we do get more frequency!

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by mxg308

Today marks the first day that DL goes 2x daily on YOW-LGA. No more CR9s but we do get more frequency!

More frequency and 24 more departing seats per day is a good thing..will equate to 50 departing seats per day over the summer months.

[YOWhopeful]

Why would AC schedule a rapidair 737MAX to Ottawa from Toronto on Saturdays and Sundays in the summer if they didn’t intend to have it continue on to Europe from YOW?

[RomanR27]

Originally Posted by YOWhopeful

Why would AC schedule a rapidair 737MAX to Ottawa from Toronto on Saturdays and Sundays in the summer if they didn’t intend to have it continue on to Europe from YOW?

They rotate back and forth.

Both days it goes YYZ-YOW-YYZ (8am departure YYZ, 10am departure YOW), and there is one Saturday evening from YYZ that leaves YOW back to YYZ early Sunday morning.

[Dominion301]

I wonder how the pax of delayed WS2841 CUN-YOW are doing now after their flight/ordeal was all over the news?

http://travelindustrytoday.com/2019-...the-way::30162

[Dominion301]

YOW's 2018 year-end pax stats are in and the airport not just surpassed 5 million total pax, but surpassed 5.1 million and surpassed 4 million domestic passengers.

In the January-August timeframe a lot of figures had been revised upward (one downward) as part of these final numbers (wonder what they missed counting or what airline missed something? tough to say as in some months all 3 sectors changed). In fact, August's domestic number is now within 2,000 of 400k and total within 20k of 500k.

So, here's how December looks and the year-end numbers:

Sector / Dec-17 / Dec-18 / % Change
Dom: 313,521 / 313,250 / -0.1% <--It'll be like this all winter with WS' YEG flight cut
TB: 62,408 / 66,164 / +6.0%
Int'l: 36,973 / 44,877 / +21.4%
TTL: 412,902 / 424,291 / +2.8%

Sector / YTD 2017 / YTD 2018 / % Change
Dom: 3,813,672 / 4,002,209 / +4.9% <-- 4 million!
TB: 647,574 / 720,770 / +11.3%
Int'l: 378,431 / 387,822 / +2.5% <-- first time international has grown since 2012 when traffic was 456k
TTL: 4,839,677 / 5,110,801 / +5.6% <-- best year since 2010 for YOW in terms of percentage gain

[daud]

Originally Posted by Dominion301

YOW's 2018 year-end pax stats are in and the airport not just surpassed 5 million total pax, but surpassed 5.1 million and surpassed 4 million domestic passengers.

In the January-August timeframe a lot of figures had been revised upward (one downward) as part of these final numbers (wonder what they missed counting or what airline missed something? tough to say as in some months all 3 sectors changed). In fact, August's domestic number is now within 2,000 of 400k and total within 20k of 500k.

So, here's how December looks and the year-end numbers:

Sector / Dec-17 / Dec-18 / % Change
Dom: 313,521 / 313,250 / -0.1% <--It'll be like this all winter with WS' YEG flight cut
TB: 62,408 / 66,164 / +6.0%
Int'l: 36,973 / 44,877 / +21.4%
TTL: 412,902 / 424,291 / +2.8%

Sector / YTD 2017 / YTD 2018 / % Change
Dom: 3,813,672 / 4,002,209 / +4.9% <-- 4 million!
TB: 647,574 / 720,770 / +11.3%
Int'l: 378,431 / 387,822 / +2.5% <-- first time international has grown since 2012 when traffic was 456k
TTL: 4,839,677 / 5,110,801 / +5.6% <-- best year since 2010 for YOW in terms of percentage gain

Impressive numbers. Its a great airport. I often lament routing and connections but its nice to see this growth.

[qprcanada]

Originally Posted by daud

Impressive numbers. Its a great airport. I often lament routing and connections but its nice to see this growth.

I agree completely, hopefully the 5 million passenger benchmark puts YOW on the radar of some of the international ULC.

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by qprcanada

I agree completely, hopefully the 5 million passenger benchmark puts YOW on the radar of some of the international ULC.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that’s for sure. It does move the airport into the next category of airport size of 5-10 million.

The Airport Authority even put out a press release: https://www.newswire.ca/news-release...877122554.html