Summary
- Air Canada will not operate flights to Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Hartford, Indianapolis, or Kansas City this winter.
- Four US routes from Montreal will also not be served.
- The affected airports/routes are set to return to its network next summer.
Air Canada is the number one international airline serving the US. Over the weekend, the carrier made notable changes to its winter route map in its schedule update to OAG and Cirium.
A breakdown of airport changes
The six airports, summarized below, were to have 10 daily Air Canada Express flights, but now they won’t. While each airport has lost winter Canada flights, business links, and additional global connectivity, they’ll still have international service. This is mainly to Mexico but also, for some, to Europe and the Caribbean.
Five of the six airports were used to seeing Air Canada in the winter. The exception was Kansas City, which had flights in winter 2019/2020 but not in the cold season just gone.
Air Canada would have been the largest provider of international flights at each airport. Examining schedules shows that it would have had an average of 68% of international services, rising to 79% at Hartford, 89% at Indianapolis, and a staggering 94% at Columbus.
Based on IATA slot seasons, the northern aviation summer season will end on October 26, and airlines will switch to winter schedules the next day. The changes shown below are as of July 1; others may occur.
|
US Airport |
Last flight of the season* |
What was planned in the winter?** |
When will it return?^^ |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Cincinnati |
October 13 |
Double daily CRJ900 to Toronto |
May 1, 2025 (double daily CRJ900) |
|
Cleveland |
October 13 |
Double daily CRJ900 to Toronto*** |
May 1, 2025 (triple daily CRJ900) |
|
Columbus |
October 13 |
Double daily CRJ900 to Toronto |
May 1, 2025 (double daily CRJ900) |
|
Hartford |
October 13 |
Daily CRJ900 to Toronto |
May 1, 2025 (daily CRJ900) |
|
Indianapolis |
October 26 |
Double daily E175 to Toronto^ |
May 1, 2025 (daily E175) |
|
Kansas City |
October 26 |
Daily CRJ900 to Toronto |
May 31, 2025 (daily CRJ900) |
|
* From the US |
** From October 27 *** Triple daily before that ^ Daily in the summer, with double daily planned in the winter |
^^ The plan as of July 1 |
(This is how I see changes on Cirium.) Image: Cirium
These routes have been suspended
Four Air Canada US routes from Montreal have been pulled for this coming off-season despite all running fully or partly last winter. Montreal is Air Canada’s second-busiest transborder hub.
Related
United Airlines Begins 5 Washington Dulles Routes On 1 Day
They are among the carrier’s shortest routes from Dulles.
Despite the cuts, Air Canada will remain at each US airport. In all cases, the least-served route has been removed, enabling consolidation and hopefully higher performance on the existing services. Interestingly, Montreal to Detroit, San Diego, and Seattle began in the COVID-hit 2022.
|
Route |
Last flight of the season* |
What was planned in the winter?** |
When will it return?*** |
Other Air Canada winter routes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Montreal-Detroit |
October 13 |
Daily CRJ900 |
May 1, 2025 (double daily CRJ900) |
Mainly double daily to Toronto (CRJ900) |
|
Montreal-Philadelphia |
October 26 |
Daily CRJ900 |
May 1, 2025 (double daily CRJ900) |
Double daily to Toronto (CRJ900) |
|
Montreal-San Diego |
October 26 |
Weekly A220-300 |
May 1, 2025 (daily A220-300) |
Double daily to Vancouver (CRJ900), daily to Toronto (737 MAX 8^, A220-300) |
|
Montreal-Seattle |
October 26 |
Four weekly A220-300 |
May 1, 2025 (daily A220-300) |
Four daily to Vancouver (Dash 8 Q400), daily to Toronto (A220-300) |
|
* From the US |
** From October 27 |
*** The plan as of July 1 |
^ Four departures in November only |