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The new airline rivalries: Air Canada vs. Porter, WestJet vs. Flair

Despite the competitive nature, airfares continue to climb
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A Porter airplane lands in Toronto on Wednesday, March 18, 2020. In a country traditionally dominated by two national airlines, a new set of aviation rivalries has emerged. Porter is increasingly moving in on Air Canada91裸聊视频檚 home turf of Central Canada as well as cross-country routes, while WestJet seeks to counter the threat of Flair Airlines in a shift from the decades-old industry dynamic of sparring between the two biggest carriers. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

On a warm Wednesday this month, a cartoon raccoon raised a cocktail glass and sarcastically saluted Air Canada.

The social media image, posted by Porter Airlines, included an accompanying toast from the character: 91裸聊视频淎ir Canada has now joined Porter in offering free beer, wine and snacks to all passengers. Thanks for joining our mission to help everyone actually enjoy economy!91裸聊视频

Tongue firmly in cheek, the post went on to ask Canada91裸聊视频檚 largest airline, 91裸聊视频淲hat91裸聊视频檚 next, a raccoon mascot?91裸聊视频

The online jibe marked the latest instance of publicly calling out competitors 91裸聊视频 a recent trend amid a transforming airline market that has companies stepping on each other91裸聊视频檚 wingtips in new ways and on a bigger scale.

In a country traditionally dominated by two national airlines, a new set of aviation rivalries has emerged. Porter is increasingly moving in on Air Canada91裸聊视频檚 home turf of Central Canada as well as cross-country routes, while WestJet seeks to counter the threat of Flair Airlines in a shift from the decades-old industry dynamic of sparring between the two biggest carriers.

Porter, once a regional player hovering around the Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal triangle, has over the past 18 months tripled its domestic market share to nearly 10 per cent. Turboprop planes were used when the carrier only covered short distances. Now it has 35 Embraer jets in its fleet and expects 40 more by 2027, up from zero as recently as January of last year.

The rapid expansion overlaps heavily with Air Canada territory in Ontario and Quebec, prompting the country91裸聊视频檚 largest airline to serve up no-charge treats and drinks. Cocktails also now cost $5 per glass, down from $9. Porter has long touted similar offers.

91裸聊视频淚t shows that they91裸聊视频檙e concerned about our market share growth and what we91裸聊视频檙e doing, and that we91裸聊视频檙e a real competitive threat to them,91裸聊视频 said Porter president Kevin Jackson in a phone interview.

91裸聊视频淗ow do I prove that? They did not launch free beer and wine to Mexico and the Caribbean. We don91裸聊视频檛 fly there yet.91裸聊视频

Air Canada said it continually refines its on-board products. 91裸聊视频淲e take all competition seriously,91裸聊视频 said spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick in an email.

Flair and WestJet have also raised their hackles as the two jostle for market share.

Flair now has a 20-plane fleet 91裸聊视频 still a fraction of WestJet91裸聊视频檚 180 aircraft, but enough to demand a response from the older of the two Alberta-based airlines.

In a bid to attract more price-sensitive customers 91裸聊视频 Flair91裸聊视频檚 core demographic 91裸聊视频 earlier this month, WestJet replaced its basic ticket tier with a new fare category that did away with a free carry-on bag and other perks travellers once took for granted. Customers who choose the 91裸聊视频渦ltra-basic91裸聊视频 option must pay to select a seat even when checking in. Also, they board last 91裸聊视频 despite being relegated to the back of the plane.

Flair joined in on the ribbing that Canadians delivered online, retweeting a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, from satirical news site The Beaverton: 91裸聊视频淲estJet announces SuperUltraBasic fare where customers just stay home and give them money.91裸聊视频

91裸聊视频淒on91裸聊视频檛 be ultra basic. Fly Flair,91裸聊视频 the budget airline, which offers a nearly identical fare tier, posted a day earlier.

But WestJet may have the last laugh. In its first week, the fare class topped expectations with more than 100,000 tickets sold, the company said.

John Gradek, who teaches aviation management at McGill University, said WestJet91裸聊视频檚 move marks a competitive thrust against a growing rival.

91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e basically taking Flair on head-to-head,91裸聊视频 he said.

Flair swooped in to fill the void left by Air Canada when it pulled out of dozens of regional routes west of Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, Calgary-based WestJet has cut routes in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada to refocus on its home turf out west. On Toronto-Montreal, it went from about 370 flights per month two years ago to none, according to figures from aviation data firm Cirium.

WestJet retrenched in the East and dug in farther west 91裸聊视频渞ather than go up against Air Canada in a lot of markets,91裸聊视频 said Helane Becker, an aviation analyst at TD Cowen. 91裸聊视频淭hat91裸聊视频檚 where they were strong,91裸聊视频 she said, referring to British Columbia and the Prairies.

Montreal-based Air Canada has mirrored this move, remaining in Central and Eastern Canada while scaling back in the West. With Porter91裸聊视频檚 ascent, it has replaced WestJet as Air Canada91裸聊视频檚 biggest rival on routes such as Toronto-Halifax, Toronto-Fredericton and Montreal-Moncton, N.B.

The fresh dynamics of the airline world don91裸聊视频檛 necessarily mean more competition, particularly on regional trips.

Lynx Air and Swoop are defunct 91裸聊视频 and Sunwing Airlines is set to fold into WestJet91裸聊视频檚 main operation next year. As surviving airlines set their sights on more lucrative markets abroad and ditch smaller planes in the interest of higher-volume trips, flight numbers on numerous short-haul routes have plummeted over the past five years.

Domestic capacity will likely decrease this year compared to 2023, Becker said. Partly as a result, prices keep rising. Airfares climbed nearly five per cent year-over-year last month, according to the latest consumer price index report.

WestJet and Air Canada remain rivals, as do Porter and WestJet, with all four competing for traffic between Toronto and Vancouver as well as on trips to Florida, among other spots. But the lines on the competition map have been redrawn.

91裸聊视频淎ll carriers are competitors, including U.S. carriers 91裸聊视频 but the airline that we overlap the most with, of course, is Air Canada,91裸聊视频 Porter91裸聊视频檚 Jackson said.

91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檙e stealing market share.91裸聊视频

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press

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