Since Donald Trump’s inauguration as President of the United States, there has been a notable decline in the number of flights from Canada to the US. Experts attribute the decline to the deteriorating relationship between the two countries as the main cause.
A recent study by aviation analysis firm OAG, which focuses on data analysis in aviation, reveals a significant difference in booking numbers between Canada and the US. Their study used March as a reference point, looking ahead until September. The results show a striking difference in booking numbers between this year and the previous year.
The most noticeable difference is visible in bookings for April. In March 2024, over 1.2 million flights were booked between Canada and the US. This number dropped to just 296,000 a year later. This pattern repeats itself in all the following months studied. It results in a total decrease of over seventy percent compared to the previous year.
Fightback
Canadian airlines are adjusting their strategy in response to this decline. Ever more Canadian travelers are opting for flights to alternative destinations. They are looking at tickets to places such as Mexico, the Caribbean, and Europe, thereby avoiding the US. This trend reflected in the numbers. There is an average decrease of three percent in the number of seats available on flights to the US in the coming months.
WestJet, in particular, is focusing more on European destinations, adding over a hundred flights to their European network. Cities in the United Kingdom and Ireland are especially benefiting from this. Air Canada is more cautious in this shift. This is, supposedly, mainly due to limited slot capacity at European airports and its relationship with Star Alliance partner United Airlines.
Trade Tensions
The trade tensions between Canada and the US, which began with the introduction of import tariffs by the Trump administration, have contributed to the decrease in travel. The subsequent retaliatory measures by the Canadian government, along with a large-scale consumer boycott of American products, have further discouraged travel between the two countries.