Especially how he said that WJ and AC are the only major airlines. I think that Porter, Air Transat, Flair, Lynx, JetLines, etc have been quite major in 2022-24
@@andrewisvrycool nah I’d say calling AC and WJ the two major carriers in Canada is correct for now at least. Fleet size and number of passengers carried no one compares to them.
Historically, the airtravel competition game in Canada seems to basically consist of: "If you make yourself a big enough nuisance to AC, they will eventually buy you out."
And how many times has the government bailout AC two times that I know of and if you live within 150 miles to the US it’s still cheaper to drive there and fly american airlines
@@nemdance I was not saying that southwest was anywhere near the position of #1 on the large chart of airlines in the US. I was simply putting out that on that top ten list that you so helpfully mentioned, Southwest outranks Spirit in airline size and reviews. I understand your original comment was pointing out that spirit is among the biggest, but in response to that I was just trying to present that Southwest should outrank spirit. Outrank is used here in the connotation that it is better or bigger and is closer to the top of the list as in #1.
@@PositiveRateAv ok so spirit is among the biggest airlines. Who outranks who is irrelevant, that’s why I thought you didn’t know English and I’m still not convinced lol.
Don't forget vast distances to reach fewer customers, whether flying passengers or shipping goods. Wages are generally higher in Canada too. Steeper operating costs either translate into higher prices for the consumer or lower profits for the business.
Don’t forget government protection. This is why infrastructure and technology is so far behind other countries. They don’t let any foreign competitors inside to protect the monopolies here
Canada is 10 times smaller than USA. Yes, we do protect some sectors : Bank, Airlines, TV Station, internet and phone services, for instance. USA should start protect their own culture ! Try to get served in english in a Floridian wal-Mart for instance. Spanish is Everywhere. Time to protect english... and your border.@@itachi93674
Only 4 major airlines in the US? What about Southwest? I'd say they're more popular than Spirit. And don't forget Jetblue Alaskan and frontier. There's your 8 major airlines
Flair apparently owes 60 something million in taxes to the CRA and their assets were supposedly being seized. Lynx just filed for creditor protection because of huge operating costs. Really sucks to lose airline competition
For more than 20 years, I regularly traveled between Alberta and New Brunswick. After only a few years, Westjet ceased serving those routes, thus leaving only one option. It always pained me that I could travel to Europe for significantly less than within Canada! Whenever I received a customer satisfaction survey from AC, I always commented that I only fly with them as I have no other choice!
Canada also has expensive ATC fees per nautical mile to fly over Canadian airspace. Many airlines going to and from Europe to the US will often fly longer over America towards New England instead of a straight line over Hudson Bay because it's more cost efficient.
Everything here is expensive. The issue is lack of competition and the government supporting and subsizing monopolies. Up to a few years, ago it was about $400 for a one way flight from Vancouver to Toronto. But the intro of more airlines serving the routes has helped drive prices down. But even the smaller airlines entering the market are being bought out or merged into bigger airlines.
Seems the Canadian government needs to A.Introduce a version of the kind of subsidies that they have in the US and elsewhere (IIRC the US calls it the "Essential Air Service") to bring down the cost of flights to all those little towns that don't have much traffic but where air travel is essential, B.Cut airport and navigation fees to make flights cheaper across the board and C.Open the market to more competition (including foreign operations) that will put downward pressure on prices.
A already exists in a roundabout way in the form of the existing taxes, it is so extremely expensive to fly to the extreme remote north as it stands that the taxes on the south subsidize the north. B is not really feasible considering the general tax base is already strained, and C is enough of a national security issue that no country lets another control their domestic air travel. Even UPS and FedEx Express have local partners who operate their domestic air freight services in Canada.
@@sblack53 Most importantly no country will open their sky unless the other open their sky too. In Canada's case, if the USA doesn't open their sky to foreign carriers to fly domestic routes why would Canada open the sky to US carriers for domestic services? Similarly to the Post Brexit UK, both EasyJet & Ryanair set up separate UK ownerships just so that they could fly the UK domestic routes.
The significant disparity in capacity among airlines here in the US is remarkable. During my time at YYC, profitability was a prerequisite for virtually every flight to a given destination. Conversely, in the US, I've observed multiple flights to certain destinations, with only a subset proving profitable. Nevertheless, these profitable flights are sufficient to maintain the destination's schedule and ensure overall profitability. The emphasis on frequency and flexibility is essential to remain competitive in this market. It's truly like comparing two different worlds.
I believe airlines in the US are often required to serve less-lucrative markets in order to get the ability to fly the highly profitable ones as well. Also air traffic control and airport maintenance are subsidized more by the government in the US than Canada. Passenger air travel is actually one place Canada is more “free market” than the States.
You missed what’s obviously the fourth largest airline in the United States, which is southwest airlines. Southwest airlines is one hard to miss airline.
Flair Airlines, which was a low cost charter just closed down due to what you stated in this video. It's really hard for airlines to stay alive here unless you are Air Canada and are helped by the government
Same as Indonesia. It's known that if they want to fly domestic between Indonesian island, it's cheaper to transit in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), than transit in Jakarta (Indonesia)
3:13 "Canada is one of the most expensive places to operate an airline. Fees, taxes, and charges for airports, air traffic control, security, and other shared services are among the highest of any country in Canada." That is quite true, but at the same, time, it is true that fees, taxes, and charges for airports, air traffic control, security, and other shared services in Canada are the very lowest of any country in Canada.
One of the glaring inaccuracies is that the federal government doesn’t own the airports. In the 90s, the government handed over authority of the airports to the municipalities. Because there is no rules as to how much they charge, cities use airport improvement fees as a cash cow to bankroll city budgets. All in all it was a very poorly researched story.
One issue you didn't mention is that the USA also restricts "domestic" airlines to less than 50% foreign ownership. And one cannot fly between two USA cities on a foreign carrier. I once was going on Air Canada from Washington, D.C., to Ottawa to San Jose. I had to book separate tickets from DC to Ottawa and from Ottawa to San Jose. It's the rule south of the line as well.
It’s e everywhere. It’s part of the common laws that govern aviation. That’s why the industry is so heavily regulated and barriers to entry is costly. In many countries flag carriers rule while others like the US have more options but the tax payer is always left to pick up the tab when these airlines are in trouble because they’re deemed essential to fail.
Bingo! The video makes it seem like only Canada is protectionist when almost all nations have these rules as they are seen as a national security/interest and rightly so.. Imagine in a crisis that a foreign power cut your national airline to nothing because of a political beef or grudge...
From a tourist perspective, its not just airlines. Australian to USA exchange rate is 'painful' compared to Canadian exchange rate. The killer is Canada's costs for travel, accomodation etc, makes for a 'just as expensive' trip. Not good!!!
Yes domestically airfares in Canada are higher than the USA and much of Europe. That being said it is generally cheaper to fly from Canada to both Europe and Asia. The Vancouver airport has a steady stream of people driving up from Washington State as prices are substantially cheaper to Asia and Europe than from Seattle. Vancouver has far more international competition than Seattle does.
I'm wondering if Canadians pay a "real" cost for flying, instead of other countries which subsidize that cost. This wouldn't be unheard of since Canada has marketing boards for eggs and milk so farmers can make a decent living for their products, unlike the US and European countries where those products are subsidized. Canadians will pay more for eggs and milk than their American neighbours, but that allows for small family farms, which are being priced out of business in the US since incentives to be big eliminate those smaller players.
Canada doesn’t subsidize air traffic control or airports nearly as much as other countries. Air travel is one a the very few places Canada is more “free market” than the USA.
To be fair, Air Canada could also not get the approval to fly NYC - SFO in the US. They would need to have a stopover in Canada. The US also protects its air transport market. Air Canada is in Star Alliance though, so Air Canada can offer NYC to SFO - on a United plane. And you can get Calgary - Frankfurt via Toronto and then via Lufthansa (Star Alliance!) to Frankfurt. And you forgot Southwest. And that competition thing is not the correct answer. Canada is just 90% uninhabited land. With a population density less than Russia. There will never be any competition due to that. Air Canada even loses money on Canadian domestic routes. Huge landmass - very distant cities - but very few people and therefore very few passengers - you name it. The competition is therefore not Edmonton to Toronto compared with a similar distance in the US - but a United flight from Edmonton to Detroit International and from there to Toronto Pearson International. And this includes 2x border inspection fees on your ticket plus international handling fees.
High taxes only work if you have an environment people are willing to pay for, think California or Hawaii. Canada is a frozen wasteland and unlike most other "frozen wastelands" its basically "USA lite." Realistically you could easily go to the US, Australia, or New Zealand, have the same quality of life/culture, (Denmark has a unique culture, as does Russia, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, etc...)and not have to worry about freezing to death.
My family of four went on a 14 day vacation in Japan, and then spent 5 days with family in Vancouver on the way home. The 5 days in Vancouver accounted for more than half the trips cost!
Flights within Canada have been so much cheaper in my experience the past 2 years. A similar route in the States seems to be double and a transborder route is often 3x. US airlines are definitely price gouging while there is too much competition right now in Canada.
@@acerIOstream I check! I saved about CA$20 on an upcoming Westjet flight (that was already bargain basement, US$63.48 total on a transborder flight from Vegas) by using their US website to pay in USD instead of CAD.
There should be an investigation into the airport authorities! Calgary spent a positively scandalous amount, 1.3 billion, on airport improvements!! They are now financially "mugging" anyone and any airline foolish enough to go anywhere near the airport property. I parked my vehicle in the parkade for 30 minutes and was puzzled at lack of other cars in the facility. I found out why it was empty when I tried to exit and they charged me $25.00!! I shudder to imagine what they charge retail tenants! It also explains why Air Canada and others have reduced their presence at YYC so much. The airport authorities REALLY need to be scrutinized.....
the only US airline I could see being allowed to operate Canadian domestic routes is United, and that's BECAUSE they have a partnership with Air Canada, so they would likely not actually compete.
TLDW: Not enough population which leads to monopolies. And Canada limits foreign direct investments, which lets existing monopolies continue uninterrupted
4:32 Lynx Air ceases operation today Monday February 26, 2024. Airport costs, cited as the major factor, amongst other taxes and regulation costs, fees etc, etc, etc. For the record I enjoyed my flights on Lynx Air😪
It looks a lot like Brazil. High taxes, little competition, restrictions on foreign companies, complex geography, infrastructure problems. The big difference is that our population is much larger than Canada's, but we don't have the same purchasing power. So air travel is restricted to a small part of society. Most people travel by bus because it's much more affordable.
Since I had my first flight and all flights taken with them since for over 30 years. Air Canada has been good to me. And they've actually been accomodating from my experience on multiple occasions. And every decade seeing the new additions and comforts they have on their newer planes was always nice. Im not saying its top top tier. But a good mid level. I guess just been lucky.
Frontier airlines from Fargo, to Denver is cheap too, I flew with them before Christmas weekend, saved over $800 Canadians dollars from my hometown in Canada, just 4 drive south in Dakota.
...and probably the main reason why lowcosts grew up in Europe so quickly is that Europe has very good infrastructure in terms of public transport which allows people to travel from big cities into the more distanced but more cheaper airports. Because lowcosts mostly do not land on main big airports... they use smaller airports that are still reachable from big cities. For instance in London lowcosts do not land on Heathrow... they use Gatwick, Stansted or Luton instead... or instead of Barcelona lowcosts use Girona, instead of Vienna they use Bratislava... and there are many many other examples like that.
Domestic flight cost is never about distance, but demand vs supply, LOL I don't think capital restriction is a problem, Canada is developed economy and with all kinds of capital if profitability presents. Geographical / demographic character is not an issue either, that Most Canadian actually live across that 49 degree line (Montreal - Toronto - Calgary - Vancouver) perfect model for air transport. I best Canadian is actually more densely populated than US, coz the 30m Canadian actually live near the border. The only problem is economy of scale, now with more ULCC introduced, Toronto to Vancouver is about CA$150, Canada is just need time to pickup
The only major airline is Air Canada who keeps prices high but will aggressively cuts prices in hubs when new airlines start up to shut them down before they can get going. By cut prices, I mean they will sell tickets at a loss and fill up gates to put the other company out of business. For the prices, we might as go back to the original Crown Corporation. At least there was good service and coverage for the money back then. Prices have only gone down until you add the *optional* fees tacked on by the airlines that can double or triple prices
I think I had a ticket base fair for $13, with $56 of taxes/airport fees on it. I bought it a couple months in advance and was Toronto Pearson to Calgary. I think it was one way mid week too. No carry on and just a small personal item under the seat in front. Basically min/maxed the the ticket. For contrast a flight from Toronto City Billy Bishop to Timmins was i believe 400-600 ish dollars (with a different airline it was $1000) so, the flight was a 1/4 the time but 6-8x the price. Now Timmins isn’t a popular destination flight but, it just shows the ridiculous price range of budget flights vs a not so popular route.
This is not only for air travel, If you look at a hotel in Canada booked in Canada vs the same hotel in Canada booked from the US there are big differences. Canadians pay a higher price vs if you book the hotel from the US. This can easily be seen using VPN software.
What is the price difference? I will look into this. I have recently setup a US chequing account though RBC and am curious about looking into this. Do you have a preferred VPN provider?
What is the price difference? I will look into this. I have recently setup a US chequing account though RBC and am curious about looking into this. Do you have a preferred VPN provider?
@@dougpatterson7494 I just use my vpn from norton. I live in the US, but I have family that lives in Canada. We had a family event the hotel was booked from Canada at over 200 CAD per night, When I looked from the US it was around 110 USD.
Canadian overflight fees are some of the highest in the world, when combined with the absolute lack of any competition at all owing to the fact that 2 major airlines exist: Air Canada and Westjet
Good explanation, the major issue is how the government has structured the costs. The US government invests in the infrastructure and creates a better commercial environment. Unfortunately the Canadian government treats the industry as a cash cow and the expenses are passed on to the consumers. Part of the costs are also absorbed by the airlines which in turn narrows the margins ( profits ).
The only non stop choice Montreal to Winnipeg is Air Canada. $520 one way high season. We could have paid $296 if we took a crop duster to Toronto, waited 4 hours connecting, the WestJet to Winnipeg. WestJet used to fly non-stop and the flights were always packed with prices in the $300 range. Covid killed it.
Funny, since I’ve started flying domestically in Canada more over the past 4 years, I find flights quite reasonable, especially given how small our market is. I do fly out of or in to Toronto a lot, but it always seems reasonable, unless booking last minute in a busy time. Every time I book a flight to the states, I check from the nearest US airport (for example, detroit to phoenix instead of toronto to phoenix) and it’s rarely cheaper. I routinely fly from Toronto to Calgary for $130 CAD each way with Air Canada, a full service airline which frankly, I have found to be on par with any other airline I’ve flown domestically (including US and Europe). Flying in Canada should be more expensive than the US for a lot of flights, thats just the way the economy works.
It’s really volume and population for sure. The thing about the other airlines that make up the remaining 20% WestJet and Air Canada own one each which are completely no frills. It’s the same thing with Cell Phones. We have three major carriers and 5 or 6 small companies that really don’t have the same kind of service or support. We need Verizon or T Mobile to come up here and say Delta or Southwest to come up here also. Everything is so expensive in Canada. We get taxed on everything at a super high rate.
