Flair Airlines
Canada’s premier independent ultra-low-cost carrier, headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, manages a flight network spanning both scheduled and chartered routes throughout Canada, the U.S., Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. The airline exclusively uses Boeing 737 planes and markets itself as no-frills with the aim of providing Canadians some of the most affordable travel options within their expansive nation. To delve into this further, Simple Flying chose to examine locations served by Flair Airlines for which they operate multiple flights each day.
From its launch in 2005, Flair Airlines initially served as the sole provider of aircraft for Shell Canada, ferrying employees to and from the Albian Sands site. At its height, the carrier transported up to 10,000 construction workers each month to 14 different Canadian airports. In 2013, the airline renewed a decade-long contract with Shell, resulting in an expansion of their air charter services throughout Canada.
Canada
The airline continues to be a key participant in this sector, collaborating with tour operators and providing both domestic and international scheduled flights. Data from
Cirium
, an aviation analytics firm, enables Simple Flying to identify Flair Airlines’ busiest routes:
Halifax to Toronto Pearson (YHZ -YYZ)
58 flights this May
Flair directly flies passengers between Canada’s Maritimes regions.
Halifax Stanfield International Airport
(YHZ) to Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ). Halifax stands as the biggest urban center in Canada’s Atlantic region, and this direct flight caters specifically to serving Canada’s most populated metropolis. Situated within Canada’s ‘Golden Horseshoe,’ Toronto encompasses neighboring municipalities such as Hamilton, Mississauga, Brampton, Burlington, Oakville, and Vaughan, collectively home to roughly ten million people.
On average, this amounts to about 1.87 flights per day, totaling more than 13 weekly. This route is managed by an airline.
Boeing 737 MAX 8
will offer over 10,900 seats throughout the month, spanning 802 miles in merely two hours and twenty-five minutes when traveling westbound, or just two hours for the reverse journey.
The rivalry Flair faces along this route is intense. Competing directly against Air Canada, which is the national flag-carrying airline, as well as WestJet and Porter Airlines (serving Pearson), Flair also encounters indirect competition from Porter due to their non-stop services to Toronto Island, referred to as Billy Bishop Airport. Situated close to downtown Toronto’s main business area via a brief tunnel journey or boat trip from the city center, this airport attracts many professional commuters.
Edmonton to Toronto Pearson (YEG – YYZ)
62 flights this May
Boasting a populace of approximately one million,
Edmonton
Edmonton is the second-biggest city in Alberta following Calgary. Flair has deep ties to Edmonton, where it is headquartered as well. Like most prominent Canadian cities, Edmonton offers direct routes to Toronto, setting it apart from others.
In May, Flair plans to run two daily services from Edmonton to Toronto, which adds up to 14 weekly trips. These routes will be serviced using their Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, offering approximately 11,718 seats one way for each day of the week, totaling around 2,646 seats every seven days. Spanning across 1,676 miles point-to-point, it stands as the second-longest route covered here, taking about three hours and fifty minutes when flying towards the east or roughly four hours and ten minutes heading westward.
Flair competes directly with the country’s three biggest airlines on this route:
Air Canada
WestJet and Porter Airlines have taken up operations on this route. After the pandemic, Porter introduced its new jet-powered Embraer E195 aircraft for these flights.
Calgary to Toronto Pearson (YYC – YYZ)
75 flights this May
In May, Flair offers numerous direct routes from Calgary to Toronto multiple times each day, averaging about 2.41 flights per day. This equates to approximately 16.93 weekly departures. Year-round, Calgary attracts many visitors due to its various notable events such as the Calgary Stampede. The city boasts stunning natural landscapes nearby and hosts countless employment prospects, being the base or main office location for several prominent national and global enterprises.
In May, Flair will operate the route 62 times in each direction, equating to a total of 14,175 available seats, which breaks down to approximately 3,200 seats per week. The door-to-door travel distance spans 1,676 miles, with flights from Calgary to Toronto lasting around three hours and 55 minutes, whereas trips from Toronto to Calgary take about four hours and 15 minutes.
This path directly competes with Air Canada, WestJet, and so forth.
Porter Airlines
. Calgary Airport is the fourth busiest airport in the country, following Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.
Edmonton to Vancouver (YEG – YVR)
79 flights this May
Connecting Edmonton to
Vancouver International Airport
Flair offers nearly three daily flights between these cities. On average, they will operate this route with about 2.54 flights each day, totaling approximately 17.83 flights per week. Over a month, this amounts to around 79 flights and provides 7,525,224 available seat miles.
Cabin configurations for flights operated by the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft include seating exclusively in economy class, accommodating up to 189 travelers per journey. Onboard services allow guests to buy meals and beverages for an additional charge, as well as pay extra fees for luggage check-in. Traveling directly from Edmonton to Vancouver takes approximately one hour and 40 minutes, whereas the reverse route lasts around 35 minutes.
On average, the 504-mile route sees 3,371 seats available each week, totaling 14,931 seats for the month. The direct competitors flying from Edmonton to Vancouver include Air Canada, Air Canada Express, and WestJet. Additionally, North Cariboo Air and Summit Air provide charter services in this region.
Abbotsford To Calgary (YXX -YYC)
85 flights this May
Abbotsford
It takes roughly 80 minutes to reach downtown Vancouver, which lies near the U.S. border. Flair Airlines serves Abbotsford International Airport (YXX), offering an economical choice compared to the bustling Vancouver International Airport (YVR). The airline provides multiple routes from Abbotsford, such as flights to Calgary, Edmonton, Kitchener/Waterloo, and Toronto–Pearson.
In May, Flair plans to operate 85 round trips between the two cities, which averages out to about 19.19 flights per week, or roughly 2.74 daily departures. These routes will be serviced using the airline’s fleet of Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircrafts, providing a total seating capacity of 3,627 weekly slots, amounting to approximately 16,065 seats over the course of the month.
The 398-mile journey confronts head-to-head with WestJet, which is similarly operating on this route. Nonetheless, Flair holds the title of being the largest operator out of Abbotsford, providing a greater number of flights to various destinations compared to any other airline.
Vancouver to Toronto Pearson (YVR – YYZ)
106 flights this May
One of the most bustling airline routes in Canada connects Vancouver (with a metro population of about 2.6 million) to Toronto (which has a metro population of 6.4 million). Flair Airlines plans to provide approximately 3.41 flights per day. This amounts to 106 flights throughout the month, averaging out to about 23.93 flights each week.
Flown by
Flair’s Boeing 737 MAX 8
This will account for 4,523 seats per week, totaling 20,034 seats annually, with an impressive 41,770,890 available seat miles. Spanning a distance of 2,085 miles, the journey from Vancouver to Toronto takes around four hours and 35 minutes, whereas the trip back lasts about five hours.
Not surprisingly, this route is favored by all key Canadian airlines. Air Canada offers the greatest frequency of daily flights, closely trailed by WestJet and Porter Airlines.
Edmonton to Abbotsford (YEG – YXX)
106 flights this May
The second most common route in Flair’s network is between Edmonton and Abbotsford, which are both Canadian cities.
Ultra-Low-Cost Carrier
Will operate its Boeing 737-800 planes on this route 106 times in May (with identical frequency for the return trips). The 737-800 used by Flair holds a bit fewer passengers, at only 186 seats, as opposed to the MAX 8, which accommodates 189 seats.
Taking an average of 3.41 times daily will result in 23.93 flights per week, equating to 4,523 seats weekly, or 20,034 across the month. Covering 428 miles, the flight takes one hour and 35 minutes in either direction.
WestJet is also active on this route, directly competing with Flair. From Abbotsford, WestJet’s network includes only two year-round domestic routes: one to Edmonton and another to Calgary. Additionally, they add seasonal flights to Puerto Vallarta, a well-known resort area located along Mexico’s Pacific coast in the state of Jalisco.
Vancouver to Calgary (YVR – YYC)
133 flights this May
The most heavily traveled path within Flair’s network runs between Vancouver and Edmonton.
Calgary International Airport
It will be provided approximately 4.29 times daily, totaling around 30.03 times weekly. The route will be operated using Flair’s Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes, each accommodating up to 189 travelers, which adds up to roughly 5,676 seats available per week.
In May, with 25,137 seats available for a 428-mile journey, the total number of available seat miles comes to 10,758,636 on this route where both Air Canada and WestJet compete.
The entire flight duration from Calgary to Vancouver is one hour and thirty-five minutes, whereas the trip back takes a different amount of time.
is slightly shorter
, lasting about an hour and a half.
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