Porter Airlines has officially returned to the skies, almost 18 months after suspending flights due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Flights to Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Thunder Bay are the first to restart. Porter Airlines will resume flights to Halifax, Quebec City, St. John’s, NL, and Moncton within the next 10 days.
Destinations in the United States, including Boston, Chicago, New York and Washington D.C. will resume on 17th September 2021.
Michael Deluce, President and CEO, Porter Airlines, said:
Our passengers and team members have been waiting for this day to arrive. We currently have over 900 team members who have put in countless hours to get everything ready for our return to service, with more being recalled or hired every week. Everyone at Porter is looking forward to welcoming passengers back and delivering our distinct style of service again.
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John Tory, Mayor of Toronto, joined the celebrations at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. The airline states that it has ‘strengthened its existing standards with a focus on high levels of sanitization in order to protect the health of its passengers and team members’.
In addition to Healthy Flights Program, Porter has also introduced a COVID-19 Vaccination Policy for its employees. All of the employees must present a negative COVID-19 test administered within 72 hours of the start of their shift or be fully vaccinated. The government of Canada announced in August its intention to mandate vaccination for federally-regulated workers and once specific details are known, Porter says that its policy may evolve.
Passengers who book their flights before 30th September 2021 will be eligible to change or cancel with no fees. Passengers also have the option to book a flight with the Full Refund Option for $40 plus taxes. The Refund Option entitles customers to receive a refund, including base fare, taxes and fees, for their booking upon advance cancellation of their flight for any reason.
Meanwhile, Porter Airlines recently revealed plans to buy up to 80 Embraer E195-E2 aircraft for expansion in the North America. The airline recently revealed World’s lightest aircraft seat.
Featured image by TripSavvy
What do you think of Porter Airlines returning to the skies after 18 months? Let me know in the comments section below.
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