This recent turbulence in the skies is not restricted to Canada. Around the world, the airline industry is in a state of flux. This Backgrounder analyzes the growth challenges of Canadian airlines.
Transportation
Media Release – What’s Next in the Air Industry?: The Canadian Air Industry and the Case of Porter Airlines
Today, the Frontier Centre for Public Policy issued The Canadian Air Industry and the Case of Porter Airlines, authored by Mary-Jane Bennett. There have been big changes in the Canadian aviation sector. Porter Airlines announced an ambitious expansion last month. WestJet, built on the low-cost model and now in the international market, announced the launch of subsidiary, Encore, to debut this summer. Legacy carrier Air Canada intends to launch its new subsidiary, rouge, this summer as well.
Don’t Transfer Airport Ownership Without Compensating Canadians: Response to the Senate recommendation on airport rents
The Senate recently recommended that airport rents be phased out and ownership of Canada’s public airports be transferred to the non-profit corporations that now run them. Frontier’s Mary-Jane Bennett asserts that this is wrongheaded. Airports are publically owned and worth billions of dollars. They should not be transferred without fairly compensating Canadians.
Observations from the Western Canadian Aviation Forum
The Winnipeg Airports Authority was kind enough to invite me to participate in their Western Canadian Aviation Forum. While it is a policy conference, most of the presenters are from industry and government, which provides a slightly different perspective than conferences that are primarily populated and presented by academics and scholars. I’ve accumulated a few observations over the past two days that I’d like to throw out for consideration.
Featured News
Time to Stop Lockdowns, Vaccine Mandates and Crushing Our Charter of Rights
If one was to discuss the state of the world’s democracies in September of 2019, it would look entirely different than it does today in 2022. Three years ago, Canadians generally thought that: our democracy was relatively strong and citizens would defend their...
Propaganda Rules the World
One of the greatest books that explain how the world works is Propaganda by Edward Bernays. The man dubbed “the father of public relations” applied the psychological ideas of his uncle Sigmund Freud upon the masses, triggering their basic motivations to the benefit of...
Canadian Airline Competition More Pie in the Sky than Open Sky
Buy low, sell high; a penny saved is a penny earned; never let New Democrats run the province’s finances. Those are a few common-sense nuggets that the economically astute should agree with. And here’s another one: open skies are great for airline passengers. In a...
Many Cities Changing One-way Streets Back
More traffic will be coming to downtown Danville, Ill. — and that's how Danville wants it. The city of 33,000 is converting some of its longtime one-way streets back to two-way thoroughfares. City officials hope the change will make it easier for customers to reach...
Nigeria – How Nationalization Fails
A cautionary tale of how government ownership and monopoly wreaks havoc with vital infrastructure in Nigeria
Breakfast on the Frontier – Sylvain Charlebois – Agriculture Sector
Listen to Sylvain Charlesbois speak at Breakfast on the Frontier - on supply management here. (36 minutes) Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is an associate professor in marketing in the Faculty of Business Administration of the University of Regina (Canada) since 2004. He is...
We’ll never get to Kyoto by transit
The dream of big-city mayors that Ottawa foot the bill for mass transit is closer to reality. Trouble is, subsidies from afar won’t make a dime’s worth of difference. Other reforms will.
Public Transport in Auckland
Auckland has a long tradition of making wrong decisions about public transport and several recent announcements indicate we are maintaining this tradition. Auckland is not entering new or unknown territory. A multitude of cities overseas have explored diverse...
Cheaper Government Auto Insurance?
When the Consumers’ Association and publicly owned auto insurance monopolies tell the public that model delivers lower premiums, they are spreading misinformation. Private companies do offer competitive rates.
City unveils $2-B mega-fix
Mayor Sam Katz has released his proposed budget for the coming year and for the next six years. Also, a debate about P3s (Public – Private Partnerships).
Let’s Deregulate Taxis
The economics of Winnnipeg’s taxicab industry have been severely distorted by barriers to entry and price controls. American cities like Indianapolis and countries like Sweden and Ireland have solved similar problems by deregulating.