As more Canadians are giving up vacations to the United States, Canadian airlines are urgently adjusting their operational strategies to cope with this sudden market change.

Due to a significant drop in travel demand to the U.S., traditional popular destinations like Florida beach holidays and Disney family trips are no longer as bustling as before. Major Canadian airlines have been forced to adjust their summer flight schedules, reducing capacity on U.S.-bound flights while increasing seat numbers for routes within Canada and overseas.

For example, WestJet stated that it has reduced flight capacity on some Canada-U.S. routes and re-deployed its summer flight plans, focusing on "key markets" such as Europe and sunny holiday destinations.

"The current political environment and exchange rate differences may have caused a shift in demand," said WestJet spokesperson Josh Yeats.

Air Canada mentioned that by mid-March, cross-border bookings for the next six months had decreased by about 10% compared to the same period last year. To address this situation, the company will make adjustments to certain U.S. routes, including using smaller aircraft or reducing flight frequencies.

Porter Airlines significantly expanded its services to the U.S. over the past year but has now slightly reduced its summer U.S. flights and redirected some capacity to the domestic Canadian market.

Although airlines frequently adjust flight schedules, such a degree of decline in travel demand between Canada and the U.S. is uncommon, noted Mike Arnot, a spokesperson for aviation data analytics company Cirium. "This is a tricky situation for airlines."

Data from Cirium shows that bookings between major Canadian cities and popular U.S. destinations for this summer have dropped nearly 20% compared to last year. Meanwhile, bookings between popular Canadian cities for July have increased by approximately 11% year-over-year.

At the Calgary International Airport, many travelers told CBC News that they would avoid traveling to the U.S. this summer.

"We have family in the U.S., but we won't be meeting them for now; we might meet elsewhere," said Yael Staav, who was returning to Toronto after spending the weekend in Calgary. "We plan to spend our money elsewhere."

Bruna Machado, who is visiting relatives in Brazil, also mentioned that she plans to stay in Canada for her vacation upon returning: "We won't go to the U.S. this summer; we'll play here in Canada."

A Price War Looms

As Canadians adjust their travel plans, some airlines are beginning to redirect capacity toward European markets.

According to data from Canadian travel agency Flight Centre, ticket prices for flights to these alternative international destinations are declining.

Flight Centre found that airfare prices for flights departing from now until May to Asia, Europe, and Latin America are, on average, 17% lower than the same period last year.

Prices for tickets to certain countries have fallen even more significantly, such as Iceland and Japan, with drops of about 30%.

"We see that Canadians are being very cautious in choosing their travel destinations," said Jessica Groen, vice president of supply partnerships at Flight Centre. "At the same time, we see airlines actively responding to this trend."

Air Canada has added summer routes from Montreal to Edinburgh and increased flight frequencies to Paris, Rome, and Athens.

WestJet has also launched new routes from Halifax to Barcelona and Amsterdam.

Discover Airlines, part of Germany's Lufthansa Group, has introduced new routes flying directly from Munich to Calgary. CEO Bernd Bauer mentioned that he expects more Europeans to visit Canada this summer and hopes Canadians can use Munich as a gateway to other European cities.

However, aviation expert John Gradek pointed out that airlines face limitations when transferring routes from the U.S. to Europe. North American routes mainly use narrow-body aircraft, which typically cannot fly directly to Europe from west of Quebec.

This means that many aircraft originally planned for U.S. routes can only be deployed domestically in Canada, potentially leading to an oversupply of flights in the Canadian market during the summer.

"My prediction is that from early May, we may see an airline price war," Gradek said.

Arnot also noted that to fill non-cancellable U.S. flights, airlines may lower ticket prices to attract passengers. "Despite the weak Canadian dollar and expectations of an economic downturn reducing outbound travel intentions, you might be able to fly to New York relatively cheaply," he said.

"This summer will be very interesting."

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7495295234470101523/

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