7614 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

The terminal has lost power. The cause is being investigated.

[Missed Approach]

Thought in the back of my mind during all this snow and canceled flights......how much further this pushes YYJ behind YLW for pax stats at the end of the year again for 2019 totals ....

[Bob Fugger]

We had a friend that was supposed to be coming in last night on a WJ flight from YYC via YLW.  The first flight was delayed, making the YLW connection impossible.  WJ managed to get her onto the YYC -> YYJ direct, getting her in within a 1/2 hour of her original itinerary: result!  Then inexplicably, as they were sitting on the tarmac, waiting to take off, YYJ cancelled incoming flights.  The last flight from YYC was to come in at 11:35PM - that was not cancelled - but that was oversold and she was told that the first available flight was SATURDAY morning.  They did manage to get her onto the same direct flight, except tonight.

 

I was monitoring DriveBC and there were zero advisories for the Pat Bay.  The snow had long stopped falling - as little as it was - and the roads were clear.  I'm still struggling to understand why they shuttered flights for a four hour window.

[Mike K.]

I suspect that the massive size of the runway and the speed with which snow was accumulating made it impossible to keep the runway surface clear enough for safe operations. The main runway is literally the width of a 15-lane freeway and spans 7,000 feet (over 2 kilometres).

[Mike K.]

 

Victoria Airport Authority Announces New Public Art

 

Victoria Airport Authority (VAA) is pleased to announce the commission of “Time Catcher“ by Artist Charles Campbell to complement the Lower Passenger Departure Lounge expansion project at Victoria International Airport.

 

The selection process for the art started in August 2018 with a Call to Artists on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.  VAA received almost 100 applications of interest and 47 proposals from local artists. Selection was made by the VAA Art at the Advisory Committee comprised of members of VAA’s Board, President and CEO, project Architect, a representative from the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and VAA staff.

 

Charles Campbell was selected from five finalists.  “Time Catcher is a new work that invokes concepts of time and movement across territories and sees the departure lounge as an in-between space with the potential for connection and contemplation.  The work considers what motivates our movements and how we carry memory and culture as we traverse territories and the globe, said Charles Campbell.”

 

The installation will form a 36-ft diameter ring from a suspended array of three-sided wooden vessels.  The form of the vessels is derived from the shape of ships and canoes with any two of the identical sides mimicking the hydrodynamic surface of a hull.  The third, enclosing side, connects the form to natural objects such as seed pods or the body of a migratory bird.  These vessels are conceived as metaphorical carriers of ecological and cultural memory and elicit multiple connections to both the natural and manufactured world.  A verse from science fiction writer, Octavia Butler’s “Paradise” will be inscribed on the surface of each vessel in Morse code.

 

“I hope to create a space that allows people a moment of pause and wonder, one to consider how their movements connect to larger patterns and to contemplate the possibilities of the future,” said Campbell.

 

“Charles’s art proposal captivated the committee from the start,” said Geoff Dickson, President and CEO.  “His thoughtful consideration of the piece and his ability to articulate his artistic process was impressive.  We were extremely pleased with the level of interest for this call and by the talent shown from the shortlisted artists.  The final decision was not easy.”

 

Charles Campbell is a Jamaican born multidisciplinary artist, writer and curator and the, former Chief Curator of the National Gallery of Jamaica.  His work has been exhibited widely in the Caribbean, North and South America and Europe.

The budget for the public art is $100,000 and completion of the work is expected to coincide with the completion of the project in Spring 2020.

[Victoria Watcher]

Canadian carrier Flair Airlines has suddenly suspended some of its flights to destinations in Florida and California as of next week, leaving some customers in the lurch.

 

The Kelowna-based airline, which only recently expanded its service to include U.S. destinations, surprised many of its customers with the unexpected news this week.

 

 

The airline says no flights within Canada are affected, but cited "disappointing load factors" on some of the new U.S. routes to explain the decision.

 

 

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...5028320?cmp=rss

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 21 February 2019 - 01:02 PM.

[Mike K.]

You have to wonder, if ultra low-cost Flair is having a tough go, what's this market like for unionized Swoop?

[LJ]

Swoop is only there until Flair isn't.

 

Flair is accusing WJ of predatory pricing, same thing WJ complained AC was doing when it was starting up.

[Mike K.]

Swoop won’t fold until Jetlines either flops, pushes the Westjet “ULCC” experiment too far into the red, or fails to launch.

Swoop was timed to launch at the time Jetlines was to launch, but when Swoop launched Jetlines announced it would be delayed for a year.

Fast forward to today, the 49% foreign ownership regulation Jetlines ushered in is now being tapped by Westjet while it bleeds money flying $100 passengers using unionized crews.

[Victoria Watcher]

unionized pilots. neither encore nor swoop have unionized flight attendants - yet.

and no westjet ground crews are unionized.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 February 2019 - 03:16 AM.

[jonny]

Are the non-union WJ employees not paid well or something?

[Missed Approach]

VAA posted passenger numbers and aircraft movements for Jan 2019, already at stagnet numbers for 2019 with -0.4% over 2018.

Feb wont be any better with a dozens and dozens of flights canceled from the snow storm(s)......

[Mike K.]

I wonder if United's SFO flight cancellation has made that much of an impact. To drop from 5.0% growth between 2017 and 2018 to -0.4% between 2018 and 2019 is a bit of a tumble, for sure.

[Missed Approach]

I wonder if United's SFO flight cancellation has made that much of an impact. To drop from 5.0% growth between 2017 and 2018 to -0.4% between 2018 and 2019 is a bit of a tumble, for sure.

I wouldn't think United didn't affected things too much, but a 5% drop sure says a lot..... I wonder how Air North is doing and with WJ's shift towards more Encore service to YVR over boeing jet service plus their focus on funnelling all western traffic thru YYC only. See how the summer goes but 11th place or 12th maybe in the future.

 

The public meeting on March the 5th at the Marriot Hotel downtown will be interesting or the same regurgitated info and back patting over and over again from past public presentations.   

[Mike K.]

Yup, it's already 11th place after Kelowna passed YYJ last year.

 

Speaking of which, Kelowna saw passenger growth of just over 3% in January. I wouldn't be surprised if they ended 2019 with 2.2 million passengers (2.08 in 2018).

[Missed Approach]

Only upside I can see is the amount of charter flight/seats available this winter, and aircraft changes, like Transat moving from B737 to A321 and a couple new destinations too. It might help but like you said, we are behind YLW and will be for awhile now.

[Missed Approach]

AC shuffles a few YYC ( Calgary ) Departures  from YYJ ( Victoria )  

AC Express will start a new, 0650am Daily departure from YYJ to YYC starting May 1st. That one is new, will replace the regular 9am hour departure, that one will be replaced with a 11am hour departure and a 4pm hour replaces the regular 7pm departure which is gone at the end of April

[Mike K.]

Still with the Q400?

[Missed Approach]

Still with the Q400?

All Q400 service, yes. But I wouldn't be surprised if a CRJ900 picks up the route from time to time. Jazz is converting a lot of routes this summer around BC from Dash 8-300 service to Q400. They had a CRJ900 on a couple YYJ-YVR trips over the last couple months for many reasons.

[ryno8097]

Doing work in So. Okanagan I took advantage of Westjet direct service to/from YYJ. At YLW they have rather large banners showing their move up to ladder to tenth spot.

Then I see arrivals and departures board and I am not surprised why:
- Westjet direct service to Las Vegas, Phoenix, twice weekly to Puerto Vallarta, SunWing to Veradero Cuba, twice daily service to Toronto in the winter (one AC and one WJ) Airbus A319 jet service to YVR... the summer service to Winnipeg.

The numbers really shouldn't come as a surprise with all of these additional direct links some of which YYJ used to have.

Too bad we lost all of those direct routes that the smaller Kelowna area retains. But soon we will have Denver! (believe that when we see it).

Edited by ryno8097, 04 March 2019 - 03:03 PM.