Porter Airlines is coming to Hamilton.
The Canadian airline will start flying from John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in early June, with daily service to Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax and Vancouver.
Porter formally announced the addition of Hamilton as one of its hubs at the airport Tuesday morning.
The air carrier hopes to expand in Hamilton, but Porter CEO Michael Deluce said the company must see success with its current offerings before ramping up service.
The airline currently flies to U.S. cities such as Las Vegas, New York, Boston and Chicago and other Canadian cities such as Winnipeg and St. John’s.
In addition, the Mount Hope airport will undergo a major renovation with a “significant” investment that will include upgrades such as a “refresh” of check-in counters, passenger screening areas and baggage claim, a news release says.
Ron Foxcroft, board chair for the Hamilton airport, told The Spectator the investment is worth roughly $17.5 million and will paid for entirely by airport operator TradePort. Construction is slated to start immediately and be completed by early June.
Future planned work includes passenger bridges connecting the terminal to the aircraft, the release says.
The arrival of Porter at the Hamilton airport comes after years of turmoil with passenger flights, as several airlines either folded or adjusted operations, scaled down offerings or pulled out of the airport entirely — seeing massive losses in airport traffic.
In June 2023, WestJet announced it would be winding down both Swoop and Sunwing, consolidating its services and offerings under one banner over the next few years.
Swoop flights officially wrapped up in the airport that October, while Sunwing continues to operate for now.
Then in February 2024, Calgary-based Lynx Air announced it would be ceasing operations as it filed for creditor protection. During its tenure at the Hamilton airport, Lynx offered flights to Calgary, Halifax and Vancouver.
And most recently, discount carrier Play Airlines quietly pulled out of the Canadian market, which saw it offer flights to several European cities out of Hamilton.
The last trip is set to take off in late April, just two years after Play launched its Canadian business in Steeltown.
