Canada Jetlines picks site for Montreal service

Discount airline Canada Jetlines Ltd. says it plans to base its Montreal operations in a couple of years out of a small airport that is undergoing an expansion.

The Vancouver-based company hasn’t yet launched service, but it announced Thursday a partnership with Montreal Saint-Hubert Longueuil Airport to support its efforts to build a low-cost secondary airport on the south shore of the city.

Canada Jetlines CEO Javier Suarez says Montreal travellers deserve low-cost air travel options that don’t require them to cross the U.S. border. “Saint-Hubert is a short commute out of the downtown core of Montreal, and our passengers will not only benefit from ultralow airfares, they will also have convenient access to a new purpose-built low-cost facility in Saint-Hubert,” he said in a news release.

Saint-Hubert airport is about a 15-minute drive from downtown Montreal and 32 kilometres from Montreal Pierre-Elliott Trudeau International Airport.

The airline is working toward a launch next summer and would seek to start Montreal service by early 2020. It will also fly to airports in Abbotsford, B.C., Hamilton, as well as Halifax Stanfield International Airport, offering domestic service and winter flights to sun destinations. It plans to start with two Airbus A320s and add four planes annually.

Saint-Hubert airport, which mainly serves private aircraft, recently upgraded its runway, supported by a $13-million federal contribution, that can accommodate narrow-body planes as big as the Boeing 737 or A320. It also plans to build a new passenger terminal.