Quote:
Originally Posted by J81
The only way that is going to happen is if people stop flying out of Halifax or any other airport because a flight may be 100$ cheaper elsewhere. And we all know that is just not going to happen!
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I don't think Monctonians fly out of Halifax because fares are cheaper there (I don't think the fares are cheaper there). Bangor yes, Halifax no.
Saint John and Freddy are seriously affected by their proximity to Bangor. Happily, the GMIA is nearly five hours from Bangor, which insulates our airport somewhat.
Usage of Halifax/Stanfield by Monctonians is governed mostly by the superior connections that Halifax has. Most people would prefer to fly direct most of the time. The last time I flew out of Stanfield was to LHR and a drive to Halifax and spending a hundred bucks to park my car in their parking structure is certainly more convenient than flying out of Moncton to Toronto, make connections there and then backtrack over the Maritimes on the way to England.
Halifax will always have more direct flights to more places than Moncton will. This is predicated by the size of the local population in central NS and Air Canada's "spoke and wheel" model of operation.
Despite this fact, I believe there are limited opportunities to improve connectivity out of Moncton to places like St. John's and to the US northeast (Boston or New York). Why aren't there direct flights from the GMIA to Quebec City, and also to the Magdalen Islands and to St Pierre & Miquelon? With U de M and the Dumont Hospital, and with the size of the local Acadian population, these would seem to be no brainers. I also think there could be expanded seasonal connections to Florida from the GMIA too. Orlando is pretty well served, but a seasonal daily flight to central Florida would be fantastic.