Air Canada Announces Expansion of Service from Toronto’s Downtown Airport

Air Canada, Canada’s largest carrier, announced plans to expand service from Toronto’s downtown airport in a move to boost cross-border flying despite ongoing trade tensions between Canada and the United States. The expansion will include new routes to major U. S. cities, including New York, Boston, Washington, and Chicago, and is expected to begin in spring of 2026.

The decision to expand service from Toronto’s Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport comes at a time when Canadians have been cutting back on travel to the U. S. due to concerns over President Donald Trump’s tariff war and immigration policy. This decrease in demand has led to airlines like Air Canada and United Airlines reducing capacity on certain U. S. -bound leisure flights.

Despite this decline in leisure travel, the number of returning Canadian-resident trips from overseas countries by air increased by 3. 9% in September 2025, according to data from Statistics Canada. However, the number of returning Canadian-resident trips by air from the United States declined by 27. 1% during the same period.

Air Canada’s Chief Commercial Officer Mark Galardo addressed these concerns, stating that the expansion plans for the urban airport would not be affected by politics. He emphasized that business travel between the two countries has remained relatively stable, with no significant drop in numbers. Galardo also pointed out that the number of Americans traveling to Canada has not decreased and that business travel overall has remained robust.

Data from the U. S. National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) supports this claim, with approximately half of the business travelers visiting the United States from Canada during the first quarter of 2025 coming from the province of Ontario. The decline in demand to visit the U. S. extends beyond just Canadians, as the World Travel and Tourism Council predicts a 7% decrease in international travel spending in the country in 2025.

Air Canada’s plans to expand service from Toronto’s downtown airport have been in place for some time and will not be affected by current political tensions. The airline remains confident in the stability of business travel between Canada and the U. S. and is committed to providing convenient and efficient travel options for both business and leisure travelers.