Cancun, Nassau, Liberia: Porter Airlines is taking the Embraer E195-E2 to exotic locations
Porter Airlines is officially launching its first destinations outside of Canada and the USA.
Targeting sun destinations, Porter will begin flying to Mexico, the Caribbean and Costa Rica this winter using its popular Embraer E195-E2 jets.
Passengers will be able to choose from five destinations and 13 new routes connecting snow birds in Ottawa, Hamilton and Toronto with exotic locations.
“These are Porter’s first routes outside of our longtime presence throughout Canada and the U.S., and we’re starting off in a big way by introducing five distinctly different destinations,” said Kevin Jackson, president, Porter Airlines.
“This is a significant development for anyone who wants to fly with Porter to more places and experience our award-winning service that focuses on making flying enjoyable for economy travellers.”
Porter had previously been granted permission to fly to southern destinations in early June.
Porter’s exotic new Embraer E195-E2 destinations
Porter is an airline that doesn’t like to do things by halves. Although it’s been flying into the US since 2008, the arrival of the E2 saw the airline make a big splash in 2023, announcing seven new US routes at once.
The approach has been the same with its first foray out of the US and Canada. Five new destinations will have direct connections from its three key airports – Ottawa, Toronto and Hamilton – with service frequency varying from once a week to daily flights.
First to launch will be Toronto to Cancun, starting on 5 November. This will be followed by Toronto to Puerto Vallarta on 14 November, and Toronto to Nassau on 26 November.
By December 19, it will have added Liberia and Grand Cayman from Toronto and Ottawa, although Hamilton misses out on these destinations.
Cancun, Puerto Vallarta and Nassau will be served from all three Canadian airports, making for a total of 13 new routes this winter.
A new longest route for Porter’s Embraer E195-E2
The longest flight in the schedule – the route between Ottawa and Liberia – clocks in a 2,140 nmi, making it Porter’s longest route with the type to date.
Its previous longest route was between Toronto and San Francisco at just under 2,000 nmi. Both are well within the range of the E2, which is published at 2,600 nmi.
Globally, the Costa Rica route will be the second longest in the world, eclipsed only by Air Peace with its 2,400 nmi route between Lagos and Johannesburg.
The E2 has been transformative for Porter, one a turboprop-only regional airline. It placed a large order for 30 aircraft in July 2021, becoming North America’s launch customer for the type. Later, it topped that up with a further order, making a total of 75 firm commitments and 25 options.
Despite only receiving its first E195-E2 jets in December 2022, the airline now has a sizeable fleet of 44 of the type. Passengers reportedly love the 2-2 layout and Porter’s inimitable Canadian hospitality.
“We have seen other Canadian airlines mimic our unique service in other regions where we already fly, such as by adding free beer and wine, and we anticipate that our competitors will do it again as we enter new sun destinations,” says Jackson. “But our loyal passengers know that the feeling of flying Porter can’t be matched.”
While many airlines are stripping back the frills, Porter remains committed to fast free WiFi for everyone, free beer and wine served in real glasses and complementary snacks on board.
By all accounts, the strategy seems to be working, from the customer perspective at least. Porter is a private company, so its financial records are not disclosed, so whether this cash-intensive move to new aircraft is working for its bottom line remains to be seen.
