TPA Rumour

[samsonyuen]

TCCA Nostalgia

February 4, 2006
The Way We Were column

By MIKE FILEY
It was on this day in 1939 that the first plane landed at the city's new, but still unopened Port George VI Island Airport (later renamed Toronto City Centre Airport). This airport was one of two facilities built to serve the city's flying public.

The island field was initially proposed as Toronto's main airport while another field north and west of the city near the small farming community of Malton would be held in reserve for use on those occasions when weather closed down the waterfront airport.

The pilot of the single-engine Stinson Reliant that landed at the airport on this day in 1939 was Harry Falconer McLean, millionaire Canadian contractor who had helped build several railroad lines in western and northern Canada as well as New York City's Holland and Lincoln tunnels.

Several years after his unauthorized arrival at Toronto's new waterfront airfield, newspapers revealed that the mysterious "Mr. X" who had thrown $100 bills out the window of a Windsor hotel and distributed thousands of dollars, anonymously, to patients in Toronto's Christie St. Military Hospital was in fact the same Harry McLean.

 

[maxy505]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

cdl has a point; there's no sense in an ideological opposition to the airport. Set reasonable standards, and if the airline meets them, then everybody wins.

The issues are easily quantifiable (which doesn't happen all that often): Decibels and ppm. As Miller keeps ducking this and spouting rhetoric, I conclude that he knows as well as anybody that the airport isn't bothering anybody (other than psychologically) and is just using this for political gain.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

It's not so much that the existence of the airport bothers that many people, but that it is a giant waste of prime waterfront space. Given that it is not overly difficult to get to Pearson, and the flight capacity of the Island Airport is so long, it doesn't really make sense to keep it open when the land could be used for so much more.

 

[BrianHawkins1]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

^ Exactly. Welcome, and A+ for the nickname.

 

[cdl42]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

Well, we should get right on shutting down TCCA once we've run out of other waterfront properties to develop, such as the portlands.

The general ideological opposition to the Island Airport truly astounds me.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

Well, we should get right on shutting down TCCA once we've run out of other waterfront properties to develop, such as the portlands.

The problem is that any expansion of service will make it more difficult (and likely more expensive) to shut down the airport in the future. Why do you think Robert Deluce is so aggressive in placing orders for airplanes? It solidifies his position, and gives him grounds to sue the city if they take further steps to shut him down.


BTW, the name was actually my second choice - apparently EZboard doesn't like the "D" word...

 

[EnviroTO]

Re: TCCA Nostalgia

I wonder if a highrise in the vicinity of "The Docks" be permitted if the airport is still open?

I'm not against the airport if it keeps its existing footprint, no bridge is built, and no tax dollars are used to subsidize its operation. I think the goal should be to eventually close the Island Airport since that land can be better utilized in a form that benefits a greater number of people.

I can empathize with condo owners west of Spadina facing the water because taxiing and take-off rolls by a Dash 8 make significant noise increases for units facing the water and not near enough to the intersections to hear streetcar wheel grinding but admittedly the airport was there before the condos and City Express and Air Ontario used to have much greater frequencies than exist now. Additionally I agree with the idea the Toronto Island Airport is pretty useless and a waste of land once a high-speed link to Pearson and there is a way to get from downtown to a general aviation airport quickly.

The issue is that there is no rail link and easily assessible general aviation airport for downtown and that is important for business clients and until you replace the function of the Island Airport it is hard to get rid of it. The noise is not that significant compared to streetcars turning and Gardiner traffic. Lets focus on the more important improvements for the waterfront, build the rail links to area airports, and then once the Island Airport is useless the TPA will be forced to close it down anyways.

 

[samsonyuen]

Porter Airlines

Deluce makes case for island airline
Air Canada takes off for last time
Considers appeal over eviction
Mar. 1, 2006. 06:38 AM
GABE GONDA
CITY HALL BUREAU

While a new island-based airline was being feted at the Toronto Board of Trade yesterday, another carrier made its final flight out of the sleepy terminal on Toronto Island.
It has been a week of shifting fortunes for Air Canada and upstart Porter Airlines, which hopes to transform Toronto City Centre Airport into a regional hub. Canada's largest airline is considering an appeal after a court refused to block the giant carrier's eviction from island terminals on Monday.
Porter chief executive Robert Deluce faced a friendly crowd at the Board of Trade, where 6-feet-7 chair Glen Grunwald wanted to know whether Porter planes would have room for people his size.
"You will have ample leg room, Glen," Deluce said after a speech to announce his senior management team.
It has been a week of low resistance for Porter, which was buoyed Monday by a court decision that upholds barring Air Canada from using island terminals controlled by Deluce's holding company, Regco.
Yesterday, Deluce used his speech to make the case that Porter, which aims to fly by summer's end, will generate up to $800 million for the local economy.
"We have the business model we need," Deluce said.
Porter, which takes its name from a traditional baggage carrier, was launched to a chorus of local protest last month, when Deluce announced he was purchasing 10 new Q400 turboprop planes from Downsview-based Bombardier Inc. Porter has an option to buy 10 more Q400s.
This is the second go at an island-based airline for Deluce, whose plans were thwarted in 2003 when newly elected Toronto Mayor David Miller killed a proposed bridge to the airport. Miller still opposes the idea of a busy hub on the island and has asked the federal government to look into deals negotiated by the Toronto Port Authority, the federal agency that runs the island airport.
"A busy commercial airport doesn't have a place in a vibrant waterfront," Miller told reporters at city hall yesterday.
"I would question how the port authority, which is a public agency, would allow one person control over an airport. That is an unbelievable thing to happen," the mayor said. "Imagine if one entrepreneur had control over Pearson (airport). It's just not done. It's a public asset."
Residents of the area near the island airport, which sits a short distance across Toronto's harbour from the foot of Bathurst St., also oppose Deluce's plans and argue control of the airport should be wrested from the port authority.
"They have allowed Deluce to monopolize that public facility," said Bill Freeman, a spokesman for Community Air.
Within weeks, however, the Toronto Port Authority plans to begin a $15 million renovation of the airport ferry and ferry terminal to bolster Porter's service. A bank loan will finance that project.
Air Canada operated its final flights from the island yesterday. Air Canada's Jazz service had been providing travellers with five daily flights to Ottawa, a huge drop-off from the late 1980s, when 400,000 passengers flew through the island every year.
A spokesman for Air Canada said the company is looking into appealing Monday's Ontario Court of Justice decision, which denied an injunction against the termination of Air Canada's month-to-month lease of terminals controlled by Deluce.
"We continue to view this a temporary suspension," said Debra Williams of Jazz. Williams said Jazz is in negotiations with the port authority over use of other terminal space on the island.
Airline-industry analysts said Porter is likely to make good on its promise to be in the air by summer's end. Porter has secured $125 million in financing and Deluce has tapped Don Carty, the retired chairman of American Airlines, to sit as Porter's chairman.
The key to Porter's success, analysts said, will be keeping flight frequency high and fares low.
"To be competitive, he would have to come in at about $200 one-way for his highest fare," said Joseph D'Cruz, a University of Toronto Rotman School of Management professor. D'Cruz said Porter would have to fly at least six times a day to be viable.
Deluce won't say how many flights a day he'll operate from the airport, although he has hinted at as many as 40 a day.
He expects to launch with service to Ottawa and Montreal and expand to destinations such as New York, Boston and Washington. He wouldn't say what Porter plans to charge for its flights.
With files from Vanessa Lu

 

[samsonyuen]

Porter Airlines

From: www.theglobeandmail.com/s...iness/home
_____________________
Porter Airlines preps for takeoff
BRENT JANG
From Saturday's Globe and Mail
Porter Airlines hasn't even applied for a licence to operate yet, but the upstart Toronto commuter carrier is unleashing a marketing blitz to woo business travellers in Canada's largest city.

The fledgling airline is busy planning for a fall launch after assembling a management team that's led by aviation entrepreneur Robert Deluce and his two sons.

Porter will unveil its website on Monday at flyporter.com, promoting plans to initially use 10 Bombardier 70-seat Q400 turboprops for short-haul and medium-haul flights, geared toward the corporate crowd.

The goal is to carve a niche by using Toronto City Centre Airport as its downtown base for flights to Canadian and U.S. destinations that are located within 500 nautical miles or 90 minutes by plane.

Porter is partly owned by privately held Regco Holdings Inc., whose chief executive officer is Mr. Deluce. He is a former co-owner of Air Ontario, which is now part of Air Canada Jazz.

“We have selected 17 cities, and we're hiring pilots and flight attendants,†Mr. Deluce said in an interview. “We're targeting a September start. There will be leather seats and good legroom.â€

The airline's 18-member executive team includes Mr. Deluce's sons, Michael and Jason. Donald Carty, the former CEO at American Airlines, is Regco's chairman.

Other key Porter leaders include chief operating officer James Morrison, a former Air Ontario executive, and maintenance and engineering director Richard Hill, a former Jazz manager.

While the carrier has submitted interim applications to regulators, it won't be allowed to sell any tickets or promote specific destinations until it obtains a licence.

“Porter needs a licence first. Any air carrier needs one, but Porter hasn't filed an official or formal application yet,†said Jadrino Huot, a spokesman for the Canadian Transportation Agency.

Desjardins Securities said the new entrant could find it difficult to attract business passengers on proposed flights to smaller Ontario cities such as Sault Ste. Marie.

Flights may also be offered to major centres such as Ottawa, Montreal, New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington and Philadelphia.

The Deluce family's Regco controls the airline along with two investors, private equity firm EdgeStone Capital Partners and Borealis Infrastructure Management Inc. Toronto-based investment firm Borealis is wholly owned by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement Board.

Last month, Air Canada Jazz filed a court application that accuses the Toronto Port Authority of helping Porter shut Jazz out of Toronto City Centre Airport, violating the Competition Act.

Jazz argues there should be a judicial review of the authority's recent actions that allegedly gave Porter “a monopoly or dominant position†at the island airport.

The Federal Court application seeks to compel the authority to provide Jazz with backup space near the terminal, which is undergoing renovations to prepare for Porter's launch this fall. The authority denies that it has treated Jazz unfairly.

Jazz suspended scheduled flights at the airport on March 1.

A residents group called Community Air, which opposes expansion at the island airport, wrote a letter last month to federal Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon, urging him to embrace a “rejuvenated waterfront†instead of having Ottawa clear the way for Porter to take flight.

Community Air is also seeking a judicial review and argues any new operation must undergo a federal environmental assessment.