Daily airline service launches in June from Ottawa to Vancouver Island

Porter Airlines is giving residents of the nation’s capital a way to get from one end of the country to another this summer.

The airlines said in June it is launching a non-stop service between Ottawa International Airport (YOW) and Victoria International Airport (YYJ). According to the press release, it is the only service connecting the two capitals.

Flights are set to begin with four weekly roundtrips, which will increase to daily roundtrips on June 16. The plane is Porter’s 132-seat Embraer E195-E2 aircraft, which has a two-by-two seat, meaning no middle seats, the airline said.

“This route is a natural connection between two cities that share deep national significance and tourism appeal,” Andrew Pierce, vice president, network planning and reporting, Porter Airlines, said.

Flights from Ottawa to Victoria will leave at 8:40 a.m. and arrive in B.C. by 11:00 a.m. local time.

Leaving Victoria, flights will depart at 11:55 a.m. and arrive by 7:40 p.m. ET.

“This connection will be fantastic to connect two great capital cities and very helpful in our efforts to continue to boost the meetings and conferences business along with tourism on the South Island as a whole,” Paul Nursey, CEO, Destination Greater Victoria, said.

This comes after Porter launched a similar service from Ottawa to St. John’s last summer, yet another flight path the airline says it is the only one providing.

Porter adds that its presence in Ottawa continues to grow, with more non-stop flights than ever before, and that as of August 2024, the airline will operate as many as 35 daily flights.