A bit of business lost at Windsor International Airport.
Windsor Airport is losing two Sunwing trips this year, a Tuesday and Wednesday flight per week during the winter, to destinations in Cuba.
CEO Mark Galvin says there's obviously some challenges in the air sector with aircraft and pilot shortages.
He says Sunwing is still a great partner, and while it wasn't what they wanted, they're still happy to be able to welcome them back with two great destinations.
"Monday we'll go to Cancun and then Thursday we'll go to Varadero, Cuba. Two very popular destinations from here, those two destinations that we have are very successful from Windsor and it's great to have that convenience here. Didn't have much of a winter last year, but I expect it'll probably be a little different this year, and to be able to offer them right here from the hometown airport is what we strive to do," he said.
Losing the two flights will be a revenue hit, but Galvin says this is not uncommon right now for regional airports unfortunately.
Reporting over the summer has shown that regional airports are facing the brunt of the overall issues in the sector, and Galvin believes they have to continue to be a good partner for their airlines.
"Air Canada, Porter, Sunwing and West Jet. West Jet is flying right now to Calgary. And just to get through this period, it's a timing thing, trying to look forward to the next cycle and have some of these problems solved to get back to having a little more frequency and connectivity from Windsor."
He says it's a difficult time in this post-COVID period with the ripple effects still being felt.
"And I think we're going to have to get through this period to get to the next period. And hopefully for us with all the positivity in this region, trying to leverage that with airlines, to have them say now is the right time to launch a route or increase frequency," Galvin said.
Galvin says they have a lot of people at the doorstep, throughout Essex County and in the United States, so they want to be able to offer as many options as possible but some airlines just don't have the capacity right now.
- with files from AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides