Harbour Air suspends service between Vancouver, Sunshine Coast, Vancouver Island, citing low demand
Seaplane operator Harbour Air says it is cancelling one of its routes between Vancouver and Vancouver Island, and temporarily suspending some flights to the Sunshine Coast, due to decreasing ticket sales.
In a statement to CTV News, the Richmond, B.C., company says the "difficult decision" to scale back its operations was not made lightly, but was necessary due to a "persistent softening in demand."
The float plane carrier will cease all flights between Vancouver and Maple Bay on Oct. 5, the company said Thursday.
It will also suspend flights from Vancouver from Sechelt starting on Oct. 8 until the spring of 2025.
"We understand that network decisions impact our guests' transportation options, and we apologize for the inconvenience and thank our guests for their patronage and support," the statement said.
Harbour Air says passengers looking to travel between Vancouver and the Maple Bay area, northeast of Duncan, will instead have to fly through either Nanaimo or Victoria. Guests with existing bookings to or from Maple Bay after Oct. 5 will be refunded for their trip, the operator said.
"Obviously, we were very disappointed when we learned that the service was going to be suspended," David Messier, owner of the Maple Bay Marina, said Thursday, noting the floatplanes have been operating in the Cowichan-area marina for more than 30 years.
"Having that service out of Maple Bay was definitely something that a lot of us really valued and we're sorry to lose that," North Cowichan Mayor Rob Douglas added.
"Hopefully we can convince them to return this to being the iconic route that it is."
A 'blow for Sechelt'
Harbour Air says it will continue to offer flights between Sechelt and Nanaimo with a connection to Richmond and Vancouver Harbour during the temporary suspension of that route.
"As a result of these and other network changes, we have taken the difficult decision to realign our staffing needs to better match our future operational requirements," the statement said.
"This has unfortunately included the closure of our Sechelt pilot base this coming winter season, however, the three impacted pilots have been offered a position in Vancouver based on seniority within the company."
"It's a body blow for Sechelt," Mayor John Henderson said of the cuts to the Sunshine Coast route on Thursday.
Earlier this summer, the company suspended its scheduled service between Vancouver and Butchart Gardens, as well as between Vancouver and Patricia Bay, citing low demand.
With files from CTV News Vancouver Island's Brendan Strain
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Say it to my face': Singh confronts heckling protester on Parliament Hill
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh confronted a protester for calling him a 'corrupted bastard' on Parliament Hill on Tuesday.
Bride's family speaks as West Vancouver woman sentenced for driving SUV into wedding party
Sixty-five-year-old Hong Xu, who drove her SUV into a crowd of people celebrating a wedding at her next-door neighbour's house in West Vancouver on Aug. 20, 2022, has been sentenced under the Motor Vehicle Act for driving without due care and attention.
Why it's 'very hard' to find work in Canada
Vacancies have steadily fallen since the glut of nearly one million open posts in 2022. At the time, one in three businesses had trouble hiring staff due to a labour shortage. Since then, vacancies have dropped.
Hezbollah hit by a wave of exploding pagers and blames Israel. At least 9 dead, thousands injured
Pagers used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded near simultaneously in Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday, killing at least nine people.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs jailed by judge after sex trafficking indictment
Sean 'Diddy' Combs headed to jail Tuesday to await trial in a federal sex trafficking case that accuses him of presiding over a sordid empire of sexual crimes protected by blackmail and shocking acts of violence.
Canucks' Dakota Joshua reveals he is recovering from cancer
Vancouver Canucks forward Dakota Joshua revealed Tuesday he underwent cancer treatment over the summer, and will not be ready to play when the team's training camp begins later this week.
Two people charged in murder of Halifax teen; police believe remains have been found
Halifax Regional Police believe Devon Sinclair Marsman, who disappeared in 2022, was the victim of a homicide and two people have now been charged in his death.
What is racketeering? The crime, explained
Sex trafficking, cheating scandals and mob activity may appear very different. But all fall under the broad umbrella of racketeering.
Man from Phoenix, Ariz., missing after truck plunges off Yukon bridge
Whitehorse RCMP say a man from Phoenix, Ariz., is missing after the truck he was travelling in went off a bridge and plunged into the Yukon River.