Canada: Pierre Poilievre would approve runway expansion to bring jets to Billy Bishop airport

Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre said Thursday a federal government led by him would approve a runway expansion at Toronto's Billy Bishop airport which would allow jets to fly in and out of the downtown. Poilievre said the move would increase competition in the aviation sector and provide passengers with an alternative to Toronto's Pearson International Airport. "Travel at Pearson is a mess right now," he said. "There could have been way more flights out of Billy Bishop airport in downtown Toronto, meaning more competition and more choice, but the dreadful gatekeepers wouldn't let it happen. I will reverse Trudeau's decision to side with them and allow jets to fly in and out of Billy Bishop airport to give people back control of their lives." Pearson International has struggled recently with flight delays and cancellations as airlines adjust to higher passenger levels following the pandemic slowdown. Pearson and Air Canada have led the pack internationally in the percentage of flights delayed over the past month, frequently surpassing 50%. "We can all understand why they're angry and frustrated. Your flight gets cancelled and they tell you to call and you wait on hold for six hours — and I'm not exaggerating," said Leslie Dias, director of airlines at Unifor. The union represents 16,000 air transport workers, including 5,600 customer service and sales agents at Air Canada.<br/>