Passenger traffic at Halifax airport again down 75 per cent from pre-pandemic
For the second year in a row, passenger traffic at Halifax Stanfield International Airport in 2021 was down 75 per cent from pre-pandemic levels.
As a result, Atlantic Canada's busiest airport continued to record significant financial losses, despite a spike in business last summer when COVID-19 infection rates dropped, vaccination rates rose and travel restrictions were temporarily lifted.
More passengers were served during the month of August than January to July combined.
The Halifax International Airport Authority says that by the end of 2021, with the Omicron variant causing a huge increase in COVID-19 infections, the airport once again returned to 30 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
In all, 1.1 million passengers travelled through the airport last year, compared with the 4.2 million passengers welcomed in 2019 before the pandemic hit.
Official financial results for 2021 have yet to be released, but the airport authority's financial loss is expected to be a marginal improvement from the $40 million loss reported in 2020, when there were just under 1 million passengers.
"The past two years have been the most challenging years in Halifax Stanfield's history," Joyce Carter, CEO of the authority, said in a statement. "We anticipate that it will take several more years for the airport to fully recover from the effects of COVID-19."
The airport authority, like others across the country, operates on a user-pay model, which means it has few ways to make money without passenger traffic.
About 45 per cent of concessions in the air terminal building remain closed, while others have reopened with limited hours.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 28, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
BREAKING Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
'Unacceptable': Trudeau reacts after AFN chief says headdress taken from plane cabin
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief said her headdress was taken from an airplane cabin this week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident 'unacceptable' and a 'mistake' on the part of Air Canada.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The World Health Organization said on Friday that the current overall public health risk posed by H5N1 bird flu virus is low, but for those with exposure to infected birds or animals the risk of infection is considered low-to-moderate.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
From faulty kids' cribs to flammable kids' bathrobes, here are the recalls of the week
Health Canada issued recalls for various items this week, including kids’ bathrobes, cribs and henna cones.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
'Violation': CSIS had officer investigated after she reported a superior raped her
A CSIS officer's allegations that she was raped repeatedly by a superior in agency vehicles set off a harassment inquiry, but also triggered an investigation into her that concluded the alleged attacks were a “misuse” of agency vehicles by the woman.