Porter Airlines unveils new maintenance hangars in Ottawa

Inside Porter's new Ottawa hangar CTV's Tyler Fleming gets a first look inside the new Porter Airlines hangar as the carrier hopes to make the capital a major hub.

Porter Airlines has inaugurated its new aircraft hangars and maintenance base at the Ottawa airport, a move the carrier believes will further strengthen its commitment to the nation's capital.

The facilities include two large hangars, which can accommodate up to eight planes to maintain Porter’s expanding fleet of jet and propeller planes. Porter has up to 100 Embraer E195-E2's on order, with 33 in service and 29 DeHavilland Dash 8-400's.

The Ottawa airport has constructed a new taxiway and infrastructure as part of a $125 million investment.

The hangar will serve as a primary maintenance base, with 200 local hires, including 160 aircraft maintenance engineers, shop technicians and administrative support staff.

Algonquin College is also partnering with Porter to offer work-integrated learning and support by introducing aircraft maintenance technician and aviation management programs.

"The investments in new hangars and local hiring are foundational to Porter’s future in Ottawa," said Porter Airlines CEO, Michael Deluce.

"Our partnership with Algonquin College provides access to local talent and career opportunities for students. We are investing significantly in Canada’s capital region and see more growth ahead."

The Ottawa airport says the hangars represent an important partnership for the city to grow and provide more flight options.

"This is huge and it is going to increase our connectivity to the world with [Porter] being a hub in Ottawa. It means that there's going to be more opportunity for increased destinations," said Ottawa airport president and CEO, Mark Laroche.

"Our growth is not just going to rely on organic growth, but they are actually going to stimulate the market and offer new destinations."

Porter’s expansion in Ottawa includes 16 new non-stop routes, with about two million passengers expected through the airport in 2024. By year’s end, Porter aims to employ more than 400 staff in Ottawa.

In April, Deluce said Porter was eyeing non-stop flights from Ottawa to Florida's Gulf Coast, California, Las Vegas and the Caribbean in the near future. Porter already offers direct service to several destinations across North America, including Orlando and Fort Lauderdale in Florida.

"We really want to be Ottawa's hometown airline and we're going to continue investing," says Deluce.

"You're going to see a steady cadence of Porter launching both new destinations as well as strengthening frequencies on existing markets that we already operate and make it more convenient for people to fly."