Add Montreal to the list of new international destinations from Pittsburgh International Airport.
Air Canada will begin a daily nonstop flight to Montreal on May 17. It will be the first time Pittsburgh has had a nonstop flight to the Canadian city since November 2004.
The airline will employ a 50-seat regional jet to make the trip. The flight will leave Pittsburgh at 4:15 p.m. and arrive in Montreal at 5:45 p.m. The return flight will depart Montreal at 2 p.m. and land in Pittsburgh at 3:40 p.m.
“Adding another international destination like Montreal is important for both business and leisure travelers alike and adds to the momentum at Pittsburgh International Airport,” said Christina Cassotis, CEO of the Allegheny County Airport Authority.
The authority, which operates Pittsburgh International, noted companies like Bombardier and Alcoa have operations in Montreal, as well as in the Pittsburgh region.
The new flight also offers travelers another connection point for trips to Europe, Asia, and other points in Canada.
Montreal will be the second destination from Pittsburgh for Air Canada. It also flies three times a day to Toronto every day except Saturday, when there are two flights.
The Montreal flight marks the fourth international destination secured by Pittsburgh International this year.
Wow Air and Condor Airlines started service to Iceland and Frankfurt, Germany, respectively, in June. Vacation Express also began flying seasonally to Montego Bay, Jamaica, in July.
The Allegheny County Airport Authority will pay Air Canada $50,000 over two years to help market the flight.
The payment is much lower than the $800,000 over two years that the authority is paying Wow to support the Iceland service and the $500,000 over two years it is shelling out for the seasonal Frankfurt flight.
It also is dishing out $500,000 over two years to Alaska Airlines to start service to Seattle next September and could end up paying nearly $1.5 million in incentives to Qatar Airways for twice weekly cargo flights to and from Pittsburgh.
The Montreal addition will bring the airport to 69 nonstop destinations from Pittsburgh. It had 37 at the end of 2014.
Mark Belko: mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262.
First Published: November 29, 2017, 1:50 p.m.
