Aéroports de Montréal (ADM) is recovering after two turbulent years. A sign that the recovery is materializing, four million travelers visited Montréal-Trudeau in the second quarter, a period marked by chaotic scenes in airports across the country.
Posted at 3:11 p.m.
Updated at 4:19 p.m.
A return
The catch-up is not over, but the trend is encouraging for Montreal-Trudeau, which took stock on Tuesday of the second quarter ended June 30. From April to June, passenger traffic was at 80% of its pre-pandemic level. Increases were recorded each month in terms of traffic.
“We are very happy to welcome again a large number of passengers […] while the results bring us closer and closer to the data recorded in 2019, “said ADM President and CEO Philippe Rainville on Tuesday in a press release.
With the easing of sanitary measures, the international sector has particularly recovered. In this category, traffic reached 84% of its 2019 level, before the appearance of COVID-19.
Better days ahead
Deficient baggage management, seemingly endless queues, missed or canceled connecting flights… The recovery has put the patience of travelers to the test. Montréal-Trudeau has not escaped the airport chaos. Without going into details, ADM claims that travelers can expect better days.
“This meteoric rise [du trafic], combined with a well-known major labor shortage, generated its share of challenges during the month of June, acknowledged Mr. Rainville. ADM remains optimistic that the measures put forward in the industry will allow airports nationally and internationally to return to a certain balance in the coming weeks. »
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Many travelers have spent long hours looking for their luggage due to the airport chaos.
By the end of June, Air Canada had decided to cancel more than 150 flights daily. For its part, the federal government has promised more staff at Canadian airports, particularly among officers responsible for checking travelers before boarding. It remains to be seen whether this will be enough to unclog airports.
A return to the green and some work to do
With the return of travelers, ADM more than doubled its revenue in the second quarter, which stood at 158 million. The operator of the Montreal-Trudeau and Mirabel airports posted a surplus of 11 million, compared to a loss of 24 million in the second quarter of 2021.
Despite an encouraging second quarter, ADM has not quite turned the page on the pandemic. After six months, the non-profit organization showed a deficit of 24 million. This result is more encouraging compared to the shortfall of 158 million at the end of the first half last year.
As for passenger traffic at Montréal-Trudeau, after the first six months of the year, the volume was 64% of the level before the health crisis. In 2019, passenger traffic stood at 20.3 million people.