Vancouver International Airport (YVR) inched a little closer to the 22 million passenger mark for 2016 by reaching a new milestone figure over the first 10 months of this year. During the January to October stretch, YVR welcomed 18.8 million passengers, which represents a year-over-year growth of 9.5 per cent.
Much of the increase, according to YVR officials, is owed to in Air Canada’s expansion of its trans-Pacific hub out of YVR, which represents approximately 50 per cent of passengers at YVR and service to more than 55 destinations worldwide.
Between January and October, Air Canada reached a record high for capacity with 10.9 million seats — an increase of 12 per cent over the same period in 2015. The airline’s international sector, which includes the Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America, led the growth with a 22.6 per cent increase.
Since 2015, Air Canada introduced eight new services to YVR: Osaka, Cancun, San Jose, San Diego, Chicago, Dublin, Brisbane and Delhi.
This growth continues in 2017 with five new destinations scheduled to launch, including Taipei, Nagoya, Frankfurt, London, Gatwick and Dallas.
