Travellers flying in and out of the Halifax airport will have more options than ever this summer as another European city is being added to the list.
Air Canada will now be offering direct flights to Brussels out of Halifax Stanfield International Airport.
The inaugural flight leaves Halifax on Thursday evening and the first flight from Belgium will arrive in Halifax on Friday. The route will operate until Sept. 5.
It’s a move the deputy head of mission at the Embassy of Belgium in Canada calls “a new bridge across the Atlantic.”
“The distance between Halifax, Canada and Brussels, Belgium may be thousands of kilometres but as of today it feels a little bit shorter,” Filip Vandenbroeke said.
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Officials say the new service also makes it more convenient for passengers to access other destinations in Europe and beyond.
It could also boost tourism.
“This new gateway opens up significant new opportunities for travellers in trade, reaching Europe, Africa and the Middle East,” said Valerie Durand, vice-president of airport affairs, corporate real estate and sustainability with Air Canada.
“Actually, today, I just got the numbers. On tonight’s flight, about 40 per cent of our customers are connecting onwards beyond Brussels tonight. We are very proud to continue to connect Halifax to the world.”
The direct service to Belgium comes amid a flurry of international destinations added to Halifax’s airport itinerary in recent years.
WestJet recently began three new services to Europe, including Lisbon, Copenhagen and Madrid.
The list of summer European flights flying out of Halifax also includes Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Edinburgh, Frankfurt, London, Paris, Reykjavik, Saint Pierre and Zurich.
“We are expecting our busiest summer on record with 55 non-stop destinations, 15 of which include destinations to Europe,” said Mikela Sani-Routledge, spokesperson for Halifax International Airport Authority.
“The growth that we are seeing here is a reflection of the growth in Atlantic Canada. So we’re amplifying that with a lot of these new services that we offer.”
The province’s Minister of Growth and Development applauded the new route.
“This new route will only strengthen our connection and will be a critical link that will help us build strong relationships, strengthen trade, support tourism, and create new opportunities for collaboration,” said Minister Colton Leblanc.
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