Canada’s Harbour Air Seaplanes (YB, Vancouver Coal Harbour) plans to introduce year-round schedules in June 2021 between Vancouver Coal Harbour and two US seaplane bases in the Seattle area: Seattle Lake Union and Kenmore.
No local traffic will be carried between the two Seattle seaplane bases. Harbour Air plans to up the services to two daily non-stop roundtrips from July until October and scale down to one daily non-stop rotation from November until June of each year.
This is according to an application for a US foreign air carrier permit and an exemption authorising Harbour Air to operate schedules and charters to the US and within the US.
The application was filed jointly by Harbour Air Seaplanes, Whistler Air Services (Whistler), and Salt Spring Air (Ganges Harbor) on February 23, 2021, with the US Department of Air Transportation (DOT). The carriers have applied for Habour Air to ferry persons, property, and mail from points behind Canada, via Canada and intermediate stations to a point/s in the US and beyond. They have also applied for Habour Air to operate schedules and charters of property and mail between any point/s in the US and any other destinations.
Harbour Air plans to operate the services using the trade names “Harbour Air,” “Harbour Air Seaplanes,” “Whistler Air,” and “Saltspring Air.” It may also initiate service on other US-Canadian transborder routes in the future.
The application follows a recent ownership change at Harbour Air, which now plans to operate to/from the US under its own authority. The DOT had previously authorised Canadian carrier Tantalus Air (TTU, Vancouver International), to hold out and operate service under the names of Harbour Air and Harbour Air Seaplanes. Tantalus Air will cease operations in conjunction with the commencement of Harbour Air’s US service.
Harbour Air, according to the ch-aviation fleets module, owns a fleet of four DHC-2s, including two DHC-6-200s and two DHC-6-300s. According to its application, it also leases several DHC-3s and DHC-6-100s, which it intends to use on the new US service.
The seaplane operator has entered into an interline arrangement with Seattle-based commuter airline Kenmore Air (M5, Kenmore), which will allow them to sell seats on flights operated by both carriers between Vancouver Coal Harbour and the two Seattle seaplane bases.
Harbour Air submits to have the necessary financial resources to successfully operate the proposed services, but financial statements have been kept confidential. The carrier says it does not receive any state aid from Ottawa, except for wage subsidy assistance during COVID-19, which would end with the pandemic.
The carrier has requested expedited approval of its application in order to implement its plans to resume scheduled and charter service between Canada and the US.
Harbour Air’s Air Operator Certificate (AO) from Transport Canada was reissued on December 19, 2019, for an indefinite duration. Its licenses from the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) authorise it to operate scheduled and charter domestic and international air transportation of passengers and cargo. Harbour Air has been licensed by the Government of Canada as a CAR 703/704 domestic carrier since 1982.
