Canadians touch down at airport

Charleston International finally earned its international stripes Tuesday, courtesy of a neighbor to the north.

With a Canadian flag flapping outside the main terminal, the state’s busiest airport welcomed its first-ever regularly scheduled nonstop flight from a foreign city.

The 50-seat Air Canada jet from Toronto was about half full when it arrived at the gate a few minutes early. Before Thursday, international service at the airport was limited to military charters.

Montreal-based Air Canada announced in April that it was reshuffling its cross-border routes to include smaller U.S. markets such as Charleston. Part of the airline’s strategy is to bypass the hub-and-spoke system by offering more nonstop service on regional jets.

The local flight – which arrives in Charleston at 3:47 p.m. and takes off for Toronto at 4:20 p.m. daily – is expected to save passengers at least an hour in travel time.

“The new route will be a great time-saver for business travelers looking for fast, hassle-free, nonstop service … to Canada’s largest city,” said Air Canada spokeswoman Pam Bryan.

Also, Toronto’s airport is a gateway for flights to cities in Europe and Asia, Bryan said.

Local residents Ian and Judy Purches, who moved to Charleston nine years ago from Toronto, came out to the airport to see the inaugural flight touch down.

“We have a son who lives in Toronto, and hopefully he’s going to be taking this flight down here to visit us,” Purches said. “It’s much easier than driving.”

The carrier expects to fill most of the seats initially with leisure travelers from Canada.

Sam Hoerter, airports director for Charleston County, said the airline wants to increase service in the fall, when many vacationing Canadians flock south to escape the cold.

Meanwhile, Air Canada ditched a plan this week to launch nonstop service between Toronto and the Upstate. The move came just three days before the carrier’s first jet was due to arrive at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport.