Air Canada is phasing out more flights to American destinations, including cancelling all direct flights to South Carolina.
Canadians made a total of 1.9 million return trips from the U.S. in September, a year-over-year increase of 6.8 per cent, according to data from Statistics Canada. Air travel trips rose 11.6 per cent compared to the same month last year, but remained 18.7 per cent below 2024 levels.
Canadian travel to the U.S. has plunged compared to 2024 levels after repeated threats of annexation by U.S. President Donald Trump as well as multiple rounds of tariffs imposed amid his trade war.
In response to weaker demand, Air Canada announced it would be cancelling service on five routes beginning in 2027.
Those cancellations include service between Montreal and Seattle, Vancouver and Nashville, Vancouver and Raleigh-Durham, Toronto’s Billy Bishop Airport and Boston, and Toronto Pearson and Charleston.
Service between Toronto Pearson and Charleston is the only direct flight Air Canada offers between Canada and South Carolina.
Get breaking National news
Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won’t miss a trending story.
South Carolina is a popular destination for Canadian snowbirds but has been hit particularly hard by changing attitudes surrounding U.S. travel.
According to a report from the University of Toronto’s School of Cities, trips by Canadians to Myrtle Beach, S.C., decreased by more than 65 per cent between 2024/25 and 2025/26, the steepest decline of any U.S. city.
In May, Air Canada announced it would be suspending some of its seasonal flights earlier than normal due to the soaring price of jet fuel. One of those flights was service between Toronto and Charleston which typically runs between May and September.
Air Canada announced this week that service would be cancelled indefinitely.
Despite the cancellations, Air Canada said it would be offering new service between Toronto and Louisville, Montreal and Indianapolis, and Edmonton and Newark in summer 2027.
In July, the airline also announced it would be cancelling winter service between Montreal and Detroit, Montreal and Minneapolis, and Toronto and Indianapolis.
At the time, an Air Canada spokesperson said the changes were made to “ensure capacity is aligned with customer demand and seasonal travel patterns.”
In the spring, WestJet announced it was cancelling 10 summer routes to the U.S., citing a notable decline in demand.
Air Transat also announced in April it would cut flights from its schedules, citing higher fuel prices as a result of the Iran war.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.