Canadian travellers saw fewer flight disruptions during the first half of the summer travel season, even as airports managed heavy demand from FIFA World Cup 26.
Nav Canada reports flight delays declined sharply year over year at Canada's busiest airports.
"From May 1 to July 7, spanning the peak of the travel season and the entire Canadian World Cup window, the share of scheduled flights impacted by a traffic management initiative where NAV CANADA staffing or equipment was a factor fell 91 per cent year over year across Toronto Pearson, Montréal-Trudeau, Calgary and Vancouver international airports," Nav Canada stated.
The share of scheduled flights affected by those measures dropped from 1.72%. 99.85% of scheduled flights at the four airports operated without such a measure in place.
RELATED: Travelling for Sports Big Business
At Vancouver International Airport, where several World Cup matches were held, the share of flights affected by Nav Canada-related traffic management initiatives fell from 4.99% in 2025 to 0.34% this year.
"In May, we said our team was ready. The results show they were," said Marie-Pier Berman, Vice President and Chief of Operations at NAV CANADA.
"Our air traffic controllers, flight service specialists and support teams absorbed some of the highest traffic increases in North America during this period and kept it moving safely. This is what more than a year of preparation looks like when it meets the moment, and the credit belongs to our people."
Managing World Cup airspace restrictions
Between June 12 and July 7, Toronto and Vancouver hosted 13 FIFA World Cup 26 matches, creating additional challenges for Canadian airspace.
Temporary restrictions published with Transport Canada reduced available airspace over both host cities, while heightened security operations added further coordination requirements.
Nav Canada said its teams implemented and removed airspace measures as planned, managed Prior Permission Required protocols for business and general aviation at both airports, and coordinated with airport authorities, airlines, Transport Canada, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and law enforcement agencies.
The organization said no traffic management initiatives were issued at either Toronto Pearson or Vancouver International Airport on any of the 13 match days. The only measures during those days were routine arrival sequencing due to traffic volume at Vancouver and one weather-related ground stop in Toronto.
Across the summer season so far, traffic management initiatives attributed to Nav Canada staffing at the four airports declined by nearly three quarters compared with the same period last year.
According to figures from Aireon, a space-based surveillance data provider, traffic through the Montréal flight information region increased nearly 11% in June compared with June 2025. The region includes all flights crossing Canadian-managed airspace, not only those arriving or departing from Canadian airports. Nav Canada said the Gander and Moncton regions also recorded strong growth.
"A strong first half of the summer is exactly that, a first half," said Berman.
"August is historically the most demanding stretch of the season, and our teams are approaching it with the same discipline they brought to the World Cup. Readiness has never meant promising that no disruption will ever occur. It means having the people, processes and technology to manage whatever the season brings, safely and transparently, and it is our people who carry that readiness into every shift."
Topics From This Article to Explore
