YVR Connections

Xiamen Airlines Officially Announces Flights From YVR

crichards — Tue, 22 Mar 2016 16:10:02 GMT

Xiamen Airlines has officially announced they will fly a three times weekly, non-stop flight between Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport in China to YVR starting July 25, 2016. This will mark the first time the airline has service to North America!

Xiamen is located on the southeast coast of China and has a population of more than 3.8 million. Xiamen is a popular tourist destination known for its scenery and tree-lined beaches, but aside from fun in the sun it is also an important economic destination. It is an important port city for both China and foreign countries and is one of China’s five Special Economic Zones which utilizes an economic management system making it more attractive to do business there.

Headquartered in Xiamen, Xiamen Airlines carries passengers to 56 destinations in Mainland China, 16 destinations in Greater China and serves 320 routes internationally. Passengers arriving in Xiamen can easily connect onward to major cities in China and Asia. Vancouver is the airlines' 73rd destination.

Xiamen Airlines will use a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with a seat configuration of 4 First class, 18 Business class and 215 Economy class seats. Xiamen Airlines will depart from YVR at 01:45 and arrive in XMN at 05:30(+1) local time. It will depart XMN at 21:30 and arrive at YVR at 18:40.

The addition of Xiamen service beings the total of Chinese mainland carriers at YVR to five, more than any airport in North America and Europe.

Photo of the Month: Rocky Mountain High

crichards — Mon, 21 Mar 2016 16:14:09 GMT

One of the most spectacular sights on the planet is seen from an aircraft soaring high above the majestic Rocky Mountains. Just try sneaking a peek at these peaks and not having your breath taken away by their sheer natural beauty. The picture above was submitted via Instagram by @aishath_n and captures the vast, eye-popping mountain range in all its glory.

Our great nation is undeniably beautiful, and from tens of thousands of feet in the air Canada is simply spectacular. From coast to coast our nation boasts majestic mountain ranges, luscious landscapes and a truly unique natural beauty that one can't help but try and capture.

Which is why YVR launched Canada from the Air. So many incredible photos get snapped mid-flight of our beautiful country and we wanted to give you an opportunity to share and display those photos, right here on the wall at YVR. Share your favourite photo of Canada snapped while in flight, and it could become a part of our Canada from the Air photography gallery.

It’s easy. Just take an in-flight photo above Canada and tweet or Instagram it using the #YVRCANADA hashtag. Be sure to include in your message where the photo was taken. Photos could appear in our extensive online gallery or on the temporary walls of the terminal currently undergoing renovations. Not on Twitter or Instagram? Submit your photograph by emailing canadafromtheair@yvr.ca

For more information on submitting your photo and photo submission guidelines click here.

Bike YVR

jsobrepena — Mon, 21 Mar 2016 16:13:29 GMT

YVR is more than just a place to catch a plane. YVR’s Sea Island home is a perfect destination for cycling with extensive bike paths and lanes, parking and Canada Line access, biking near the airport is accessible to every level of enthusiast. Watch the video above and discover new places where you and your friends and family can cycle and stay connected! To learn more about cycling at YVR visit the cycling section

Aircraft of the Month: Boeing 777

crichards — Mon, 21 Mar 2016 16:12:32 GMT

We wanted to recognize being named Best Airport in North America for a 7th straight year so naturally we chose the 777 as our Aircraft of the Month for March 2016. We are taking a whole new approach to Aircraft of the Month in 2016 by including our amazing plane spotting community in the fun by asking them to post photos taken of the specified aircraft at YVR.

The above photo of a Korean Air 777 was taken by Leighton Matthews, longtime friend of the airport and frequent contributor of fantastic pictures of aircraft at YVR. You can check out more of his work by following him on twitter @PacificAirPhoto. An awesome photo and a deserving winner of our special Skytrax edition #YVRSpotters Aircraft of the Month contest. Thank you to all those who entered, keep your eyes peeled to this blog or our Facebook page for the next Aircraft of the Month so you can enter to win!

Scroll down for some more fabulous photos of the 777 at YVR taken by our incredibly talented plane spotting community who will all receive a little something special for their participation this month.

Kanwar Welkhu - #Emirates #77W #YVR #YVRSpotters

@MikeHillman89 - B777 on final for 26R

@vancity_spotter - Air France 777-200ER taking off from YVR

@kenters55 - Aircraft of the Month is #Boeing #777. This is #KoreanAir #HL7531 arricing from #ICN

@dennis_endless - #yvrspotters #boeing777

Samuel Millar - Air France departing in golden hour. #YVRSpotters

River King - Air New Zealand Boeing 777-200 is taking off after sunset. #YVRSpotters

Po Cheng - China Southern 772 #YVRSpotters

Michael Rybacha - Philippine Airlines B77W ‪#‎YVRSpotters‬

Craig's Corner: Super Seven

crichmond — Mon, 21 Mar 2016 01:14:23 GMT

Seven is known as a lucky number in North American culture, but I can say with full confidence that there is absolutely nothing lucky about YVR recently winning Best Airport in North America for a record-breaking seventh year in a row at the Skytrax World Airport Awards. An accolade like this can only be attributed to the hard work and dedication from not just the 23,000+ people who work on Sea Island, but also our myriad business partners and the greater YVR community.

In sports, a dynasty is usually defined as a team that wins three, four or five championships in a row. Seven in a row is almost unprecedented. In fact, only one franchise in the modern era has ever bested YVR’s current run of first place finishes. Not the dominant Canadiens teams from the 50s (when there was only six teams), or those vaunted Yankees teams of the mid-century, but the Celtics of the 60s who rattled off eight straight NBA championships! Something all of those teams shared, and two of our core values here at YVR, are teamwork and accountability.

Without teamwork, without everybody working towards a common goal, success just isn’t possible. This is why you’ll often see baggage handlers stopping and helping passengers with wayfinding, airline reps picking up detritus off the terminal floor and our army of Green Coat volunteers ready to go beyond, every day to do whatever it takes to make your airport experience memorable for all the right reasons. And don’t forget the people behind the scenes. The first responders and border officials who keep the airport secure, the controllers who help guide the planes down safely and the thousands of other individuals who work out of the public eye, contributing to this massive economic generator that connects B.C. proudly to the world. I thank them all for their contributions towards our record-breaking seventh straight Skytrax award.

Despite this unprecedented run of success, there’s still plenty of room for YVR to improve. By reaching 20.3 million passengers in 2015 we moved up a weight class to the 20-30 million category, where we finished behind Zurich and Kansai airports. We also placed 14th in the world. We want to be the best in the world and to that end you’ll start to see major strides made in sustainability, new expansion plans for upgraded terminals coming forth and even more airlines and destinations being added to help us reach our audacious goal of 25 million passengers by 2020. However, I’d like everyone to remember that it is every single interaction with every single person, be they passenger or teammate that counts – it is ever more critical as we grow.

Skytrax is the industry standard, but we also recently hit pay dirt at the Airport Revenue News awards for our design and customer service offerings and we laid ‘waste’ to the competition at the ACI North America Awards with our Waste Wars program (link to story). These accolades are reminders that our efforts aren’t unnoticed and serve as motivation to keep raising the bar and representing on the world stage. They also remind us that there are airports out there who want to see us falter and inspire us to continue striving for greatness. Next year, we hope to hit eight. Watch out Celtics—we’re coming for you!

Stay safe,

Craig Richmond

YVR Wins Best Airport in North America

crichards — Wed, 16 Mar 2016 17:37:14 GMT

YVR has been named Best Airport in North America for an unprecedented seventh consecutive year at the Skytrax World Airport Awards! YVR is the first airport in the world to win seven years in a row, breaking the record for consecutive Skytrax awards.

The Skytrax World Airport Awards are based on 13.2 million passenger surveys conducted in 555 airports around the world. The survey measures 39 elements in the airport travel experience including check-in to security and border clearance processes, comfort, efficiency, signage, transportation availability, passenger amenities and friendliness. This is the world’s largest independent airport customer satisfaction survey.

“This is an incredible achievement! Being named the best airport in North America for seven years in a row is a testament to the dedication and hard work of all those in the YVR family,” said Craig Richmond, President and CEO, Vancouver Airport Authority. “I extend a heartfelt thank you to those who voted for us and a huge congratulations to our community, passengers, partners and the more than 23,000 people who work and volunteer at YVR; you all contribute to our shared success.”

YVR placed third for Best Staff Service in North America. Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel was also voted Best Airport Hotel in North America. The Skytrax World Airport Awards are considered the global benchmark of aviation excellence. More information on the awards is available at worldairportawards.com.

YVR will launch a celebration campaign to thank its employees, customers, community and business partners. Look for details about special events, contests and other activities in the coming weeks.

Earth Hour - Best Things to do at YVR in the Dark

crichards — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 16:02:48 GMT

Mark it down in your calendars and phones—Earth Hour 2016 is taking place this year on Saturday March 19th from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm local time.

Earth Hour is an annual worldwide event organized by the WWF that aims to raise awareness about issues surrounding climate change. Every March, participants around the world turn off or dim down non-essential lights for one hour to show their support for climate change action. The event first started in Sydney, Australia in 2007 and has since gained participation and support from over 7000 cities in 172 countries and territories around the world.

2016 will mark YVR’s 3rd year participating in Earth Hour. Like we’ve done in previous years, YVR will be dimming down non-essential lights around the terminal to show our support and commitment to sustainability.

Participate in Earth Hour by turning off your lights at home (or wherever you find yourself) on Saturday March 19th for an hour from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Make Earth Hour a fun event by getting your friends and family involved. Hold a candlelit dinner, organize a ‘lights out’ group yoga session, stargaze with your neighbours—the possibilities are endless! Get creative and have some fun with it! Or come hang out at YVR. See below for the Best Things to do in the Dark at YVR.

1. Visit the Fairmont Vancouver Airport hotel.

Our partners at the Fairmont pull out all the stops every year for Earth Hour and 2016 is no exception. They are even serving up some Earth Hour food and beverage specials to help celebrate the occasion including a "Gaia" cocktail and an Earth Hour Appetizer with albacore tuna poke, wasabi mayo, pickled ginger and wakame seaweed that requires no heat for preparation.

2. Make a trip to the Observation Area

The lights will be dimmed up on Domestic Level 4, which will make for some nice views out on to the airfield. Grab a snack, maybe a hot beverage, and head up to the Observation Area to watch some of the nighttime activity in the Domestic horseshoe.

3. Take a terminal tour

Take a stroll through YVR and stop at some of the famous sights to snap some pics. You can follow one of our official self-guided tours, or create your own! Share your photos on social media using #EarthHour to be a part of the online conversation.

4. Star gaze at Iona Beach or Flight Path Park

The sun will set around 7:25 p.m. this Saturday, which means by the time Earth Hour rolls around the sky should be nice and lit up with twinkling stars. Hopefully it's a clear night and you can sit out under the night sky and enjoy nature's tapestry.

5. Recharge

Turn off your phone, find a nice, quiet spot in the terminal and meditate, do some yoga or just be alone with your thoughts. The Graham Clarke Atrium is a relaxing and enclosed area that would be perfect!

Whatever you decide to do on Saturday, try and contribute to sustainability during Earth Hour on March 19th by turning off or dimming down non-essential lights. Together, we can make a change!

WestJet Announces New Non-Stop Flights from YVR to Halifax

crichards — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 17:10:14 GMT

Hooray for Halifax! WestJet has just announced new seasonal non-stop service between Halifax Stanfield International Airport and YVR starting June 29, 2016. This is the only non-stop service between Halifax and Vancouver and also becomes the longest domestic route available from YVR at about 4,500 kilometres.

WestJet already offers 65 daily flights on 29 routes flying out of YVR, but this new flight will offer passengers the only direct connection to the Maritimes, a fantastic summer destination for families and adventurers alike. Haligonians can also now travel direct to Vancouver and experience everything our wonderful city has to offer.

Flights will operate on WestJet’s Boeing 737 aircraft featuring the recently enhanced Plus product and WestJet Connect. Flights between Vancouver and Halifax begin June 29 and will operate four times weekly until September 3, 2016. Flights have been timed conveniently with WestJet’s extensive domestic network.

The route flies four times a week. It departs YVR at 9 p.m. and arives in Halifax at 6:34 a.m. the following day. Flights depart from Halifax at 7:25 a.m. and arrives in Vancouver at 9:46 a.m.

For more information, please visit www.westjet.com.

Explore & Win One Million Miles at YVR

crichards — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 01:31:36 GMT

Want to fly around the world for free? How about circumnavigate the globe several times over all without spending a dime on airfare? Well, one lucky YVR visitor will have the chance to win a whopping one million Aeroplan miles in our Explore & Win 1 Million Miles contest this March.

Here are just a few things you could do with a million miles:

Fly Vancouver to Australia and back 11 times.
Fly first class from Vancouver to London seven times.
Go YVR to Munich in economy 16 times.
Travel first class to Mexico and back 11 times.
Go back and forth between Vancouver and Toronto 40 times.

It's easy to enter. Just visit any YVR retail outlet and collect the promo code displayed in store. Then visit our contest page and fill out the form. That's it! The more codes you collect the more times you can enter to win.

Sustainability Story: Waste Wars at YVR

crichards — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 22:44:50 GMT

The YVR Environment team laid waste to the competition at the Airports Council International - North America Environmental Achievement Awards when they took home the top prize in the Outreach, Education and Community Involvement Category for our Waste Wars program.

Waste Wars saw YVR food and beverage tenants compete against one another to see who could properly dispose of the most waste between July 13, 2015 until August 31, 2015.

From the award announcements:

"Vancouver Airport Authority won the outreach award for their “Waste Wars” project, designed to increase composting from airport food and beverage tenants while reducing overall solid waste. This project involved a robust airport tenant training and engagement program... This project has contributed towards the airport’s commitment of 50% waste diversion from landfills by 2020."

Thanks to the teams’ efforts and strong participation from partners in programs such as Waste Wars, the month of September had a 52% diversion rate, the best diversion rate for 2015. And during the four busiest months of 2015, YVR diverted more than 50% of waste from landfill - which is line with YVR's Environmental Management Plan target for 2020. Overall, YVR managed to go from a 36% diversion rate in 2014 to a 46% diversion rate in 2015.

The award is a major recognition and speaks to the innovative approach we've taken towards reaching ambitious sustainability goals by 2020. The program was a huge success with 100 per cent participation rate from vendors and as you can see from the description above, tremendous results.

Congratulations to Fortune Wok on winning Waste Wars, Vino Volo on their second place finish and A&W for placing third.

Aircraft of the Month: Boeing 767

crichards — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 21:22:39 GMT

We are taking a whole new approach to Aircraft of the Month in 2016 by including our amazing plane spotting community in the fun by asking them to post photos taken of the specified aircraft at YVR.

The star aircraft at YVR for February was without a doubt the Boeing 767. This aircraft was used for the inuagural Air Canada rouge flight to Cancun on February 15 and we also saw our very first WestJet 767 at YVR.

We didn't specify between any variants of the 767 as we wanted as many pics as possible, and boy did the spotters deliver, posting more than 100 photos of this awesome aircraft at YVR using the hashtag #YVRSpotters!. We then chose 10 of our favourites and had the public vote on a winner via Facebook. The above photo was taken by Jeremy Schimpf and features a rouge 767 taxiing along the rain slicked surface at YVR on a dark and stormy day. An awesome photo and a deserving winner of our February #YVRSpotters Aircraft of the Month contest. Thank you to all those who entered, keep your eyes peeled to this blog or our Facebook page for the next Aircraft of the Month so you can enter to win!

Scroll down for some more absolutely stunning photos of the 767 at YVR taken by our incredibly talented plane spotting community.

Allan Lee - @Boeing 767-200 Freighter pushing back at dusk #YVRSpotters

Chung Kwok - CargoJet B767x2 departing YVR at sunset

Chung Kwok - First Westjet B767 landing at YVR. #YVRspotters.

Derek MacPherson - Beacon flashing on the push for Honolulu

King Hui - CargoJet #YVRSpotters

Leighton Matthews - YVR Aircraft of the Month! #Boeing #767

Kent Matthiesen - #YVR Aircraft of the Month #Boeing #767 #YVRSpotters

Navjot Singh Dillon - Westjet 767-300 #YVRspotter #westjet

River King - Air Canada Rouge Boeing 767 is taking off from YVR last summer. #YVRSpotters

Photo of the Month: Somewhere Over the Rainbow

crichards — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 02:41:50 GMT

Another stunner submitted as part of our Canada from the Air campaign, this time by @grimmett93 on Instagram. Soaring over the snow-brushed peaks of Kelowna he managed to capture the shadow of his own aircraft encircled by a rainbow. This super neat photo earned him Photo of the Month and the honour of going up on the wall at YVR in our next round of Canada from the Air installs.

Our great nation is undeniably beautiful, and from tens of thousands of feet in the air Canada is simply spectacular. From coast to coast our nation boasts majestic mountain ranges, lucious landscapes and a truly unique natural beauty that one can't help but try and capture.

It’s easy. Just take an in-flight photo above Canada and tweet it our way @yvrairport using the #YVRCANADA hashtag. Be sure to include in your message where the photo was taken. Photos could appear in our extensive online gallery or on the temporary walls of the terminal currently undergoing renovations. Not on Twitter? Submit your photograph by emailing canadafromtheair@yvr.ca

For more information on submitting your photo and photo submission guidelines click here.

WestJet Announces New Seasonal Service to London and Hamilton

crichards — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 01:07:22 GMT

Travellers looking to fly back and forth to Ontario this summer are in luck as WestJet recently announced two new, non-stop seasonal routes from YVR to London and Hamilton, Ontario. From June 29 to September 5, 2016, WestJet will offer four-time weekly, non-stop service to London. And from June 30 to September 4, 2016, it will offer three-time weekly, non-stop service to Hamilton.

With a combined population of almost 900,000 people, these two bustling cities are home to many vibrant festivals, burgeoning arts scenes, popular sports franchises and top-notch restaurants. Never been? Here's a few fun things you maybe didn't know about Hamilton and London, Ontario:

Three Fun Facts About Hamilton:

The first ever Tim Hortons that opened is located in Hamilton Ontario.
Home to Canada's largets botanical gradens: The Royal Botanical Gardens.
The city of Hamilton is home to more than 100 waterfalls!

Three Fun Facts About London, Ontario:

Nicknamed The Forest City.
London, Ontario is Canada's 11th largest municipality.
More than 150 million people live within a day's drive of London, Ontario.

We are thrilled that WestJet will now be offering passengers direct service to these two new destinations from YVR this summer and hope the flights will be full so we can offer this route all year round from Vancouver!

For more information on schedules and fares, please visit www.westjet.com.

Explore YVR

jsobrepena — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 23:56:22 GMT

Ferris Bueller famously said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

While many of us travel through airports in a time-pressed, head-down fashion, we at YVR hope that our free interactive guided tour program offers community groups a chance to take Bueller’s sage advice and enjoy the beautiful and interesting surroundings of Vancouver International Airport.

Highlights include our globally-renowned First Nation’s art collection, environmental programs, architecture, accessibility, airport operations and travel tips. Tours will wrap up in the Public Observation Area, which feature interactive exhibits and unobstructed views of the airfield out to the Strait of Georgia

Community groups and local organizations are encouraged to apply for an Explorer Tour by visiting our website: www.yvr.ca/tours.

Craig's Corner: Recognizing our Unsung Heroes

crichmond — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 19:52:41 GMT

I definitely enjoy mentioning the many awards YVR wins—not because it’s an ego boost, but because these awards demonstrate that our customers are satisfied and that we are doing a pretty decent job.

But recognition goes both ways, which is why we also like to give out many YVR awards throughout the year for a broad range of accomplishments—from environmental excellence to innovation and teamwork. And recently, we kicked off 2016 with a very special event: the first annual YVR Stars Celebration.

Hosted on February 11, the celebration event recognized the unsung heroes of the YVR community. Over 23,000 people work and volunteer on Sea Island. They work hard to ensure passengers don’t have to worry about the airport functioning while they navigate our airport, use our facilities and relax in our space.

To recognize this YVR Team, we launched the YVR Stars program in late 2014. The way it works: if anyone at YVR provides you with exceptional customer care you can then nominate them for a YVR Star Award—through our website or by filling out a form from one of our info counters. From these nominations, we recognize a monthly Star in our editorial and provide a YVR prize.

And at the recent Celebration event, we recognized all of our Stars from 2015. In fact, we had more than 500 nominations for YVR Stars since the program’s inception in late 2014. That’s more than one great story per day.

The event brought together the YVR Team for an evening of much-deserved recognition. For those unable to attend, here is a quick recap of our winners.

Harjit Sandhu, an employee at Swissport, won the award in our safety category. In the memory of two co-workers who lost their battles with cancer last year, Harjit initiated a weekly volunteer FOD (Foreign Object Debris) Walk to clear garbage and objects from the airfield. In addition to honouring his late co-workers, these walks play an important role in ensuring the safety of passengers and the Sea Island community.

Doug Wilkinson and Rob Marshall from the BC Ambulance Service are the winners of the teamwork award. These two paramedics were nominated after they attended to a traveller who had hurt her ankle. They gave the passenger food, helped her through the terminal and ensured she was taken care of.

Dawn Coates from Marquise won our grand prize—the Beyond, Everyday Award, which is given out to a YVR Star who has exemplified an ability to go above and beyond to do something extraordinary for a customer. Dawn received two nominations from passengers: one for helping reunite a passenger with a lost laptop and another for locating a lost piece of jewellery and opening a Customer Care counter early so the passenger could pick it up before his flight.

Harjit, Doug, Rob, Dawn and all of our YVR Stars—thank you. Thank you for showing that you care and that you are willing to go beyond to help our customers. You demonstrate that the YVR community is a community that cares and deserves to be recognized. And to everyone else, if anyone at YVR demonstrates amazing service please don’t hesitate to nominate them as a YVR Star.