Edmonton airport launches “Stop the Calgary Habit” campaign
Calgary Herald, 2 March 2011
Dina O’Meara
The time-honoured Calgary-Edmonton rivalry just kicked up a notch Monday after the Edmonton International Airport launched a campaign to get more direct flights to the capital city — by urging folk to bypass Calgary.
Stop the Calgary Habit urges the 750,000 northern Albertans a year who either drive or fly to Calgary’s bigger, better airport to instead get connecting flights from the United States or Europe.
The move could prompt carriers such as KLM, Air France and Lufthansa, all of which fly out of the southern airport, to glide into YEG, as the Edmonton International Airport is known, according to organizers.
“It’s an interesting marketing campaign,” said Jody Moseley, Calgary Airport Authority director of communications, with diplomacy. “From our perspective, YYC (Calgary) has the best airlines, with the most flights, with the most destinations, in Alberta and because we offer those great connection we’re obviously a destination of choice for travelers and airlines.”
On Sunday Calgary Airport Authority got a head’s up from its peer in Edmonton about the launch of a new campaign, without the full details.
Edmontonians were called on to rally downtown Monday and become an Edmonton International Airport Activist, lured by free t-shirts and the chance to win a $4,000 travel voucher.
Sporting “EIA Activist” shirts, staff marched down Jasper Avenue to the noon rally at Telus Plaza, with banners such as “Heck no, we won’t go … through Calgary,” “Stop the Calgary Habit” and “Fly EIA every time.”
The campaign targets the northern Alberta passenger arrivals and departures that should be going through Edmonton, the people who will drive to Calgary every year to catch a flight.
“The 750,000 passengers translates into seven flights each day that are leaving from Calgary that could be leaving from Edmonton,” said Peter McCart Edmonton International Airport’s vice-president of marketing.
The EIA website www.flyeia.com also added a “Stop the Calgary Habit” tool kit that includes parking coupons, flight-mapping information and a cost calculator to estimate the real costs of driving to Calgary to catch a flight.
“I think we should be focusing on air access through Alberta,” Moseley said. “We would never tell Calgarians to avoid Edmonton if that was the best route for their travel value. The economic benefit for keeping travel in Alberta helps Alberta as a region.”
domeara@theherald.canwest.com
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