Canada's Porter Airlines’ 10th anniversary is clouded by an uncertain future. Where to next...

Three years ago Canada's Porter Airlines had a different vision of how its business would take shape by its 10th anniversary in Oct-2016. The company decided to pursue ambitious expansion at its largest and strategic base by lobbying for an expansion of the runway at Billy Bishop Toronto airport to support the operation of jets at the airport, and at the same time placing an order for Bombardier CSeries jets.

Porter's efforts ultimately failed, and during the past year the airline has been largely silent about how it intends to shape its future. Even though it generates positive customer sentiment, the lack of clarity about how it intends to shape its future has fuelled speculation over Porter's ultimate staying power.

It is not clear if privately owned Porter is profitable, but after the sale of a terminal at Billy Bishop its balance sheet is undoubtedly in favourable shape, giving the airline some flexibility when and if it crystallises any plans for expansion.