10,000 or so flights leave Pearson Airport in Mississauga, Ontario for New York City each year

If you find yourself near Pearson Airport in Mississauga on any given day and happen to see a plane or two in the sky — either shortly after takeoff or preparing to land — chances are pretty good at least one is bound for or incoming from New York City.

Well, “pretty good” might be stretching it a bit. Perhaps “somewhat good” is more accurate.

Actually, it’s better to let the numbers speak to the popularity of passenger flights moving between the airport shared by Canada’s largest and seventh-largest cities and the globally popular destination widely and affectionately known as The Big Apple.

A post from Pearson officials to social media earlier today shows 32 flights are scheduled to depart for New York City today — landing at one of JFK, LaGuardia or Newark Liberty (New Jersey) international airports.

In return, 32 flights from New York City are expected to touch down on the Pearson tarmac on Tuesday.

“Enjoy The Big Apple! This is just one of the 32 flights (see photo below) taking passengers from Toronto Pearson to New York today. We also expect 32 flights to arrive at Toronto Pearson today with travellers from New York,” Pearson officials said in a post to X (formerly Twitter). “In total, we have over 930 flights scheduled to arrive or depart today, connecting travellers to destinations around the world.”

While the 64 total flights between New York City and Pearson is just a drop in the bucket as a percentage of the 930 scheduled flights (6.9 per cent to be almost exact), the home of Broadway and the Statue of Liberty is consistently among the most popular destinations of flights leaving the ground from Canada’s biggest and busiest airport.

One of 32 flights scheduled from Pearson Airport to New York City on Tuesday, March 26 takes to the skies. (Photo: Pearson Airport X)

Stretched over the course of an entire year, an average of 32 NYC-bound flights per day from Pearson works out to 11,680 flights per year — just heading the one way.

Now, on many days the number of passenger jets departing Pearson for The Big Apple is a handful or more fewer than the 32, Pearson spokesperson Sean Davidson told insauga.com in an interview.

Even so, 27 flights, for instance, would put the annual figure at 9,855 and just one additional daily flight and that number turns to 10,220.

Whatever the actual number of annual flights, the point is it’s a large one and that a couple million or so passengers head to New York City from Pearson annually.

Davidson, a senior advisor in communications and media relations for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which runs Pearson, told insauga.com a relatively large number of flights takes leave of the Toronto area each day for NYC.

“It’s definitely one of our top destinations,” he noted, adding many of the New York-bound travellers are taking the one-hour, 40-minute flight for business purposes.

Still, it’s also a popular spot for leisure travel as well, Davidson added.

The GTAA spokesperson also noted unlike other destinations that may see an increase in the number of flights during certain times of the year — March break, for example, for southern hotspots — New York City is consistent year-round as a destination from Pearson.

“It’s pretty steady…there’s no real peak time (for Pearson to NYC flights),” he said.

Speaking more broadly, Davidson pointed out Pearson officials have noticed that business travel numbers have returned since the COVID-19 pandemic.

He added they’ve also tracked an increase in younger air travellers getting out of town for vacations.

Map shows a number of popular flight routes between Pearson Airport and eastern North American destinations, including LaGuardia Airport in New York City. (Image: FlightRoutes.com)