Montreal's international airport takes rival to court over name change

Porter plans to develop a nine-gate terminal at Saint-Hubert airport (CNW Group/Porter Airlines Inc.)

The authority that runs Montreal's international airport is going to court to stop an up-and-coming suburban airport from rebranding with the city's name, arguing it will sow confusion among travellers.

But the airport being taken to court is accusing the international airport of trying to protect a "monopoly."

Aeroports de Montreal, which operates Montreal-Trudeau International Airport, has requested a permanent injunction in Quebec Superior Court to force the new Montreal Metropolitan Airport to change its name.

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Long known simply as the Saint-Hubert airport after the Longueuil, Que., borough in which it is located, the Montreal Metropolitan Airport adopted its new name in February. That came after the airport announced a partnership in 2023 with Porter Airlines for a new $200-million terminal that could handle up to four million domestic travellers a year.

Eric Forest, spokesman for Aeroports de Montreal, says Montreal Metropolitan Airport is too similar to the name of the international airport, which is in the municipality of Dorval on the Island of Montreal. It carried more than 21 million passengers in 2023.

The authority declined to share its injunction request, but Forest said in an emailed statement it is "concerned about the confusion this change could cause for passengers, both from Montreal and elsewhere, considering the very close similarities between the names."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on May 15, 2024.