A planned C$28.9 million ($21 million) acquisition of a pre-owned private jet by Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s provincial government has sparked fierce public and political criticism across Canada, with opponents labeling the aircraft a symbol of elite entitlement disconnected from everyday Ontarians’ struggles.
Breaking news of the deal first in Friday reporting, the Toronto Star confirmed the purchase of the 2016 Bombardier Challenger 650, an executive jet manufactured right here in Canada, which Ford’s office later formally acknowledged in an official media statement. In its defense of the expenditure, Ford’s administration argued the jet is a necessary investment for the premier’s official travel needs, highlighting that Ontario covers more than twice the land area of the U.S. state of Texas. The aircraft, they said, will enable more reliable, flexible, secure and private travel for the premier across the province, as well as for his frequent out-of-province and cross-border trips.
A key stated mission for the jet, according to Ford’s office, is supporting the premier’s ongoing lobbying campaign in the United States to push for the removal of Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods. Ford has made this anti-tariff effort a centerpiece of his cross-border outreach, making regular appearances on U.S. news networks and funding anti-tariff advertising that has already drawn the ire of the former president – Trump once temporarily paused U.S.-Canada trade negotiations over an Ontario ad that featured former U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Just last week, the premier traveled to Texas to meet with automotive industry leaders and Texas Governor Greg Abbott as part of this work. Prior to this purchase, Ford relied on chartered private aircraft for his official travel.
The purchase has drawn intense pushback from across the political spectrum and advocacy groups. Marit Stiles, leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party, the province’s official opposition, condemned the deal in a post on X, arguing Ford should fly commercial economy class just like ordinary Ontario residents. Appearing later on a morning breakfast television program, Stiles emphasized that many households across the province are currently struggling to cover basic living costs, including rent and grocery bills, calling the timing of the luxury purchase “terrible”.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation, a non-partisan advocacy group that monitors government spending on behalf of Canadian taxpayers, has also called on Ford to cancel the purchase and commit to continuing commercial air travel for official trips.
In pushing back against criticism, Ford’s office has attempted to frame the purchase as a cost-saving measure compared to other recent government jet acquisitions across Canada. The statement noted that Ontario’s C$28.9 million price tag is far lower than the C$107 million the province of Quebec paid for a fleet of three Challenger 650 jets – one pre-owned and two new – purchased for the province’s air ambulance service. It also referenced the federal Canadian government’s late December 2025 announcement of a C$753 million purchase of six new Bombardier Global 6500 jets, which are set to replace aging Royal Canadian Air Force aircraft used to transport the prime minister, other senior officials, and support military operations.
This controversy is not without historical precedent in Ontario. Back in 1981, then-Premier Bill Davis faced massive public outcry over his own government’s purchase of a multi-million-dollar Challenger jet. The mounting criticism ultimately forced the Davis administration to retrofit the jet to serve as an air ambulance, and Davis eventually backed down and sold the aircraft, replacing it with two water bombers designed for fighting forest fires.
For Ford, who won a historic third consecutive majority government in Ontario last year after holding office since 2018, the controversy comes as his public approval rating remains among the lowest of any provincial premier in Canada. An Angus Reid poll conducted earlier this year placed Ford’s approval at just 31%, a weak standing that leaves the premier particularly vulnerable to criticism over high-profile, costly government spending.