Ontario Premier Doug Ford takes part in a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in December, 2025.Blair Gable/Reuters
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he reversed course on keeping his $28.9-million private jet because he listened to the public’s concerns about the cost, but also said he believes he faces more scrutiny than other politicians.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Mr. Ford addressed for the first time the controversy surrounding his government’s decision to purchase a preowned 2016 Challenger 650, made by Quebec company Bombardier.
On Sunday, Mr. Ford announced he would be selling the plane – just two days after the acquisition was revealed publicly.
“I heard from the people, and I’m the Premier that listens to the people. If they don’t like something, I’m not too shy to change my mind and say, ‘Okay, this isn’t the time,’” Mr. Ford said in Ottawa, where he was attending a business summit alongside several other premiers.
While Mr. Ford said he’s “made mistakes,” he added that he believes he faces more media scrutiny than other politicians. He said both the federal government and Quebec have purchased jets at higher costs but did not receive the same level of blowback as he did.
“When I do it, I guess there’s a double standard,” Mr. Ford said.
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He added that he should have been out in the public earlier making the case for why the plane was necessary.
Mr. Ford said the province took possession of the plane last week, and that his staff are working with Bombardier to sell the plane immediately at the same cost. The plane was to be operational in July, and the deal to buy the plane came together in the past few months, the Premier’s office said.
The purchase put Mr. Ford offside with other provinces, such as British Columbia and Alberta, whose premiers fly commercial.
Mr. Ford’s office defended the purchase last week by saying the cost of Ontario’s plane was “significantly less” than the $107-million Quebec paid for its fleet of one preowned and two brand-new Challenger 650s, and the $753-million that the federal government paid for six new Global 6500 jets.
Élodie Masson, a spokesperson for Quebec’s new Premier Christine Fréchette, told The Globe last Friday that the Quebec government has three medical planes that are not used by the Premier. She said Monday that Ms. Fréchette travelled by car to Ottawa when she met with Prime Minister Mark Carney last week.
Ms. Fréchette was sworn in as Premier last week, taking over for François Legault. Her office declined to discuss Mr. Legault’s travel.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he listened to the taxpayers who told him over the weekend he needed to reverse his decision to buy a used $29-million private jet for his use.
The Canadian Press
In a follow-up e-mail, Sarah Bensadoun, a spokesperson with Quebec’s transport ministry, said the government charters planes for the Premier’s travel.
“No aircraft has been used exclusively for the travel of Quebec’s premiers for several years now. For all their travel, aircraft are chartered,” she said.
“The other aircraft in the government air service’s fleet are used for aeromedical evacuations (Challenger) and forest firefighting (tanker aircraft).”
Mr. Carney’s office directed The Globe to a press release from the new Defence Investment Agency from December, 2025, confirming that the federal government awarded a contract to Bombardier for six Global 6500 aircraft for the Royal Canadian Air Force, with the first aircraft expected to be delivered by summer of 2027. The aircraft are to be used for aeromedical evacuations, disaster relief, humanitarian aid and national security operations, the release said.
Mr. Ford also confirmed Monday that the decision to acquire the jet was approved by his cabinet. He said the plane was not solely purchased for his travel, but other ministers would have been able to use it as well.
“This was not Doug Ford’s plane,” he said.
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The notion of a buying a jet for an Ontario premier to use has long been controversial.
In 1981, PC premier Bill Davis sparked outrage when he purchased a $10.6-million (about $35-million in current dollars) Challenger jet. Critics called it a needless luxury at a time when Ontario suffered from high unemployment and high interest rates. Fifteen months later, Mr. Davis relented and sold it.
Opposition parties at Queen’s Park on Monday demanded to know the full costs of the jet, saying the government is still on the hook for maintenance and other fees.
In the legislature, Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles called for Mr. Ford to inform the public and personally pay for any financial losses arising from the existing contracts, purchase, outfitting and reselling of the private jet. But the Progressive Conservatives declined to support her request.
“What is going to be the loss to the people of Ontario in the resale of this? I don’t know, I will say, a lot about luxury private jets. But I’m willing to bet there aren’t a ton of people out there willing to purchase these things,” Ms. Stiles told reporters.
Interim Liberal leader John Fraser said Mr. Ford does not understand the struggles of average families.
“When someone tells you who they are, believe them. And the Premier? He’s a wannabe billionaire,” he said.
“He got caught, and now he’s saying, ‘I’m listening.’ How many times has this happened?”
Progressive Conservative House Leader Steve Clark defended Mr. Ford, saying the Premier heard “loud and clear” from the public over the weekend.
“I would categorize it as the Premier acting decisively,” he told reporters.