WestJet pulls back from Atlantic Canada

Airline makes more tough decisions, eliminating service to Fredericton, Moncton, Sydney, Charlottetown and Quebec City; makes additional job cuts

CALGARY, AB, Oct. 14, 2020 /CNW/ - Today, WestJet announced it will be indefinitely suspending operations to Moncton, Fredericton, Sydney and Charlottetown, while significantly reducing service to Halifax and St. John's. The suspension eliminates more than 100 flights weekly or almost 80 percent of seat capacity from the Atlantic region starting November 2 and also suspends operations to Quebec City, with the removal of Toronto service.  Details can be found at bottom of release.

"It has become increasingly unviable to serve these markets," said Ed Sims, WestJet President and CEO. "Since the pandemic's beginning, we have worked to keep essential air service to all of our domestic airports, however, demand for travel is being severely limited by restrictive policies and third-party fee increases that have left us out of runway without sector-specific support."

For a video message from WestJet President and CEO, Ed Sims, click here.

With today's announcement, all flights to and from Moncton, Fredericton, Sydney, Charlottetown and Quebec City will be discontinued as of November 2. A return to service date is unknown at this time. Guests impacted will be contacted directly regarding their options for travel to and from the region.

Since 2003, WestJet has successfully brought competition and lower fares to the Atlantic region through new service and routes, while driving tourism and business investments. As of 2019, the airline had added more than 700,000 annual seats to the region since 2015, while creating the opportunity for travel to, from and within the region on 28 routes. The airline has also worked to grow Halifax as the Atlantic gateway to Europe through the introduction of successful nonstop transatlantic service to London-Gatwick, Paris, Glasgow and Dublin since 2016, providing key economic and tourism links between the regions. Up until this announcement, WestJet was the only Canadian airline that maintained 100 per cent of its pre-COVID domestic network.

"We understand this news will be devastating to the communities, our airport partners and the WestJetters who rely on our service," continued Sims. "While we remain committed to the Atlantic region, it's impossible to say when there will be a return to service without support for a coordinated domestic approach. Our intent is to return as soon as it becomes economically viable to do so."

In addition to the Atlantic Canada service changes, WestJet today also announced the airline will be laying off an additional 100 corporate and operational support employees as prospects for any near-term recovery continue to fade and demand remains weak across its operations. These permanent layoffs do not include airport staff from affected Atlantic airports due to WestJet's previous airport transformation announcement.

Temporary Route Suspensions:

Planned service in Atlantic Canada as of Nov. 2, 2020:

About WestJet 
Since the start of the pandemic the WestJet Group of Companies has built a layered framework of safety measures to ensure Canadians can continue to travel safely and responsibly through the airline's Safety Above All hygiene program. During this time, WestJet has maintained its status as one of the top-10 on-time airlines in North America as named by Cirium.

For more information about everything WestJet, please visit westjet.com. 

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Recent recognition includes: 

2019/2018/2017 Best Airline in Canada (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines) 
2019 Winner Among Mid-Sized Airlines in North America (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines) 
2019 Number-One Ranked Canadian Airline Loyalty Program in Member Engagement (Bond Brand Loyalty) 
2019/2018 Number-One-Ranked Airline Credit Card in Canada (Rewards Canada) 

SOURCE WESTJET, an Alberta Partnership