WestJet will soon no longer fly to Moncton, Fredericton, Sydney, Charlottetown and Quebec City and drastically cut back its service to St. John’s and Halifax.
The Calgary-based airline said Wednesday it is eliminating 100 flights, which represent about 80 per cent of the airline’s service in and out of Atlantic Canada. The airline also says it is suspending operations to Quebec City, by removing its flight between there and Toronto.
Service to St. John’s and Halifax will continue, but on a much more limited basis. The routes will be cancelled as of Nov. 2. The decision will also result in the cutting of about 100 jobs.
“It has become increasingly unviable to serve these markets,” CEO Ed Sims said. “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.”
The moves come amid the coronavirus pandemic, which has walloped demand for air travel. Earlier this summer, Air Canada also cancelled 30 routes, the plurality of which were in Atlantic Canada.
More to come
