Business

Flair Airlines pulling out of Hamilton, adding Toronto-Winnipeg route

Discount carrier Flair Airlines Ltd. said Friday it will stop serving Hamilton on Oct. 27, and plans to add more flights to Toronto.

Swoop recently began serving Hamilton

Flair Airlines says it will cease service to Hamilton at the end of October. (CBC)

Discount carrier Flair Airlines Ltd. said Friday it will stop serving Hamilton on Oct. 27, and plans to add more flights to Toronto.

The Edmonton-based airline said it is it halting all service to Hamilton International Airport following "extensive analysis."

"The decision to move all of our Southern Ontario operations to Toronto was a difficult one for us," Flair executive chairman David Tait said in a release.

"We have greatly enjoyed partnering with Hamilton airport and anticipate a return," he said.

The move by Flair to get out of Hamilton comes just weeks after Swoop, WestJet's entry in the ultra-low cost sector, started service to the city.

Flair said it is adding add daily flights from Toronto's Pearson International Airport to Winnipeg as part of its October-April service that was unveiled on Friday. The company also plans to add new daily service between Calgary and Abbotsford, B.C.

The airline said its seasonal service to Victoria and Halifax will conclude at the end of October, but is expected to resume next spring.

Flair started off as a charter airline, but began offering scheduled service in 2017. The company said that as of June 2018 it was offering about 200 domestic flights weekly.