Flair Airlines tells Waterloo region travellers it's 'around for the long term'

Flair Airlines says it still has plans to ramp up service in Waterloo region, just not as soon as they wanted.

The airline had hoped to increase service by 30 per cent this summer. Now, officials say expansion is expected to be closer to 15 per cent.

It's been a turbulent year for the airline in Waterloo region. 

Last summer saw cancelled flights due to staffing shortages. In November, a Flair plane overran the runway at the region's airport, which resulted in more cancelled flights.

In January, the airline cancelled service to Montreal from the region. Last month the airline had four leased Boeing 737s seized — including one at the region's airport — over a commercial dispute.

But in a call with media Friday afternoon, Flair Airlines CEO Stephen Jones said their "operation has really returned to normalcy."

"The business is stable and we're looking forward to going into the summer with some real strength," he said.

Slower growth

Still, the airline has had to make some changes that will impact plans for the next few months, chief commercial officer Garth Lund said.

"Some of the growth we had originally planned for Kitchener-Waterloo in 2023 will not all be coming through. We've really prioritized keeping connectivity to the airports. We'll be flying 12 destinations while Edmonton will be suspended," Lund said.

The route between Waterloo region and Edmonton was a summer seasonal route that started in 2021, a company spokesperson said. It can no longer be booked.

Lund said the plan is still to launch a flight to Abbotsford, B.C. this summer and to Puerto Vallarta for the winter season. 

"By the time we get to July, August when people really want to travel, we'll be there and the growth will be there," Lund said.

K-W 'absolutely critical market'

Both Lund and Jones said they want people in the region to understand the airline is excited to be at the Region of Waterloo International Airport.

"I would really emphasize that Kitchener-Waterloo is an absolutely critical market for Flair and we're really here to continue bringing all those fares and we'll be around for the long term in Kitchener," Lund said.

When asked about some people who may have been frustrated with Flair Airlines' service over the past year, Jones asked those travellers to consider trying them again.

"Everyone's got to make their own choices. But what I would say, and I've flown a lot with our airline in the last couple of weeks, the aircraft are full," he said.

"People are voting with their feet now. Sales are very strong and so people need to make their choices. We've cancelled very, very few flights since the events of … three weeks ago."