Kitchener-Waterloo

Ultra-low fare airline flying into Waterloo regional airport summer 2018

Canada Jetlines says it wants to start flying out of the Region of Waterloo International Airport starting August 2018.

Canada Jetlines says it will fly to destinations in Canada, U.S., Mexico and Caribbean

Canada Jetlines says it plans to start operating out of Hamilton on June 1, 2018, then fly out of Region of Waterloo International Airport in August 2018. (Canada Jetlines)

A new airline said it's in "active discussions" with the Region of Waterloo International Airport to begin operating there beginning August 2018.

Canada Jetlines said there is a high demand for cheaper flights in the Toronto area, which is why they're looking to smaller, regional airports to start.

The airline will start flying out of Hamilton on June 1, 2018, with two planes. Then, after a 60 to 90 day soft start, they'll add two more planes and flights from Waterloo region.

By November, they hope to have six planes going to 23 unique destinations. Those six planes would be split between Waterloo and Hamilton.

Destinations in Canada, Florida

CEO Stan Gadek told CBC News the destinations from Waterloo are still up in the air.

"We'll be flying out of Waterloo to some of the major markets in Canada, as well as some markets in Florida in the wintertime," he said in an interview Monday.

Unlike the WestJet flight to Orlando from the region's airport that was recently cancelled, Gadek said the flights will be on more accessible days. That means not on Tuesday mornings.

"We're going to be serving Florida markets out of Waterloo with popular departure dates like weekends," he said. "It's not a Tuesday market."
Jetlines plans to fly to major Canadian markets and Florida destinations from Region of Waterloo International Airport. It will start in August.

Strong feedback

Chris Wood, general manager of the Region of Waterloo International Airport, said in a release that staff look forward to continuing conversations with Jetlines.

Gadek said "feedback has been strong" from people in the region, that people are excited for lower ticket prices, and that people are excited to have convenient service in Waterloo region.

He does not anticipate there being any problems to flying out of the region's airport starting next August.

"It'll be exciting and I would love to see nothing more than that airport just bustling and overflowing with passengers," he said.