WestJet to add Yukon flights this summer, but to Calgary not Vancouver
WestJet's summer schedule to include 4 weekly flights between Whitehorse and Calgary
WestJet is making changes to its seasonal service to Whitehorse this summer, adding an additional weekly flight and connecting the Yukon capital to Calgary, not Vancouver.
Calgary-based WestJet will fly between its headquarter city and Whitehorse four times weekly, over the summer months. In recent years, the airline's summer service consisted of thrice-weekly flights between Vancouver and Whitehorse.
Charles Duncan, president of WestJet Encore, WestJet's sister airline, says flying to and from Calgary makes more sense since it's a larger hub for the airline, connecting to 52 other cities compared to 31 from Vancouver.
"In past years, most of our guests on the airplane were not travelling to Vancouver but actually making a connection somewhere beyond," he said.
"There are 21 additional points on our map that we can serve with just the one stop in Calgary."
Duncan says the flights will leave Calgary late in the evening, and leave Whitehorse early the next morning so travellers can make their connections.
WestJet will continue to use its Boeing 737 aircraft for the Yukon service, since WestJet Encore's smaller planes — 78-seat Bombardier Q400s — don't have the range to reach Whitehorse from Calgary (or Vancouver).
'Expanding the pie'
Duncan admits Yukon is a competitive market, with year-round service from Air Canada and Air North, but he believes the market is growing.
"We see ourselves expanding the pie, and you know, bringing down fares as well, and adding competition," he said.
The Whitehorse flights will remain a seasonal service for now, though. Duncan says WestJet would love to offer year-round service, but "we just don't see the demand there for it yet."
Whitehorse is one of just two Canadian cities that WestJet offers seasonal service to. The other is Windsor, Ont.
In 2012, the airline started offering daily summer service between Vancouver and Whitehorse, but cut it to three flights a week in 2015 because of low demand.
Corrections
- An earlier version of this story referred to a WestJet service between B.C.'s capital and Whitehorse. In fact, the service was between Vancouver and Whitehorse.Jan 25, 2018 3:32 PM CT
With files from Sandi Coleman