WestJet changes fly with Tourism Lethbridge
By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on October 5, 2024.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com
Tourism Lethbridge and Lethbridge Airport representatives shared their thoughts on the recent changes to flights frequency in and out of Lethbridge on Thursday after a round table discussion with WestJet representatives.
Airport manager Cameron Prince said they are excited to see the change because the reliability of flights is something they have heard as a concern from the community.
“We’re excited to see the change to WestJet to a bigger, newer aircraft and more reliable service. We’re hoping that will be built up, the community uses it and then we’ll see that frequency come back up again,” said Prince.
He explained that the changes will not interfere with airport operations as it operates more or less the same regardless of how many flights arrive or depart on a daily basis.
“We will just slightly adjust because all the flight times are being more towards evening and early morning, so will adjust to focus more heavily on those times, but otherwise for us it will be business as usual and will continue on providing as higher level of service as we can,” said Prince.
The changes to flight frequency are made with connectivity in mind, according to WestJet, and this is something that Tourism Lethbridge is excited about, because it will help with being able to attract people from different places that will be able to grab a connecting flight from Calgary.
“I think we’re looking at it as a positive. It’s great to have a more efficient and effective flight coming in and out of Lethbridge. I think we’re excited to see a bigger plane that can hold more people,” said Dominika Wojcik, senior director of communications with Tourism Lethbridge.
 She said knowing that it is going to be arriving on time on the days that it is supposed to is very exciting for them.
“The fact that WestJet was here to speak to us today is really great because they opened up the door for us to have those conversations with them for when we are trying to get group travellers in, whether it’s convention or sport or big events,” said Wojcik.
She said this will allow conversations about charter flights when big groups of people come into Lethbridge for events if the need arises in the future.
Wojcik explained that air travel is very important for the tourism industry and it is important to have reliable service.
“Anytime we go into any convention or trade show, the first question we get asked is how many flights do you have into the city? And the really exciting thing is, as it has been mentioned before, we are only two hours South of Calgary,” said Wojcik.
 She said the flight is a great option, but there are plenty of ways to get people into Lethbridge.
“But also knowing that we have the opportunity to work with WestJet on bringing more flights in or working towards having the charters or what we need is also really great,” said Wojcik.
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Of course the airport authority, tourism Lethbridge and council expressed agreement with Westjet change to their flight schedule. They had no choice. Westjet didn’t make this change to appease anyone in Lethbridge. This was strictly a corporate decision to address low flight passengers and may be a first step to abandoning Lethbridge totally. This is another example of very poor decisions by our council pouring our tax dollars into a bottomless pit based on recommendations from a few organizations that were only concerned with their personal gain and not the benefit of all citizens of Lethbridge. My concern is that council hasn’t learned anything about fiscal responsibility and will continue squeezing us for more tax dollars while they spend like drunken pirates.
What am I missing here??? The new Westjet once a day, mid-day schedule to/from Lethbridge is being received by Tourism Lethbridge and the Lethbridge Airport Manager are both “excited” about thr new schedule? They even believe that the time of the flight will provide “an oppoetuntity to grab a connecting flight in Calgary”? How ridiculous! The new time of departure means that you will not be able to get to Calgary, Edmonton, Vancover, Toronto ect. anytime before late afternoon or evening, so you loose a whole day due to travel! Conversely, you will most likely miss your connection to the one flight to Lethbridge and end up overnighting in Calgary if you are determined to fly! Crazy!
Futhermore, Westjet is saying this change in schedule will begin late Ocober…. an outright lie! The schedule change begins early October. (Simply check Westjet’s booking site)
A newer and bigger aircraft is not impressive as even now Westjet flights are often less than half capacity.
Currently, a flight (one way) is just short of $400.00, Westjet reports that the introductory fare will be less than $100.00…. great news huh? However what will the fare be “after the honeymoon”? My economics suggest that by Christmas the fares will return to the current status or greater!
Finally, the air port manager states, “airport operations will not be impacted by the schedule change from three flights daily to one flight”. This suggestion warrants a critical operational review of staffing, work load and productivity. Wow, only to have a City job!
Of course they have to Publicly support the change , westjet is the only game in town . Can you imagine the discussion that happens behind the scenes, the one not made public ? It probably centres on how to deal with this disaster. And it is a disaster from every angle.
Placate, placate, and placate some more…