(CFJC Today/File photo).

By Aaron Schulze

KAMLOOPS AIRPORT OPERATIONS

WestJet working to increase Kamloops connections prior to international travel resumption

Jul 28, 2021 | 5:00 PM

KAMLOOPS — West Jet listened to Kamloops stakeholders in a virtual roundtable this morning (July 28) as the airline looks to see what’s needed in a travel and tourism restart.

There are two key upcoming dates for airports across the country. Aug. 9 is when fully vaccinated Americans can fly into Canada without a mandatory quarantine, and Sept. 7 is when fully vaccinated international visitors can do the same.

WestJet Vice President Andy Gibbons said Kamloops Airport currently has two flights travelling to and from Calgary International Airport.

“We would like to introduce Vancouver, but that’s not the priority at the moment,” Gibbons said regarding direct flights from Kamloops. “The priority at the moment is to stabilize our existing investments and bring our Calgary flights from twice a day to three times a day, which is where they were before the pandemic. It’s something that’s actively being considered. We tried Vancouver twice in the past.”

The topic of direct flights between Kamloops and Vancouver was brought up in the roundtable by Tourism Kamloops CEO Bev DeSantis. She said Tourism Kamloops’ main targets for advertisement are the lower mainland, Alberta, Ontario, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

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Gibbons said Kamloops should soon benefit from international traffic due to frequent flights to and from Calgary.

“Next week, we’re launching service between Amsterdam and Calgary… which will have, through our co-chair, access to the German market,” Gibbons said. “Then our Gatwick service, which we have run in the past from Vancouver and Calgary. The overall growth and commitment to have a global airline based so close to Kamloops is going to materially benefit that community and the tourism operators there.”

Currently, Gibbons said WestJet’s operations at Kamloops Airport is between 70 to 80 per cent of where there were in 2019. He said it appears higher due to the direct flight service between Kamloops and Edmonton, although both he and Kamloops Airport Manager Ed Ratuski said it hasn’t performed to their expectations.

“It was always going to be a seasonal flight,” Gibbons said. “It’s the third time we attempted Kamloops-Edmonton. We’re operating in a difficult environment where many people still aren’t travelling or comfortable travelling. Travelling advisories in COVID-19 situations evolve. It’s not so much what West Jet or Kamloops is or is not doing, it’s more of the environment we’re operating in and not being able to realize the full potential.”

Elsewhere, Gibbons said WestJet is beginning to recall employees. He said during the roundtable that prior to the pandemic, WestJet had 15,000 active employees. He said one third remained active, another third was inactive, and another third exited the company permanently.

Locally, both Gibbons and Ratuski said there’s interest to have Kamloops Airport join WestJet Link – a brand where smaller communities with WestJet services connect to domestic hubs at Calgary and Vancouver International Airport.