(Image credit: the Canadian Press).

By Mel Rothenburger

ROTHENBURGER: Seizure of four Flair planes raises questions about future service

Mar 15, 2023 | 5:00 AM

YOU MIGHT REMEMBER that, barely a month ago, there was quite a bit of bragging going on about Kamloops getting new airline service to Edmonton.

There was bold talk about how it was only the beginning of more air service for the Tournament Capital. “Everything is on the table,” said Bill Sarai, City council’s appointee to the Kamloops Airport Authority.

Maybe you also remember that the Armchair Mayor did some raining on that parade with a bit of history on low-cost airlines in Kamloops.

I offered a reminder that airlines and airline routes come and go. Businesses have to make money, and plenty of airlines have started new services out of Kamloops only to drop them not long after.

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Which brings us to the news that Flair Airlines has suffered the embarrassment of having four of its aircraft repossessed. Flair, of course, is the airline that earlier announced it would fly between Kamloops and Edmonton beginning in June.

The planes in question were leased from a company called Airborne Capital and were seized because Flair was a few days late with a $1-million payment.

The event was accompanied by the cancellation of Flair flights that sent passengers scrambling to rescue their vacations, sometimes at a cost of thousands of dollars.

Obviously, they aren’t happy, and while the airline appears to have done its best to help out its customers, the situation is a blow to Flair’s ambitions to grow the business.

The airline is now reported as saying there’s a possibility its summer expansion plans might have to be adjusted. While there’s no word that the Kamloops-Edmonton route is on the chopping block, Flair has already abandoned a planned Thunder Bay to Ottawa service that was supposed to start in June.

Hopefully, the Kamloops-Edmonton service is still a go, but Flair’s current woes demonstrate the need to be cautious about over-inflating the impact of a single new route by a low-cost airline.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops, alternate TNRD director and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.