With less than 24 hours before a potential strike by WestJet pilots, the airline has begun cancelling flights.
“As the WestJet Group prepares for labour action by WestJet and Swoop pilots, the airline has started taking down its network,” officials said today in a statement. “This action ensures the airline can avoid abandoning aircraft in remote locations without support and enables the proactive communication with guests and crew to minimize the potential for being stranded.”
According to the website FlightAware.com, WestJet had cancelled 111 flights (30% of today’s scheduled flights) as of 7 p.m. Eastern Time.
According to the Ottawa International Airport website, four WestJet flights have been cancelled so far Thursday. Two more departures are cancelled out of Ottawa on Friday, CTV News reports.
The website for Calgary International Airport YYC shows several WestJet flights have been cancelled today, including scheduled departures for Toronto, Yellowknife and Phoenix.
Flair Airlines today said it has added additional flights for sale on May 22 and May 23, and is reviewing plans to add flights for May 24. Flights will be added on a case-by-case basis over the coming days, with a view to helping Canadians continue their travel plans.
These newly-announced flights will operate between Toronto, Halifax, Kelowna, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary. The flights are in addition to those previously announced flights from May 19 to May 22, between Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary.
Each flight has a capacity of 189 seats. The full schedule of flights is available on FlyFlair.com.
WestJet put on a note on its Twitter feed on Thursday, May 18 around 6 p.m.. The tweet said this: “We understand the frustrations and uncertainty our valued guests are experiencing due to the impact of the potential work stoppage causing disruptions in your travel plans with us. Visit westjet.com/en-ca/guest-up for information regarding flight status, travel changes and more.”
“The decision to cancel flights comes as the WestJet Group remains in a stalemate with the union regarding unreasonable wage expectations that if realized would permanently damage the financial viability of the group’s future,” the airline said in a statement early Thursday.
“We are extremely disheartened to find ourselves in a place where we have to activate our contingency plan and subsequent takedown of our network as a result of the strike notice served by ALPA and their inability to accept a reasonable offer,” said Alexis von Hoensbroech, Chief Executive Officer, the WestJet Group. “We deeply regret the disruption this will have on the travel plans of our guests and the communities and businesses that rely on our critical air service.
“We remain at a critical impasse with the union and have been left with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage.”
“Given that a tentative agreement has not yet been reached, the WestJet Group is parking the majority of its 737 and 787 fleet, in a measured, phased and safe approach,” the Calgary-based airline stated. “WestJet Encore, WestJet Link as well as limited 737 flights will continue to operate during this time.”
“We remain at the bargaining table, unequivocally committed to achieving a deal as soon as possible, but are equally ready to weather labour action for as long as it takes to arrive at a reasonable outcome,” continued von Hoensbroech. “Any guest impact is too high of a cost in the wake of these negotiations and we sincerely apologize that valued guests were caught in the middle of an avoidable conflict.”
Guests travelling are advised to check the status of their flight prior to leaving for the airport. Please visit WestJet’s Guest Updates page or Swoop’s information hub for more information regarding flight status, travel changes and more.
WestJet has waived flight change fees and cancellation fees for all classes of fares on all flights scheduled until May 21.
Cancelled WestJet flights out of Calgary on May 18, 2023.
One Canadian travel agent told the Toronto Star that the uncertainty is creating havoc for clients.
“Something like this happens and everything goes for a toss,” said AJ Malik, an agent at Marlin Travel Heartland in Mississauga, Ontario.
The Star said Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations state that, if flights are cancelled due to a lockout or strike, an airline has to either rebook a passenger within 48 hours or refund their fare, with no additional compensation.
Union officials have said they’re bargaining to get salaries that are more in line with U.S. pilots. Delta Airlines earlier this year gave its pilots a 34% pay raise over four years.
Speaking on a WestJet pilots podcast last night, Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) union officials said WestJet owners don’t care about the sacrifices that company workers made during the pandemic and only care about making more money for themselves.
Yahoo Finance reports a WestJet pilots strike would be the first strike by Canadian pilots since 1998. It also points out that Air Canada pilots this week officially joined ALPA and that they, too, could be seeking a new contract in the coming months.
