WestJet returns to Fredericton International Airport with bi-weekly flights to Calgary

After taking off from the Fredericton International Airport in late 2022, WestJet has finally landed back in New Brunswick’s capital.

The airline announced Wednesday it will be returning to the terminal, offering bi-weekly flights on Tuesdays and Thursdays to Calgary from June 20 until Oct. 28.

“This was the missing piece for this region, is that direct connection to western Canada,” says WestJet vice president of external affairs Andy Gibbons. “Whether it’s for the convention business here, the tourism industry, this is just something they really, really wanted.”

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“WestJet is the second mainline carrier in Canada, and the largest leisure carrier in Canada so it’s really important to have them back,” says airport president and CEO Johanne Gallant. “We feel very optimistic that there is a strong market for people wanting to go to Alberta, and people from Alberta coming back here.”

The service fills a void for travellers in Fredericton left by Lynx Air, which offered a similar flight for a few months, before the company ceased operations.

Fredericton is the sixth city in Atlantic Canada from which WestJet will be offering direct flights to Calgary, a record for the company in the region. Other cities with direct flights include Halifax, Charlottetown, Moncton, St. John’s and Deer Lake.

Tickets for the new flights are already available for purchase, and if the service demand is there officials say it could turn into a year-round option for travellers.

Gallant says it could also lead to even more services coming to the airport.

“There’s a pent up demand and we see people travelling more following the pandemic,” Gallant points out. “I think people also are looking for variety like going out west, to sun destinations, or just elsewhere in Canada. We are seeing more people wanting to fly and the airlines are reacting to that.”

She says any additional services that can come to the airport serve as a win for the entire community, with more travel meaning great tourism numbers.

Travellers are also hopeful the latest announcement is a sign of more coming to the Fredericton Airport.

“It’s great, the more accessibility, the better,” says Larry Wain and Louise Dickinson ahead of their flight south. “We need more flights coming here and going out to the other places.”

“Well it’s certainly is something that is necessary around here,” says traveller Gary Ross. “And that’ll definitely help people out to get to work and get back home to see there families or get out somewhere nice ad see everything in the world.”

Ethan McClellan was on his way back to Calgary after visiting family and friends in the provincial capital. He says flights like this would make travel easier and save money not having to connect through other airports.

“The layover times can be annoying,” admits McClellan. “Especially when flights get delayed and maybe your layover goes from two hours to four hours. Or the other way around, when your flight from Calgary maybe gets delayed and you can barely make your connection to Fredericton. That happened to me on my way here and it was a little bit stressful.”

The company is looking at other route options not just for Fredericton, but other airports in the Maritimes as it looks to improve its east-west connectively under its current strategy.

“We are in a growth mode in Atlantic Canada,” Gibbons says. “And we are committed to growing.”

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