WestJet Cancels All Flights Between Halifax And Europe
HALIFAX — Westjet has cancelled all its flights between Halifax and Europe this summer.
The airline says it made the decision as part of a wider push to suspend transatlantic flights “from select Canadian cities.” Westjet says it hopes to “recover its network in response to capacity constraints impacting the aviation ecosystem.”
The company said it will talk with the community and stakeholders about the possible return of those flights in 2024 but did not make any firm commitments.
“WestJet’s focus remains on positioning its network to meet the travel demands of Canadians, while strengthening its footprint across Eastern Canada through sun and leisure travel,” the company said in a news release.
Westjet had not yet started selling tickets for its Halifax-to-Europe flights, which were scheduled to start this summer.
The airline said its announcement today was to “[provide] guests with as much advance notice as possible and [give] firm clarity on routes that have been in question.”
In the spring of 2022, Westjet announced with great fanfare the return of non-stop flights from Halifax to several European destinations.
RELATED: WestJet Adds Non-Stop Routes From Halifax To Paris, Dublin, London
At the time, Westjet said the new flights represented “a significant milestone in the region” and that it wanted to reestablish Halifax as its “Atlantic Gateway Hub.”
The company bragged that the new routes would bring it back to about 95 percent of its pre-pandemic flight volume.
Even Premier Tim Houston weighed in, saying the new routes “signal that NS has reopened to the world.”
In a news release today, the company appeared to suggest its summer schedule would focus heavily on domestic flights.