Canada’s second largest airline, WestJet, has started to cancel flights because its talks with a pilots’ union are at an impasse, the carrier said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada.
Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Next Monday is Canada’s Victoria Day federal holiday
Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent
Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
Not now
Yes please
Jump to content
Independent
SubscribeMenu
News
Sport
Voices
Culture
Lifestyle
Travel
Premium
News
Canadian airline WestJet starts to cancel flights as pilot strike looms, negotiations in stalemate
Canada’s second largest airline WestJet has started to cancel flights as talks with the pilots’ union are at what the company says is an impasse
Via AP news wire
Thursday 18 May 2023 18:56 BST
Canada WestJet Pilots Contract
Canada WestJet Pilots Contract
Sign up to our free breaking news emails
Email
I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy
Canada’s second largest airline, WestJet, has started to cancel flights because its talks with a pilots’ union are at an impasse, the carrier said Thursday, jeopardizing travel plans for thousands of passengers ahead of a holiday weekend in Canada.
Some 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary are poised to walk off the job overnight after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Next Monday is Canada’s Victoria Day federal holiday.
The Calgary, Alberta-based airline flies to more than 110 destinations including in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia. It has a fleet of more than 180 aircraft. With more than 4,000 flights scheduled over the next seven days, WestJet carries 28% of Canada’s domestic market, while Air Canada carries 47%, according to aviation data firm Cirium.
WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech said in the statement early Thursday that negotiations with the union were in a stalemate, leaving the company “with no choice but to begin taking the painful steps of preparing for the reality of a work stoppage.”
WestJet has begun to park the bulk of its fleet — 105 narrow-body 737s and seven wide-body 787 Dreamliners — using a “measured, phased and safe approach,” the statement read.
As of Thursday morning, the carrier had cancelled 92 flights or 17% for that day, the aviation data firm’s figures show. Few flight cancellations had registered for Friday and afterward. But passengers are now unable to make online bookings for flights on major routes such as Calgary-Vancouver and Toronto-Calgary until Tuesday.