
Kamloops Airport. (Photo via Colton Davies)
Discussions are still underway to try and get a direct flight from Kamloops to Edmonton.
YKA Managing Director Ed Ratuski says the Alberta capital is still a key destination being targeted for direct air service to Kamloops.
His comments come as Flair Airlines grounded its Kamloops to Edmonton flight in early September – less than three months after it began operations – citing a lack of demand when compared to other routes it operated.
“Even though Flair has left the market, the passenger numbers are still there so if we can find the right partner and the right aircraft mix to make it work, we’ll certainly be talking to the carriers about that, including Flair,” Ratuski said.
“They were operating at about 60 to 65 per cent load factors so even though there were 100 to 120 passengers on those flights, it is a 190 seat aircraft and they need to fill it up at the fares they’re offering, and they weren’t getting the numbers they needed to see.”
In July last year, Ratuski told Radio NL that it had been a “fairly mediocre” first month for Flair’s twice-weekly direct flight to Edmonton that got underway on June 18.
“It met the target markets for what we were telling them the projections were in terms of passenger levels, and I think what they were counting on was the word getting out there and people taking advantage of those excellent fares, and that didn’t materialize,” Ratuski said.
Back in 2019, Swoop – WestJet’s now defunct ultra low-cost carrier – announced plans for a direct Kamloops to Edmonton flight which never took off due to COVID-19.
Victoria and Toronto were the other two key destinations being targeted for direct air service to Kamloops.
“Those are still our target markets, and we are constantly in communication with carriers on those two routes because they have the best potential of success,” Ratuski said. “We are talking with carriers but it has to be the right aircraft, the right mix, and the right passenger levels to ensure it is sustainable for anybody operating those routes.”
Pacific Coastal has been operating a new flight to Victoria in October, with that flight now operating seven days a week as of this month.
In July last year, Ratuski told Radio NL to not expect a direct flight to Toronto in the near future.
“We are in discussions with carriers to support that route but I think the industry is still in quite a bit of flux , and so to introduce that route into the market, I think would be quite challenging for the carriers that we are talking to,” Ratuski said.
Air Canada Rouge ran a direct Toronto to Kamloops flight in 2018 and 2019, but it was also the victim of a pandemic-related cut.