WestJet expanding Penticton’s service

Starting in six months, both of Canada’s largest airlines will be offering regular flights from Penticton to Vancouver.

For the first time in its long history, WestJet, Canada’s second-largest aviation company, announced Monday it will be offering daily flights directly to Vancouver from Penticton Regional Airport.

On Feb. 17, WestJet, through a new agreement with Pacific Coastal Airlines, will be offering daily flights six days a week from Penticton Airport to Vancouver International Airport. The service will be available daily, excluding Saturdays.

The flights will leave Penticton at 2:05 p.m. Monday to Friday and Sundays and arrive in Vancouver at 2:55 p.m. An inbound flight will leave Vancouver at 12:45 p.m. and arrive in Penticton at 1:35 p.m.

It will create direct competition between WestJet and Air Canada, which also offers regular service between Penticton and Vancouver.

Jared Mikoch-Gerk, WestJet’s director of government relations and regulatory affairs made the announcement Monday morning at the Penticton Regional Airport. He was joined by Penticton Mayor John Vassalaki, Lyndie Hill, vice-president of the Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce and Penticton MLA Dan Ashton.

“Today marks the release of our winter schedule,” said Mikoch-Gerk. “We are thrilled today to be announcing that in February we will be adding an additional service to the South Okanagan region by providing a direct flight between Penticton and Vancouver in addition to our current flight between

Penticton and Calgary.”

WestJet will become the only airline in Penticton to offer regular flights to both Calgary and Vancouver, he said.

“This route further provides intra-B.C. connectivity that will allow residents of the South Okanagan and region to connect to the Lower Mainland and to have access to our network of flights from our B.C. hub,” he said. “It also allows residents of the Lower Mainland to have further options to come and explore the beauty of Penticton and wine country.”

Offering an additional flight option between Penticton and Vancouver will allow tens of thousands of local residents the option of not having to make the trip to Kelowna to fly to the province’s biggest city, he said.

Offering these extra flights is another step forward for WestJet as they continue to recover from the worldwide pandemic and the havoc it caused the airline industry, he said.

“We are rebounding from the pandemic, rebuilding our network by adding additional new flights for our guests throughout our network,” he said.

“This investment in B.C. and the South Okanagan is a testament to our commitment to this region and a reflection of our revised strategic growth plans, where we are focusing on Western Canada and prioritizing our commitment to enhancing Western Canada’s connectivity.”

Vassalaki said he and members of city council are thrilled with this announcement.

“This is a very very happy occasion for the City of Penticton, the South Okanagan and Similkameen regions,” he said. “I like the way WestJet thinks. They are thinking outside the box and they have real trust not only in the City of Penticton, but the economic development that this new flight is going to create.

“It’s going to bring a better service for connecting to other destinations from Vancouver that we don’t have at the present time. And the wait times at Vancouver airport are going to be even shorter than they are at the present time. We appreciate them coming with another flight out of Penticton.”

Vassalaki said he’s hopeful WestJet will consider adding another early morning flight to Vancouver to allow business travellers to be able to fly from Penticton and return home the same business day.

Hill said this announcement is very good news for residents in Penticton and across the South Okanagan who will no longer have to travel to Kelowna to fly directly to Vancouver.

“Anything that encourages business to the area is really important for us (Chamber of Commerce),” she said.

Hill, the longtime owner of Hoodoo Adventures Company in Penticton, said companys like hers will benefit greatly as outdoor adventurists from the Lower Mainland and Vancouver will be offered easier access to everything Penticton has to offer.

“In my business and my industry, the recovery for tourism, it’s so important to make it easier for people to get here,” she said.

While Penticton is best known as a summer tourism destination, a great deal of time and effort has been spent in encouraging visitors to visit year-round and offering these new flights will go a long way to bringing more tourists to the community, she said.

“We’re an all-season town and not just a summer place,” she said. “We need people to get here year-round to experience all we have to offer.”

Ashton said offering new flights is going to benefit residents in Penticton and across the South Okanagan for many years to come.