Westjet Dreamliner set for maiden flight to Rome

Westjet is ready to complete its first trip to Rome, a journey three years in the making.

The Calgary-based airline was set to launch the destination in the spring of 2020 as the first non-stop flight to Italy out of Calgary, but those plans were grounded by the pandemic.

On Saturday evening, a Westjet Dreamliner will welcome a nearfull flight with cannolis and gift bags as it taxis onto the runway at 6:20 p.m.

“We are unbelievably excited and delighted to be having our inaugural tomorrow (Saturday),” said Angela Avery, executive vice-president of external affairs. “People are excited to go to Italy, it's been so long through pandemic that Italy is a place that is a dream destination for so many Canadians.”

The route is not just about taking Albertans abroad, as there will be an influx of Italian tourists landing in Calgary at 4:19 p.m. on Sunday, with almost all of the flight's 320 seats booked for the return trip. The seasonal route will build up to three flights a week over the summer.

Rick Erickson, a Calgary-based airline analyst, said this one route will have a $25-million impact on Alberta's economy.

He said it will be a launching point for the airline deeper into Europe than it has gone before and is part of a larger expansion strategy.

This spring, Westjet also announced a return to the United Kingdom with flights to London Gatwick and, for the first time, London Heathrow.

Elsewhere in Europe, the airline also restarted flights to Dublin and

Paris. The result of all of this European commitment will be a forecast 1,000 jobs and $150 million for the local economy.

This is just the beginning with more routes likely to open up in the future — though Avery was unable to comment further.

This was also signalled through the hiring of new CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech, who was an executive with Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines.

Erickson said he is convinced Westjet has even bigger plans on the horizon.

“I think Europe is only the first part of this,” he said.

“There's still some more destinations to go to in Europe, they're still building their overall network, they're building their expertise as well.

“But after Europe, I think they have to be looking at Asia.”