Canadian airline Swoop takes flight to London

Over the weekend the Canadian low-cost airline, Swoop launched an air service into London, but no the budget brand from WestJet hasn't followed its big brother with an international transatlantic service, this is London in Ontario.

The inaugural flight left Edmonton International Airport (YEG) at 0700 local time and welcomed by a water cannon salute upon arrival at London International Airport (YXU) at 1225 local time.

Swoops April fools joke leaves passengers confused

The Canadian airline Swoop has issued a new product, apparently, its called Recline-for-a-Dime™ and is said to be a game changer. 

The airline issued a press release at 8am today April 1st to advise this new product was going to be configured across the fleet by the end of April 2019, and it allows travellers to insert a dime into the armrest of their seat in exchange for two-inches of 30-minute timed recline. Credit card tap is also enabled for even more convenience.

The airline says for $0.90 passengers can lie flat in economy,  "Lie-flat luxury seating seems to be all the rage these days," said Steven Greenway, President of Swoop. "Our travellers now have the option for a premium experience without breaking the bank. It's a pivotal moment in the world of ultra-low-cost travel and only the beginning for product innovation at Swoop."

Swoop shows on Google Flights....

Photo Swoop

Canadian low-cost airline Swoop has signed a deal and agreed on a commission with Google to have its fares and flights displayed on Google Flights.

Swoop flights are now showcased on the search engine which the airline hopes will greatly add to the visibility of its flights and encourage more bookings, which have, according to some been disappointingly slow.  

"Teaming up with Google Flights is key to sharing our ultra-low-fares with more travellers," said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop. "All of our flights are non-stop. This, in combination with our fares, is sure to surface Swoop flights as the most attractive option quite regularly in the markets we serve. We're especially excited about the fare-compare functionality, proving just how affordable we are."

Swoop is the budget airline from WestJet and operates a modern fleet of six Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft, these are equipped with in-seat power and Wi-Fi connectivity. The airline has plans to increase the fleet to ten aircraft by the end of the year.    

Swoop to launch flights between Kelowna and Las Vegas

Photo Swoop

The Canadian low-cost operation from WestJet, Swoop has confirmed it plans to start a season link to Las Vegas from Kelowna this year.

The service from Kelowna International Airport (YLW) to Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS) is scheduled to operate between 27th June and 26th October 2019. The service will run twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays and will be on one of the airlines Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft.

"Las Vegas and Swoop make the perfect combination for Kelowna travellers," said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications for Swoop. "Our flights are non-stop and remarkably affordable, encouraging the freedom to fly more often while leaving more money to spend on the experience."

"We are excited to announce a second destination with Swoop," said Sam Samaddar, Airport Director for Kelowna International Airport. "We've heard from the community that they want more non-stop destinations from Kelowna. We're pleased to have Swoop offer non-stop service to Las Vegas, which is the Okanagan's single largest U.S. market for travel."

"We are excited to welcome Swoop's non-stop flights between Kelowna and Las Vegas," said Chris Jones, Chief Marketing Officer for McCarran International Airport. "With this new route, Swoop is making it easier for more Canadians to visit the Entertainment Capital of the World."         

Swoop ready for celebrations at Abbotsford International Airport

The Canadian ultra-low-cost offshoot of WestJet, Swoop is joining in the celebrations with its home base of Abbotsford International Airport to celebrate the expansion of the YXX terminal.

The expansion includes two additional gates, an enlarged baggage claim area, extended CATSA pre-board security screening area and a passenger departure lounge that is double the size of the pre-existing lounge. Swoop and YXX will celebrate with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, refreshments and guest speakers.

Swoop releases its full summer schedule adding seven new markets

 Today Swoop released its full summer schedule with non-stop flights available for booking from April 28, 2019, through October 26, 2019. Along with three new destinations of London ON, Kelowna BC and Oakland CA, the schedule boasts five new domestic markets, two new transborder markets and an extension of two international routes.

Swoop completes its Mexico route launches

Today Swoop celebrates its final of four inaugural flights to Mexico this January. Flight WO604 departs from Abbotsford International Airport (YXX) at 11:00 a.m. PST and arrives at Mazatlán International Airport (MZT) at 4:19 p.m. PST.

Swoop adds Mazatlán to its list of 

flights inaugurated this month

Cancun welcomes Swoop's inaugural flight from Hamilton

The ultra low-cost carrier from Canadian giant WestJet, Swoop celebrates its inaugural flight between John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport (YHM) and Cancun International Airport (CUN). The four-hour non-stop flight departs Hamilton at 8:00 a.m. EST and arrives Cancun at 11:59 a.m. EST.

The Cancun International Airport and tourism partners are welcoming travellers upon landing with a water arch, live mariachi band, refreshments and gift bags.

This marks Swoop's third inaugural flight to Mexico this month with service to Puerto Vallarta kicking-off from Hamilton and Abbotsford last week. Swoop will celebrate one more inaugural on January 20, 2019 between Abbotsford and Mazatlán.

"Mexico is one of the leading value destinations this winter," said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop. "Cancun, particularly known for miles of pristine beach, is being enjoyed by more Canadians who are choosing to fly with Swoop and are spending their savings on activities to enhance their total vacation experience."     

Puerto Vallarta service from Abbotsford starts for Swoop

Today the low-cost carrier from WestJet, Swoop celebrates its inaugural flight from Abbotsford International Airport (YXX) to Puerto Vallarta's Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport (PVR). Swoop flight WO600 departs from Abbotsford at 12:20 p.m. PST and arrives in Puerto Vallarta at 7:02 p.m. CST.

This marks Swoop's second inaugural flight to Puerto Vallarta this week, the first from Hamilton, Ontario on January 8, 2019.  Travellers can also enjoy flights from Hamilton to Cancun beginning January 14, 2019 and Abbotsford to Mazatlán beginning January 20, 2019.

"Mexico is an important market for Swoop, with an estimated 1.9 million Canadians visiting every year," said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop. "We are pleased to see many first-time snowbird vacationers on our flights to Mexico which is confirmation of our mission to bring affordable fares to more Canadians, allowing them to travel more often."

Swoop inaugurates the first commercial flight from Hamilton to Puerto Vallarta

Today the Candian low-cost airline Swoop celebrates its first of four inaugural flights to Mexico.  Flight WO660 departs John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport (YHM) at 8:00 a.m. EST and arrives at the Puerto Vallarta International Airport (PVR) at 12:28 p.m. CST.

Swoop's first flight to Mexico is also a first for Hamilton International Airport

 This is the first time an airline has offered service to Puerto Vallarta from the Hamilton International Airport. Travellers can also enjoy flights from Hamilton to Cancun beginning January 14, 2019, and Abbotsford to Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlán beginning January 12, 2019, and January 20, 2019, respectively.

The Puerto Vallarta International Airport and tourism partners are welcoming the arrival of the first Swoop aircraft and its travellers with a water arch, refreshments, gift bags and a lively mariachi band. 

Swoop shows off core Summer 2019 schedule

WestJet's budget carrier Swoop has released some details of its core summer schedule with flights available for booking from April 28, 2019 through to October 26, 2019. 

The release extends many routes and sets the stage for the publication of the full summer schedule in the next few months, which is expected to add both frequency and new markets.  "The schedule released today confirms our commitment to serving our core airports through the summer of 2019," said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop. "Our ability to continue offering these routes substantiates our success and aids Swoop in acquiring the loyalty of our travellers in these markets."

More details of the core summer schedule to follow......

Swooper fare offering coming from a Canadian airline tomorrow.

It seems like the low-cost Canadian carrier Swoop is getting desperate for sales with the introduction of a very limited time sales period for some discounted fares. 

From tomorrow the budget carrier from WestJet will have a new feature on its website that has been designed to stimulate sales. Swoop are calling this new deal FlyDay Fares and these are time-limited special offer fares that will only be available between 1100 and l500  3:00 p.m. MST each Friday. The markets offered for this little period of sale will vary from week-to-week, presumably, whichever route hasn't been selling well over the preceding week. 

Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop believes "FlyDay Fares are a fun way to play with spontaneous travel. Let the weekly sale determine which city you will explore next or check back every Friday for a sale-fare on that certain trip you've been planning. The weekends just got a little more Swooper."

Swooper! 

(Image Swoop)

Swooping in for some Mexican magic.....Swoop annouces four new routes between Canada and Mexico

Swooping in to make a big impact on the Canada - Mexico travel market is the low-cost airline from WestJet called Swoop, as they announce the addition of four new routes.

Swoop will be serving the cities of Cancún, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta in Mexico with the new services the airline has confirmed this week. John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport (YHM) will see twice weekly service to Puerto Vallarta International Airport (PVR) and three times weekly service to Cancún International Airport (CUN) beginning January 8, 2019 and January 14, 2019, respectively. Similarly, Abbotsford International Airport (YXX) will enjoy twice weekly service to Puerto Vallarta (PVR) and twice-weekly service to Mazatlán International Airport (MZT) beginning January 12, 2019, and January 20, 2019, respectively.

Airline introduces service to three Mexican cities 

beginning January 8, 2019.

Canada's Swoop will head to Jamaca in December, the airline said today.

The ultra-low-cost airline owned by Canada's WestJet, Swoop has announced a new route today. The latest addition to the route network for the carrier will be Montego Bay, Jamaica.

The airline advises that its first Caribbean sun-destination will be Montego Bay in Jamaica. The airline will operate a service from John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport (YHM) to Sangster International Airport (MBJ) twice a week starting on 16th December until 24th April next year. 

"The addition of Montego Bay to our network is another important milestone," said Steven Greenway, President of Swoop. "Many Canadians of Jamaican origin live in the Toronto area, which makes this new route ideal for connecting friends, family and loved ones, as does the vacation appeal of replacing ten feet of snow with ten miles of white sand beaches this winter.".

"We are very excited to see Swoop continue to grow and expand its route offerings," said Cathie Puckering, President & CEO, John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport. "Swoop began operation in June with domestic service, before adding U.S. destinations beginning this fall and further adding Caribbean service which will begin in December. We are proud to partner with Swoop and look forward to bringing our customers more services and destination offerings."

Swoop introduces a new route and its 4th aircraft

The WestJet ultra-low-cost airline, Swoop entered its fourth aircraft into service this week with the launch of a seasonal summer route between Abbotsford International Airport and Winnipeg Richardson International Airport. 

The route will be served on a daily basis until the Labour Day holiday and then it will reduce to five times a week until the end of the summer season.  “We have received our fourth aircraft in perfect time to offer this daily service for end-of-summer vacations and to aid students who are relocating to attend post-secondary in the fall,” said Karen McIsaac, Senior Advisor of Communications at Swoop. “It’s a highlight for us to see the results of our low fares connecting friends and families in different provinces, such as on this sold-out flight today.”

“The Abbotsford International Airport continues to expand flight options for passengers in our region,” said Mayor Henry Braun. “I’m pleased by the launch of Swoop’s summer service to Winnipeg and welcome more travellers to Abbotsford.”

WestJet took 2.4 million people for a ride in July

The Canadian airline WestJet carried 2.4 million people during July this year, 144,000 up on the same month last year! Its revenue also increased by around 8.2 percent and the carriers load factor remained fairly steady at 85.2 percent (ok, just ever so slightly down as last year it was 85.6)

"In July, we continued to expand our reach while attracting 2.4 million guests to WestJet's award-winning brand of caring and friendly service." Ed Sims, WestJet President and CEO. " I want to thank all of our guests for their continued loyalty as yesterday, August 7th, we flew an estimated company record 80,219 guests across our network."  

The increases in revenue is particularly welcome news after the carrier reported a loss of $20.8  for the second quarter of 2018 just over a week ago. It blamed the loss on rising fuel prices, threats of industrial action and increasing competition.  

The airline recently announced it was going to be service Terrace, British Columbia with a WestJet Encore Q400 twice a week from 4th September, bringing a much-needed boost to the area.  While that was good news for Terrace, Sudbury wasn't quite so lucky, WestJet informed them that is was pulling out all three of its daily flights from the city with effect from October this year.  

WestJet's ultra-low-cost sister airline Swoop has also made the news recently, with its expansion plans announcing it was heading south - to five key US gateway cities - including Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando.

The carrier also launched a new baby, WestJet Link in June this year. The regional service operates a number of small routes to and from Calgary using a fleet of cute Saab 340B aircraft from Pacific Coastal Airlines. 

The Canadian's Swoop in for US Services

The WestJet ultra-low-cost carrier subsidiary, Swoop has unveiled its plans to head south for the winter. With a fanfare and a flourish, the no-frills airline confirmed its winter schedule includes flights to five key US cities and offered fares for as low as $99 CAD including taxes and fees!

From October this year to 27th April next year the airline plans to operate scheduled flights between Edmonton and Las Vegas and Mesa. Plus from Hamilton, it will fly to Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Tampa Bay and Abbotsford will also get a US-bound service to the capital of gambling, the bright lights of Las Vegas.

"Our immediate success in Canada shows us travellers want more Swoop,” said Steven Greenway, President of Swoop. “Canadians have been waiting for ultra-low-cost fares into the U.S. for years and we are proud to be the airline to make it happen. There has been a lot of interest in our plans for the remaining three aircraft we receive this year and revealing this schedule today is a proud moment for the whole Swoop team.”

“Our immediate success in Canada

 shows us travellers want more Swoop”

Swoop releases domestic winter schedule

One of the newest Canadian airlines, Swoop, has released its domestic winter schedule this week as well as welcoming its third aircraft.

The new aircrafts inaugural flight will be from Abbotsford International Airport (YXX) to Edmonton International Airport (YEG), departing 25th July 2018 at 7.10am Service between Edmonton, AB and Abbotsford, BC will be offered three-times daily.

Swoop started its flying operations on 30th June 2018 and seems to be bedding in well with the Canadian public with regularly full flights. "Swoop has been endorsed by Canadian travellers in the way that matters most, they are buying seats," said Michael Claeren, Senior Leader of Revenue and Pricing. "With strong sales going into the fall and full aircraft throughout the summer, we are proud to offer non-stop ultra-low-cost flight options from coast-to-coast."

Swoop swoops in for first flight.

The new ultra-low-cost-carrier Swoop has launched its flying programme with its first flight from Hamilton to Abbotsford which was warmly greeted with a water cannon salute.

The airline also celebrated another amazing milestone of already reaching 100,000 tickets sold, which is quite amazing. The airline is flying new 189-seat Boeing 737-800NGs of which it currently has two, but is expected to increase fleet size to 10 aircraft by the end of 2019.

 WestJet's Swoop will mainly operate domestic flights in Canada and routes include the following destinations Abbotsford, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hamilton, and Halifax as it starts, with more destinations coming online as it receives its new aircraft. The carrier says its fares will be on average 30-40% less than the typical national airlines.

Swoop gets its AOC

The no-frills, lower-fare off-shoot from WestJet, Swoop was officially granted its air operating certificate (AOC) approval by Transportation Canada yesterday. The announcement came just in time for the carrier that had already scheduled its inaugural flight from Hamilton, ON to Abbotsford, BC on 20th June.

The AOC affirms that Swoop's commercial air service complies with detailed and complex aviation regulations, related to, aircraft airworthiness, personnel training and licensing, flight and crew manuals and base of operations and scheduled points of service.

"Receiving our air operators certificate ticks the last check-box," said Steven Greenway, President and Chief Executive Officer of Swoop. "We're immensely proud of the Swoop inflight, maintenance and operations teams for getting us here. And we're ready for takeoff on June 20."