Bidding on empty seats

Photo: Nicholas Johansen - File photo

Jim Young, president and CEO of NewLeaf Travel Company, at Kelowna airport in January.

Those flying out of Kelowna may be able to bid on cheap last-minute seats thanks to a new partnership between a discount ticket seller and a ticket bidding service.

As NewLeaf Travel Company gets set to launch their inaugural flight out of Kelowna on July 25, Jump On Flyaways has partnered with the travel company to help customers bid on any unsold seats on NewLeaf flights.

“Our bidding platform was developed to allow ‘Jumpers,’ or flexible travellers, to bid on potentially unsold airline seats,” said Roger Jewett, CEO of Jump On Flyaways. “Our job is to help NewLeaf fill any unsold seats so they can maximize bookings and revenue. We receive bids during the flight booking period and present them to NewLeaf, who may accept high bids at their discretion.”

Bids will be accepted by NewLeaf no later than 48 hours before a flight.

Jump On was founded in 2013, as a way to “activate idle aircraft” and fill unsold seats on planes.

“As a new business, every dollar counts,” said Jim Young, CEO of NewLeaf Travel Company. “We’ve been impressed with Jump On’s proven ability to activate aircraft, and we’re confident their new bidding platform will result in significant new customer traffic and revenue for NewLeaf.”

NewLeaf ran into some troubles earlier this year, as the company was found to not have a licence to operate, after unveiling the company in January.

In late March, the Canadian Transportation Agency ruled in favour of NewLeaf, as the company does not operate planes, but only resells seats from Kelowna-based Flair Airlines.

NewLeaf's first flight will be a round-trip flight from Kelowna to Winnipeg Monday morning.