Flair Airlines expands service, adding direct flights from Toronto to Kelowna

Flair Airlines is adding additional flights out of Kelowna this spring.

Eric Tanner of Flair Airlines tells Castanet that despite the challenges faced by the air transportation industry in recent years, Flair is expanding its service on three routes, including two more weekly flights between Toronto and Kelowna.

"We're very excited to be entering the Toronto Kelowna market starting two times a week next summer," Tanner says.

"This is going to be a really great complement to our existing Kitchener to Kelowna service. And I think it really underscores our commitment to bringing more customers from Ontario out to wine country to enjoy everything that Kelowna and the Interior of B.C. has."

Flair Airlines is also adding routes from Kitchener-Waterloo to Abbotsford and Thunder Bay to Ottawa.

The new routes are an addition to Flair’s recently announced 2023 summer schedule, which includes increased frequencies and plans to increase capacity by 50 per cent by next summer.

“We’re thrilled to connect travellers to the people and places they love, as we expand our presence in key Ontario markets,” said Garth Lund, chief commercial officer, Flair Airlines. “Our Summer 2023 schedule continues to heat up as we grow our capacity into next summer at affordable prices.”

Flair's Toronto to Kelowna flights begin June 9, 2023 with service twice weekly. Kitchener-Waterloo to Abbotsford begins May 9, 2023, with three weekly flights. Ottawa to Thunder Bay’s two weekly flights begins June 10. All flights are non-stop.

One-way fares from Toronto to Kelowna, including taxes and fees, begin at $75. One-way fares from Ottawa to Thunder Bay, including taxes and fees, begin at $19. There are limited seats and availability for the fares. One-way fares to Kitchener-Waterloo to Abbotsford, including taxes and fees, begin at $39 CAD. All flights are now available for booking.

"We've had great success with our summer Kitchener-Kelowna service for the past two summers. So it's been somewhat of a natural extension from that," says Tanner.

Flair is also expanding its aircraft fleet by adding brand-new planes.

"By next summer, there's going to be twenty-seven brand new Boeing 737 Max (airplanes added to the fleet), which are hyper fuel efficient compared to everything else that's on the market," Tanner says.

One of those new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will be based in Abbotsford.

Lund says the move is a signal of Flair's success in the market to date, serving the Lower Mainland.

"Each aircraft brings additional employment to the local market for a variety of positions, including pilots, on-board crew, ground and maintenance staff."