Flair Airlines To Expand Presence In Saint John

Air travellers will soon have even more options at the Saint John Airport (YSJ).

Flair Airlines is adding a route between Saint John and the Kitchener-Waterloo Airport in Ontario.

The new route is slated to begin June 8 and operate three times a week, according to a tweet from Flair.

“Flair is expanding its base in Kitchener-Waterloo with increased frequencies, an additional aircraft and two NEW routes,” said the tweet.

The discount carrier will also a twice-weekly route between Kitchener-Waterloo and Charlottetown beginning June 8.

Flair began operating at the Saint John Airport in July with a twice-weekly route to Toronto but has been on a short hiatus since the start of 2022.

Jacques Fournier, director of commercial development at the airport, said Flair made the decision to remove their service temporarily based on lower demand combined with the fourth wave of the pandemic.

Fournier said Flair flights were operating at 95 per cent load factor over the summer, meaning a lot of their rotation left full, and Saint John is one of the top five origins and destinations for the airline in Canada.

“Which is why they are looking to come back strong in 2022 starting in March, so we’re really happy about that,” Fournier said in an interview in mid-November.

According to Flair’s website, the Saint John-to-Toronto route will return on March 27 with three weekly trips instead of two.

With files from Tamara Steele.