WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech was in Regina on Wednesday for a roundtable discussion with community business leaders. The roundtable was organized by the Regina Airport Authority and among those in attendance were: James Bogusz, President and CEO of the Regina Airport Authority; Regina Mayor Sandra Masters; Chris Lane, President and CEO of Economic Development Regina; Andrew Scheer, MP for Regina-Qu’Appelle; Michael Kramm, MP for Regina-Wascana; Tim Reid, President and CEO of Regina Exhibition Association Limited; and, Cadmus Delorme, Founder and CEO of OneHoop.

Von Hoensbroech addressed the gathering and then participated in a Q&A session which touched upon a number of subjects concerning WestJet and air travel in Regina.

Following the roundtable, von Hoensbroech had a media appearance with a number of Regina media outlets. Here are a few comments by von Hoensbroech from the media appearance:

Discussing the partnership between Regina and WestJet: “We are the largest airline in Regina and currently serving 14 different destinations . . . . We are very proud to be able to do this because it is a reflection of the good partnership that we have with the local business community.”

Looking into the future for air service in Regina: “This is a place where we are growing. In this year alone we are 70 per cent bigger in Regina than we were last year. This clearly outgrows the capacity that we had in Regina pre-pandemic . . . We have a lot of capacity to distribute over the years to come and I’m pretty sure some of this capacity will be earmarked for Regina.”

The importance of the relationship between the business community and WestJet: “During our discussion there was lots of reinforcement of how important our connectivity is for the business development and the business community in Regina . . . The number of connections, the accessibility of a city, is one of the key drivers for economic development. We know about our responsibility, and we are standing up to our responsibility but it’s also a joint approach we have to create. The business community creates demand and we serve the demand and if we’re both successful, then it’s good for the business community and it’s good for us.”

Finding a U.S. airline partner to provide a direct flight from Regina to a hub airport in the U.S.:  “We are always talking to local stakeholders, the provincial government, the city, the airport authority and the business community. They are very important local stakeholders for us and if there’s a common interest to serve a certain destination, for example in the U.S., then we’ll see how we can collectively make it work.”

WestJet published an article on its website, covering the roundtable. To read the article, click HERE.

(Photos provided by the Regina Airport Authority)