WestJet to integrate Sunwing, reconfigure aircraft; tour op unaffected, says Dawson

This story was updated on Friday, June 16 at 12:56 p.m. EST.

One week after The WestJet Group confirmed that it will integrate its budget carrier Swoop into its mainline, the company is now taking steps to do the same thing to its newly-acquired brand, Sunwing Airlines.

PAX has obtained a screen shot of an internal memo that was sent to Sunwing employees on June 14 stating that Sunwing Airlines will, indeed, be absorbed into WestJet in a similar fashion to Swoop.

“This is a long-term move that will unlock greater scale and growth opportunities for our people, and specifically for our airline employees within the Group,” reads the memo from Sunwing Airlines President Len Corrado.

While an exact timeline for the Sunwing integration was not shared, the process is “expected to take up to a couple of years,” the communication says.

A one-jet AOC

According to information that was shared with employees at a company town hall on Thursday (June 15) – presentation slides that PAX has also obtained – the vision is to create a one-team, one-jet AOC (air operator certificate) airline that combines the WestJet, Swoop and Sunwing brands.

The strategy is being driven by WestJet identifying four customer types – business people, private travellers, sun-seekers and savvy travellers – and developing a future product that operates as a one-brand WestJet.

The WestJet Group recently completed its acquisition of Sunwing Airlines and Sunwing Vacations.

The transaction, first announced in March 2022, combines the two Canadian aviation and leisure companies, promising "greater choice, competitive airfares and increased direct access to sun destinations to Canadian travellers," WestJet said in May.

The merger will also allow Sunwing to continue its growth across Canada, the company said.

The memo PAX obtained states that employees of Sunwing Airlines “remain a critical part” of the WestJet Group’s strategy.

Aircraft reconfiguration

The integrations will also lead to the reconfiguration of Sunwing and Swoop aircraft, according to presentation slides that were shared with employees.

WestJet’s 737-800s and MAX 8s, including legacy WestJet, Sunwing and Swoop aircraft, will be reworked to feature 180 seats – up six seats from the current configuration – including 12 Premium seats. The airline’s Max 10s will add 13 seats, totalling 212.

The plan is to configure aircraft “to the needs of our guests,” one slide reads. 

WestJet confirms, tour op unaffected

In a statement to PAX on Friday morning (June 16), WestJet confirmed the above details, but noted that the anticipated timelines for the integration of Sunwing Airlines into WestJet's mainline, as well as the reconfiguration of its fleet, have not been determined just yet.

"Our immediate focus remains on the integration of Swoop's highly successful business model across WestJet's operations," WestJet told PAX.

Sunwing has also clarified with PAX that this is an airline-specific integration and that the tour operator side will not be impacted. 

“The tour operator is not impacted by the airline integration," said Andrew Dawson, president of tour operations. "Sunwing Vacations will continue as the leading tour operator in Canada as part of the WestJet Group, while leveraging the WestJet network to drive increased scale and growth in the sun leisure segment alongside the WestJet Vacations brand." 

Finding efficiencies

As with most mergers, WestJet, presumably, is focused on finding efficiencies and returning to its low-cost roots.

Swoop, an ultra-low-cost carrier owned by WestJet that began flights in June of 2018, has a 16-aircraft fleet, made up of Boeing 737-800 next generation and 737-MAX series, which fly to 32 destinations in Canada, the United States and, like Sunwing, Mexico and the Caribbean.  

The integration of Swoop into WestJet’s mainline was also one of many terms in a recently-ratified collective bargaining agreement between WestJet and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), on behalf of WestJet and Swoop pilots.

Swoop flights, which were made available to the trade for booking WestJet Vacations packages, will operate until Oct. 28, WestJet confirmed last week.

The low-cost airline's employees will move to WestJet as part of the transition.

"The WestJet Group is confident in the outcome of this negotiated decision and the path forward to integrate Swoop into WestJet's operations," said Alexis von Hoensbroech, WestJet Group’s CEO, in a statement on June 12. "We continue our strategy toward providing reliable, affordable travel across the WestJet Group, leveraging the valuable experiences and learnings from the Swoop business model."

Swoop's integration, for one, will enhance WestJet's ability to serve a "broader spectrum of guests,” von Hoensbroech said.

"Instead of only 16 aircraft serving the ultra-low-cost market, each aircraft, in our 180-strong fleet, will offer ultra-affordable travel options through to a premium inflight experience," he said.

This is a developing story.

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