It was 20 years ago that a low-cost carrier changed the face of travel in the Okanagan.
The budget airline started with humble beginnings with six staff and just one daily flight.
Three of those original six ‘day-one’ WestJetter’s are still working at the Kelowna Airport and all three hope to work with the airline until retirement.
“Time flies,” says one of those original employees, Geoff Sedden. “It’s amazing.”
The original staff has seen a lot of changes over the past 20 years.
“We didn’t have a computer on day one,” says customer service agent, Carol McRae. “We were just handing out boarding passes as they came out and crossing names off on a list, as you can see it has changed a lot,” she chuckles.
And while it came from humble beginnings, now WestJet dominates Okangan air travel.
According to Kelowna airport director Sam Samaddar WestJet passengers account for 65 per cent of those travelling through the Kelowna airport.