Flair Airlines suspends Regina service due to ‘aircraft delivery delays’

Flair Airlines has confirmed its suspending its service to and from Regina amid issues involving “aircraft delivery delays.”

“We had to suspend YQR due to aircraft delivery delays. With fewer aircraft this summer than we anticipated we were forced to make some painful capacity decisions,” Flair Airlines Network Planning and Scheduling Director Eric Tanner said in a written statement.

“We are hopeful to return to YQR in the near future as it remains an important part of our F50 vision.”

June 11 is the last bookable date for the ultra low-cost airline’s route between Regina and Toronto, which it has been flying twice a week.

Flair first offered service from Regina in 2020 and previously offered service to Vancouver in addition to Toronto, although fluctuations in demand both seasonally and due to the pandemic have led to other temporary service disruptions.

Regina International Airport Customer Experience Manager Justin Reves said his organization share Flair’s optimism about returning to the Queen City.

“I think any time we have more competition for consumers the better it is, so we definitely want to have Flair in our market,” he said Friday.

Reves noted, though, that Regina travelers won’t have to wait long for low-cost air travel to return to the Queen City’s runways.

Swoop is scheduled to begin operating into and out of Regina International Airport on June 16.

It will offer twice a week service between Regina and Edmonton, Winnipeg and Toronto.

“It certainly creates some new price points for customers. Ultra low-cost, especially for destinations that are close by, certainly makes a lot of sense. People don’t want to pay a tonne of money for a ticket to somewhere they can drive to within six to eight hours,” Reves said.

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