Low-cost airline Flair Airlines announced Tuesday that it would add twice-weekly flights between Ottawa and Kelowna, BC to its growing list of routes to return to service this summer.

The company announced that the route will start on August 4 and will offer flights on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The one-way plan starts at $ 59 including taxes and fees.

The Edmonton-based airline expects to serve 19 destinations by the end of the summer. Flair is adding 13 aircraft to its fleet this year as the plane is ramped up for an expected resurgence in air traffic as the vaccinations are introduced and people are more comfortable flying.

“We know there is a lot of catching up to do to see families and have affordable vacations once we can travel safely again,” said Stephen Jones, the airline’s president and CEO, in a statement.

Flair had originally planned to fly to Ottawa on routes connecting Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax and Toronto to the capital last summer, but those plans have been put on hold due to the pandemic.

Falling passenger numbers

A spokesman did not immediately respond on Tuesday to the question of whether additional flights to and from YOW would be added to the airline’s flight schedule this summer.

Renewed demand for air travel and additional routes to make this possible would be a welcome relief for officials at Ottawa Airport, which has seen a drop in passenger numbers since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis.

Mark Laroche, CEO of the Ottawa International Airport Authority, told OBJ last month that only one million passengers are expected to pass through the terminal in 2021, up from 1.4 million last year and 5.1 million two years ago.

He said the nonprofit – which generates virtually all of its revenue from landing fees levied by airlines, terminal and airport improvement fees levied on passengers, and concessions and parking spaces – is in a $ 70 million deficit this year is exposed and needs federal aid to finance projects such as a planned LRT station.

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