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Those who want to get away from the cold may want to consider hopping onto a plane.
“It’s really a fantastic time if you want to travel non-stop to a sun destination,” said James Bogusz, the CEO of the Regina airport.
The airport boss says Sunwing is offering 11 destinations to Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic. As well, WestJet has flights to Puerto Vallarta and Cancun.
For the most part, flights have been running smoothly, Bogusz said, although there will be the odd delay if an aircraft has problems getting into Regina.
“We always recommend (a traveller should) check with your airline (and) keep an eye on your flight status. The good news is if the flight is delayed, we have a lot more to do in the terminal now,” he said.
That includes a new children’s play area, new seats with power outlets and more food options once passengers are through security. Bogusz said the airport has also tripled its WiFi speed.
Speaking on the Greg Morgan Morning Show on Tuesday, Bogusz said the airport is also seeing increased service to Vancouver since the holidays, with Air Canada offering three flights per day.
“If you’re connecting on the west coast or you just want to go to Vancouver directly, it has never been easier,” Bogusz said.
Bogusz also spoke about the airport’s priorities for 2020, which include restoring flights to a U.S. hub and improving the terminal building in areas before security.
Boeing issues continue
On Monday, WestJet revealed it had scrubbed Boeing’s grounded 737 Max jet from the airline’s flight schedules through April 4.
It’s the ninth delay since regulatory bodies grounded the Max in March after two fatal crashes in five months.
Bogusz said the aircraft’s problems have had an effect on the Regina airport.
“We had massive impacts with this in 2019,” he said. “In fact, all our flights to Phoenix and Orlando were completely scrubbed off the schedule. Thankfully, (those flights) have restarted in January. Now, I have not seen any additional impacts for YQR as of yet, but we’re of course monitoring that very closely.
“The challenge with these cancellations is they’re happening almost in real time, so if you have a flight booked with an airline like WestJet, you’ve really got to keep an eye on if you have to change your itinerary or change your aircraft.”
— With files from The Canadian Press
