WestJet Pilot Contract Approved, Swoop To Be Absorbed Into Mainline

A new contract approved by WestJet Group pilots folds ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) subsidiary Swoop into mainline operations.

WestJet mainline and Swoop operate Boeing 737 narrowbodies, and during a recent interview with Aviation Daily, WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech explained that “conceptually I think it is wrong to believe that you have to have different airline brands to segment your customers.” 

Noting that “you have to fly your airplane with 189 seats seven days a week, 365 days a year,” von Hoensbroech concluded, “it’s virtually impossible to address just one customer segment,” if you are not in a densely populated region such as Central Europe or the U.S. Canada, he said, is twice the size of the European Union (EU) but with a tenth of the population of the EU. 

Given those dynamics, WestJet’s CEO explained, “you have to be able to segment your customers within aircraft and not across different aircraft, and that’s what we do within WestJet.” 

WestJet offers a premium class for those customers that prefer that type of experience, “and this comes at a cost,” von Hoensbroech stated. But equally, the company offers a low-price bare bones product. “That’s how modern airline management works, you have to segment your customers and therefore if you segment within your aircraft, we can actually serve the ultra-low-cost-carrier segment,” without operating a ULCC, von Hoensbroech explained. 

The company says it expects a full integration of Swoop into mainline operations by the end of October, with the ULCC continuing to operate its existing network through the end of its published schedule on October 28. Swoop employees will move to WestJet.

Swoop was created under the tenure of WestJet’s previous CEO Ed Sims as a response to the crop of ultra-low-cost upstart airlines in Canada that were working to make their mark. It formally launched operations in June 2018 and competes with Flair Airlines and Lynx Air. Aviation Week Network’s Fleet Discovery shows Swoop operates five 737-8s and 10 737-800s, with one additional -8 categorized as parked/in reserve. Its network encompasses 22 destinations, according to Aviation Week’s CAPA, including 13 domestic markets, seven Latin American airports, and two in the U.S. 

Of the pilots who took part in the contract vote, 87% voted in favor of the agreement, ALPA noted as it announced the ratification on June 9.

The approved contract includes “major scheduling and quality-of-life improvements,” ALPA said, along with “industry-leading pay increases.” During negotiations, union leadership had pointed to a 45% pay gap when compared to U.S. carriers.

“Since negotiations began, we have been clear that our experienced and dedicated pilots deserve a contract that delivers on the goals of better job security, enhanced compensation, and more flexible schedules to allow for a better work/life balance,” said Capt. Bernard Lewall, chair of the WestJet ALPA Master Executive Council (MEC). “We believe this contract, which is consistent with collective agreements other ALPA-represented pilot groups are signing with their employers, does just that.”

The contract goes into effect July 1, with retroactive pay to Jan. 1. Its approval follows months of negotiations that nearly culminated in a work stoppage before a tentative agreement was reached May 18. Negotiations began in September 2022.