WestJet is flying a normal schedule again.
Canada’s second largest airline was grounded for roughly 36 hours at the start of August 2026 when its 4,400 mainline flight attendants walked out. It reached a tentative agreement on 3 August, and the ratification vote is still under way.
With that behind it, the airline has gone back to the expansion it set out earlier in the year: 13 Boeing 737-10s on lease and five new winter sun routes, on a network built around Calgary and Toronto.
Latest WestJet updates
Last updated: 14 August 2026.
What this means for your trip: WestJet is operating normally, so there is no reason to avoid booking it. Watch the ratification vote, which had produced no announced result as of 14 August 2026. If members reject the deal, bargaining reopens and a fresh strike becomes possible, requiring 72 hours’ notice under the Canada Labour Code. Book a flexible fare if your date cannot move.
What WestJet flights cost right now
The fares below come from Wego’s own flight search: live results from real searches sampled on 14 August 2026, one-way economy for travel on 15 September 2026, with every itinerary checked to confirm WestJet is the operating carrier.
Western Canada trunk routes are remarkably cheap, transcontinental flying costs roughly twice as much, and the longest domestic sector in the sample is the priciest.
Read those numbers with care. The cheapest fare WestJet shows is usually UltraBasic, which carries a personal item only on most routes, so adding a bag narrows the gap to a full-service ticket fast. Companion voucher bookings also carry a separate fuel surcharge, currently CAD 40, covered in our guide to the WestJet companion voucher fuel surcharge.
WestJet fares and baggage explained
WestJet sells five fare families on a single 737 cabin, plus Business on the 787 Dreamliner. The differences come down to bags, seat selection and flexibility.
- UltraBasic. Personal item only on most routes, no changes, no cancellations, no refunds, and no WestJet Rewards earning. Bring a full-size carry-on to the gate and you will be checking it and paying for it.
- Econo. Adds a full carry-on bag. Seat selection, checked bags and any change still cost extra.
- EconoFlex. One free checked bag, free seat selection, and free changes and cancellations with fare difference.
- Premium and PremiumFlex. Extra legroom in a 2×2 layout, two checked bags, food and drink included.
- Business and BusinessFlex. Available on the 787 only, with lounge access on top of the Premium benefits.
WestJet raised checked bag fees twice in the first half of 2026, most recently on 23 April.
On an UltraBasic ticket within Canada and the United States, a first checked bag now runs from CAD 60 to CAD 93 and a second from CAD 75 to CAD 111, depending on whether you prepay online, add it at check-in, or pay at the counter. Prepaying always beats paying at the airport.
Every fare allows up to four checked bags on WestJet mainline and three on WestJet Encore, each under 23kg and 157cm in combined dimensions. Free first bags come with EconoFlex and above, WestJet RBC cardholders, and Silver tier and above in WestJet Rewards.
WestJet Rewards, and who owns the airline
WestJet Rewards switched from WestJet dollars to WestJet points in April 2025, with CAD 1 of old value converting to 100 points, and points do not expire. Status runs Silver, Gold and Platinum, and spending on the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard can carry a member to the top tier without flying, which is unusual among Canadian programmes.
Ownership changed in late 2025 and stale reporting is common. Delta Air Lines, Korean Air and Air France-KLM together hold a 25% minority stake, completed on 22 October 2025, split as 12.7% to Delta, 10% to Korean Air and 2.3% to Air France-KLM. Onex Corporation still owns and controls the airline.
All three investors are SkyTeam members that already codeshare with WestJet, though WestJet itself has not joined SkyTeam or any global alliance.
Fleet and network
WestJet runs a unified narrowbody fleet of around 150 Boeing 737s after completing the Sunwing Airlines integration on 29 May 2025, a two-year process that followed the Swoop merger in 2024 and absorbed aircraft from the collapsed Lynx Air. Sunwing Airlines as an operating carrier is gone, while Sunwing Vacations continues as a tour operator brand on WestJet’s sun routes.
That consolidation left Vancouver and Edmonton as major bases behind Calgary and Toronto, and made WestJet the only serious low-cost challenger to Air Canada across Canada.
Widebody flying is handled by seven Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, which carry the fleet’s only Business cabin.
In February 2026 WestJet converted six 737-10 orders into two more 787-9s, taking its 787 order book to nine on top of the seven flying. The 13 leased 737-10s announced in July are the next major step, and older 737NGs are being retired to cut fuel burn. For the operational track record behind that fleet, see our review of whether WestJet is safe.
On the network side, 13 new destinations launched between July and September 2026 from Calgary, Halifax, Montreal and Toronto, including three transatlantic routes from Halifax to Copenhagen, Lisbon and Madrid, plus Toronto to Cardiff and Glasgow. Calgary picked up seasonal domestic service to North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Campbell River, and Edmonton gained Terrace.
Frequently asked questions
Is the WestJet strike over?
Yes. Flight attendants walked out on 2 August 2026 and WestJet reached a tentative agreement with CUPE on 3 August. Crews returned immediately and the schedule was restored over the following days. Members still have to ratify the deal. CUPE launched that process on 7 August and no result had been announced as of 14 August 2026.
Can I claim compensation for a flight cancelled during the strike?
Not the cash compensation for inconvenience. The APPR classes a labour disruption at the airline as outside the carrier’s control, so the CAD 400 to CAD 1,000 tiers do not apply. WestJet is still required to rebook you within 48 hours on its own or a partner’s flight, or give you the choice of a full refund or free alternate arrangements. If it failed to do that, you have a complaint worth filing with the Canadian Transportation Agency.
Does Sunwing still exist?
Sunwing Airlines does not. Its integration into WestJet completed on 29 May 2025 and its aircraft now fly in WestJet colours under WestJet’s operating certificate. Sunwing Vacations survives as a tour operator brand, and you will still see Sunwing Vacations packages sold on WestJet sun routes.
Who owns WestJet now that Delta has invested?
Onex Corporation still owns and controls WestJet. Delta Air Lines, Korean Air and Air France-KLM hold a combined 25% minority stake, completed on 22 October 2025. The three investors are SkyTeam members and all codeshare with WestJet, but WestJet has not joined SkyTeam or any other global alliance.
Does an UltraBasic fare include a carry-on bag?
On most routes it includes a personal item only, sized to fit under the seat. Passengers travelling to Europe or Asia, or those who buy Extended Comfort, get a full carry-on as well. If you arrive at the gate with a standard carry-on on a domestic UltraBasic ticket, it will be checked and you will pay the checked bag fee, which is higher at the gate than prepaid online.
When will WestJet fly the Boeing 737-10?
Aviation Capital Group signed leases for 13 aircraft in July 2026 and expects to deliver the world’s first 737-10 from its orderbook to WestJet once the type is certified. Reporting pointed to a first delivery around the end of 2026, with passenger service more likely in 2027 because Transport Canada certification tends to follow the FAA. Treat any in-service date as provisional until WestJet confirms it.
Sources
- WestJet Newsroom (strike timeline, aircraft parking, tentative agreement)
- Canadian Union of Public Employees (tentative agreement terms and ratification process)
- CBC News (strike coverage, passengers affected, ground pay dispute)
- Canadian Transportation Agency (labour disruption entitlements, rebooking and refund duties)
- Canadian Transportation Agency, APPR highlights (compensation tiers and standards of treatment)
- Aviation Capital Group (13 Boeing 737-10 leases)
- Travelweek (winter 2026 to 2027 sun routes)
- PAX (companion voucher fuel surcharge reduction)
- WestJet (Sunwing Airlines integration completion)
- FlightGlobal (Delta, Korean Air and Air France-KLM stake completion)
- WestJet baggage policy (fare families, carry-on and checked bag rules)
- CBC News (23 April 2026 checked bag fee increase and the UltraBasic price range)
- CTV News (CTA penalty against Air Canada for rebooking and refund failures)
- Simple Flying (the 13 new destinations flown between July and September 2026)
- Wego flight search data, fares sampled 14 August 2026 (fare figures in the chart)
The information in this article is accurate as of 14 August 2026. Routes, fares and airline policies change frequently, so confirm details with the airline before booking.
