Airport officials told a city committee they are busy seeking to replace passenger air service in the region after WestJet announced it would cease flights from Medicine Hat to Calgary in June. Officials say they have already entered into talks with other service providers.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
Medicine Hat Regional airport officials say they will explore all options over the upcoming weeks and months to replace service after WestJet announced it will cease service between the Hat and Calgary this June, leaving the region without a passenger air service.
However, city staff have cautioned that finding a replacement service for the region may take “a while” and cited airline attraction and the inauguration of a new service as issues the city-owned airport is facing.
“Our priority going forward is to find the right carrier to provide the right service to meet the needs and demand of the outside market,” said Logan Boyd, airport manager during a development and infrastructure committee meeting Thursday afternoon.
Boyd told committee members the city has been an established air service market for more than 50 years and Medicine Hat’s 60-kilometre catchment area is able to generate 379,000 trips annually.
“And through our recent public engagement it really resonated that people care about our service here and want that in their community,” said Boyd.
According to that public survey on the airport master plan, 96 per cent of more than 750 responses said air service in the region was moderately or very important.
Since the announcement from WestJet on Feb. 23, Boyd says the officials have already been in contact with other carriers who have expressed “interest and curiosity” in the Medicine Hat market.
“With a (large) player exiting our market, a big player in the airline industry presents an opportunity for someone else,” said Boyd. “We’re going to continue that.”
Coun. Yusuf Mohammed inquired the role city councillors can assist in the process of finding a new air service, Boyd says to advocate with both the provincial and federal governments.
“We understand different levels of government are interested in supporting air service to regional communities so we ask that you help us out in those conversations of different levels of government,” said Boyd.
“This has a major impact on economic development and a few other things … businesses play a huge role in advancing economic activity in the region,” said Mohammed.
If the city is unable to find a replacement air service within a one-year time period there is the potential it will also lose out on federal grant funding provided to communities with air services.
“So there is currently a capital infrastructure heavy requirement grant program which the city is currently eligible to draw from because we have scheduled air service,” explained Boyd. “So if we lose scheduled air service for more than a full year our eligibility is withdrawn.”
Boyd says this could have an impact on the airport capital funding and operating deficit in the future.
WestJet says the last date of service from Medicine Hat and Lethbridge routes will be June 24, and travellers holding reservations for a later date are being notified of their options for a refund.
According to WestJet the decision to end air service comes as the company continues a strategic overhaul of its 2026 schedule, prioritizing route profitability over regional expansion.
“The decision to end air service is never taken lightly, and we understand this is disappointing news for the two communities and apologize for the impact this may have,” reads a statement provided by the airline.
Coun. Chris Hellman says council and city staffers have also reached out to their counterparts in Lethbridge to discuss potential collaboration avenues to find air service to serve all of southern Alberta, which could have the potential to limit the travel landscape this summer.
Hellman says Mayor Linnsie Clark has already been in contact with Lethbridge Mayor Blaine Hyggen to discuss opportunities to leverage a large customer base for a potential new service provider.
Boyd says the airport remains vital and annually provides more than 1,000 critical-care trips from the region to health-care facilities in bigger cities and is used as a training hub for future pilots.
WestJet commenced service from Calgary to Medicine Hat in June 2018, replacing Air Canada.
