WestJet
WestJet is a regularly scheduled passenger airline that flies mainly in western Canada.
Begun in 1996 by Clive Beddoe, Mark Hill, Tim Morgan and Donald Bell, WestJet tried to follow the same path as Southwest Airlines and Morris Air, a low-cost carrier. Morris Air, however, was purchased by Southwest shortly after WestJet was created.
On February 29, 1996 the first WestJet flight (a Boeing 737 departed. At that time, the airline served Winnipeg, Manitoba, Kelowna, British Columbia, Calgary, Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta and Vancouver, British Columbia. By 1997, they had included Victoria, Regina and Saskatoon and in 1997 added Abbotsford, British Columbia.
In 1999 a milestone was reached when WestJet was able to offer its first public sharing at 2.5 million shares, and in 2000, the airline expanded to Canada's eastern region, reaching Hamilton, Moncton and Ottawa, and choosing Hamilton as the airline's eastern region hub. That year, Beddoe, Hill, Morgan and Bell were given the Ernst & Young entrepreneur of the year award in Canada for their contribution to the Canadian airline industry. In 2001, expansion continued, to include Fort McMurray, Comox, Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Thompson and Brandon. The airline's four creators also received another entrepreneur award. In 2002 the airline added two new eastern Canadian destinations, the cities of London, Ontario and Toronto. In April, 2003, Westjet added Windsor as a destination. Halifax, Nova Scotia, Moncton, New Brunswick, St. John's, Newfoundland, and Gander, Newfoundland have also been added.
The airline still flies a fleet that consists exclusively of Boeing 737's.
Official WestJet Website: http://www.westjet.ca