WestJet has stopped flying to 13 international destinations this year, including every one of its markets in Cuba, and its last remaining cut, service to Guadalajara, Mexico, ends Oct. 18, according to an analysis of the airline’s schedule published Monday by aviation outlet Simple Flying.
The Calgary-based carrier’s list of dropped destinations includes three in Europe: Copenhagen, Glasgow and Madrid. Seven are in Cuba, Cayo Coco, Cienfuegos, Cayo Largo del Sur, Havana, Holguín, Santa Clara and Varadero, after WestJet pulled out of the country entirely in February. The others are San Andrés Island in Colombia, which ended in March, Lihue on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, which ended in April, and Guadalajara.
The European cuts hit Halifax hardest. Trade publication Open Jaw reported Oct. 2 that WestJet is leaving Halifax-Copenhagen, Halifax-Madrid and Toronto Pearson-Glasgow out of its summer 2027 schedule, after the routes flew their last seasonal flights in September. The Halifax-Copenhagen route only launched in May as part of WestJet’s codeshare expansion with Scandinavian Airlines, and both Halifax routes were part of the airline’s push to turn Halifax Stanfield International Airport into a transatlantic gateway.
WestJet cited higher fuel prices in part when it disclosed the European cuts, Simple Flying reported. Route data site AeroRoutes described the change as part of a broader shift in which the airline is moving its single-aisle aircraft to routes that earn more.
The loss of European service from Atlantic Canada is compounded by Icelandair, which ends its scheduled flights to Halifax on Oct. 18. The Chronicle Herald reported that the move leaves no scheduled link between Iceland and Atlantic Canada.
“Icelandair first returned to Halifax Stanfield in 2023 and has been a valued airline partner providing connectivity between Halifax and Iceland, as well as through its European network,” Mikela Sani Routledge, communications and marketing adviser for the Halifax International Airport Authority, told Open Jaw.
The international cuts follow a turbulent year for the airline. WestJet flight attendants walked off the job this summer, forcing hundreds of cancellations, and earlier this year the airline removed dozens of international routes as it reshaped its network for 2026, including U.S. and Caribbean services.
Travellers holding bookings on a cancelled WestJet route are generally entitled to a refund or rebooking under Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations when an airline cancels a flight. Passengers should check the status of their booking on WestJet’s website or contact the airline or their travel agent directly.
Via Simple Flying, Open Jaw and AeroRoutes.
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