Orcair

Let the speculation begin

-Advanced stages of sourcing aircraft
-From Fall 2015 (earliest)
-Contract for Thomas Cook 757s ends Spring 2015
-Support from Board of Directors and Pilot Association
-First deployment expected to be Alberta-Hawaii

http://westjet2.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=901

tcook052

That's good news as maybe we'll get a YEG-HNL nonstop back. ^

muskoka

This is great news. We go to Maui every winter. We will manage to avoid AC Rogue this year but no doubt YYC- OGG will get rogued in 2015. We had resigned ourselves to flying UA via SFO but now we will have an alternative especially if the price is similar and they offer preferred seating for purchase on say a 763. Knowing WJ they may also continue to offer the daytime early a.m. departures. I like it!

98103

Interesting the number of caveats they put in the press release:

"Certain information set forth in this news release, including, without limitation, information regarding WestJet's plans to fly its own wide-body aircraft; the initial expectation to operate four wide-body aircraft with the first deployments on routes between Alberta and Hawaii during the winter season beginning in late 2015; and the timing of further announcements regarding WestJet's wide-body schedule for the 2016 summer season is forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities. By its nature, forward-looking information is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond the Corporation's control, including those risk factors described in WestJet's public reports and filings which are available under WestJet's profile at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking information as actual results may vary materially from the forward-looking information. WestJet does not undertake to update, correct or revise any forward-looking information as a result of any new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable law."

I suppose it is just a massive CYA in the event that said widebodies are not secured. Who has some lovely A310s available?

pharmalady

Looks like standard SEC verbiage. We have that all over our drug development pipeline slides.

roastpuff

What's your guess on the types of planes? Will they remain all-Boeing? 767's? The "troubled teens" 787's?

Or will they go to the dark side... to Airbus!!!

Jagboi

I suspect it will be very dependant upon what is available at what price. 763's would be a good choice to expand into service to Europe, and not too big. They could also replace 737's on a 2 for 1 basis on domestic routes, like YYC-YYZ to add capacity.

Can UK service be that far away?

opethfan

My thoughts on the potential a/c:

767: quite readily available at a low price, but older aircraft with little future (which means retraining staff and operating a mixed WB fleet down the road) and reduced cargo capacity.

787: good luck getting one of those by 2015. WS have a good relationship with Boeing, but not THAT good. These birds are well spoken for right now. The 'troubled teens' are the last thing a new (to WB) operator want to be dealing with, considering the potential for maintenance issues.

A330: the best bet, in my opinion. Comfortable, newer birds with better cargo capacity and a better long term prognosis than the 767s. A340s could be acquired for pennies on the dollar to train staff and start routes while waiting for A330s to come down in price with the 788s replacing them. And then there are the NEO rumblings....

briantoronto

A330 is my bet. When Airbus launches the A330NEO they will need to fill out the order book of current A330s. They will give a smoking deal to airlines to take them, knowing the depreciation will be steep.

The other option is late model A330s that were bought for interim lift awaiting the 787.

Boeing is in the same box with the 777, but the 772 is uneconomical and the 773ER is too big. The 767 just doesn't cut it.

lowfareair

I'm going with either used A330s or a distant second of wet leasing while simultaneously announcing an order for new planes (hence why the pilots union might support temporary wet leasing). I'm sure they would jump on leased 787s in a heartbeat if they became available, though.

As attractive as the 767s and A340s can be price-wise, they will get slaughtered with fuel compared to the 787s that AC is bringing on.

Are there any older 772s available? They are about the same size as the A333.

sokolov

No, not really. These are standard disclaimers to prevent frivolous shareholders class action. Like pharmalady pointed out, many companies use such disclaimers all the time.

opethfan

The 767s aren't as bad as the A340s because they're smaller aircraft with less engines. AC is going to continue flying their 767s for some time.

I'm unsure about the 772. Most models are ER or LR nowadays, with only older frames being the standard model. For shorter segments and when expanding service for the first time, a 777 is a lot of plane to fill, and a lot of plane to carry. Especially when every later model is bigger.

The Lev

I think WS will want to go smaller rather than bigger, so I envision either:

1. Buy 763's to test the waters then either buy the 787 or 330neo
2. Jump in with both feet, get a great deal from Boeing on the 787 terrible teens (at least for the short-medium term) WS doesn't need the really long range of newer 787's. As part of the package, get slots later in the decade for 787-9's to give them greater flexibility in terms of size and range.

I'm leaning towards option 2 which avoids having to re-train pilots in a few years.

roastpuff

I can see #2 being the case. Would be interesting to see a 787 in WS colours!

And as far as I know, the "troubled teens" did not have any maintenance issues - they just did not meet performance targets due to weight... they were a little chubby let's say.

heraclitus

Any speculation on widebody assignments? Hawaii is the obvious one and presumably Europe, but which destinations?

And is that it or could they be assigned to the Caribbean? I'm assuming that other continents are off the table.