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Feb 27, 2014 | 11:59 pm

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WestJet Airlines Ltd could start flying wide-body aircraft next year

http://business.financialpost.com/20...aft-next-year/

WestJet Airlines Ltd. could bring in wide-body aircraft for in-house flying as soon as next year, the company disclosed to its pilots in a private presentation Thursday.

The Calgary-based carrier currently has a so-called “wet-lease” agreement in place with Thomas Cook, in which Thomas Cook provides pilots and two Boeing 757s to WestJet for its flights to Hawaii in the winter months. That contract, however, expires in the spring of 2015.

WestJet’s management has been evaluating the possibility of placing a purchase order for larger, longer-range aircraft. But in the interim, the carrier is floating the idea of “dry leasing” some Boeing 767 or Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft that will use its own pilots and crews when the Thomas Cook contract expires, according to those who attended the town hall with the pilots Thursday in Calgary.

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