Lethbridge Airport to remain busy as WestJet service ends

The City of Lethbridge is advancing a roadmap for the local airport as regular passenger service to YQL comes to an end.

WestJet is ending their single route service to and from Calgary after June 23rd, and the city says they are in talks with other airlines to potentially bring service back to the city. In the meantime, the city is prioritizing stabilizing costs and revenue at the airport, and explore further connectivity needs to better serve residents and businesses.

Airport manager, Cameron Prince, says “Regional aviation is a challenging environment right now, but we’re taking a proactive and strategic approach to ensure YQL remains competitive and positioned for future opportunities. At the same time, it’s important to recognize that the airport continues to be a busy and essential part of our community and region, supporting a wide range of services beyond scheduled passenger travel.”

There will be reduced use at the airport terminal to decrease operating costs. Prince confirms that some airline-specific jobs will be affected with WestJet leaving Lethbridge, but a number is not known at this time.

Prince says there is interest in leasing the surrounding land in the interim, including hangers and warehouses to bring in further revenue streams. But an obstacle their facing is ensuring that underground utility infrastructure can be provided to leasers.

Activity is expected to remain busy at the airport even with the departure of WestJet. In 2025, there was an average of 100 daily flights involving charter and private aviation, cargo, medevac services, RCMP operations, flight training and agriculture and resource development flights. That’s approximately 98% of activity that is not connected to regular scheduled passenger flights.