Qantas will open up easier connections to Canada through a new alliance with WestJet starting on October 15.
Travellers on the Red Roo’s flights to Los Angeles will be able to continue their journey to Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton with WestJet, on top of the existing codeshares with Alaska Airlines and American Airlines to Vancouver and Toronto.
An additional WestJet connection will also run between Honolulu and Vancouver.
From those key Canuck cities, WestJet offers 20 one-stop flights to other cities across the country including Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Halifax.
Also part of the deal: Qantas travellers will be able to earn frequent flyer points and status credits on the codeshare WestJet flights carrying a QF flight number.
Here’s the new shape of Qantas' Canadian network:
Qantas Executive Manager International Sales Stephen Thompson said that the new codeshares deliver on the airline's “gateway strategy of operating to key global hubs and providing customers with access to an expanded network with airline partners based in those ports.”
“With the premium experience offered on Qantas flights to the US, connecting to WestJet’s wide network and young fleet, we are confident our customers will enjoy their journey right through to their destination in Canada,” he added.
Breaking it down, the following codeshare flights operated by WestJet, connecting to and from Qantas’ Los Angeles and Honolulu flights can be booked from October 1 2014 for travel from October 15, subject to government approval.
- Los Angeles (LAX) / Vancouver (YVR)
- Los Angeles (LAX) / Calgary (YYC)
- Los Angeles (LAX) / Edmonton (YEG)
- Honolulu (HNL) / Vancouver (YVR)
- Calgary (YYC) / Toronto (YTO)
- Calgary (YYC) / Montreal (YMQ)
- Calgary (YYC) / Ottawa (YOW)
- Calgary (YYC) / Kelowna (YLW)
- Calgary (YYC) / Winnipeg (YWG)
- Calgary (YYC) / Victoria (YYJ)
- Calgary (YYC) / Saskatoon (YXE)
- Calgary (YYC) / Regina (YQR)
- Calgary (YYC) / Halifax (YHZ)
- Calgary (YYC) / Vancouver (YVR)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Toronto (YTO)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Kelowna (YLW)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Edmonton (YEA)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Ottawa (YOW)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Saskatoon (YXE)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Regina (YQR)
- Vancouver (YVR) / Winnipeg (YWG)
- Edmonton (YEG) / Winnipeg (YWG)
- Toronto (YTO) / Ottawa (YOW)
- Toronto (YTO) / Montreal (YMQ)
The codeshare partnership with WestJet comes as the airline plans to increase flights from Australia to Los Angeles, and follows a recent tie-up with China Airlines on flights from Sydney and Brisbane to Taipei, along with a bolstered codeshare network with Oneworld partner LAN Airlines across South America.
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Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Jul 2011
Total posts 1378
Another move towards potential oneworld membership?
WestJEt flights are already available on oneworld Global Explorer fares and it has existing codeshares with AA, BA, CX and JL
(That said it also codeshares with AF, MU, CZ, DL, KL, KE, PR)
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Jul 2011
Total posts 1378
OR Is WestJet more like Virign Australia.
Mostly a domestic airlineand happy to accept codeshares from two alliances
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Sep 2014
Total posts 84
Maybe this was part of the deal for them to take four ex-Qantas 767 aircraft :)
Good news though for those wishing to travel to or around Canada.
10 Mar 2011
Total posts 526
Seems like a sensible move. I have flown Westjet and found them to be pretty good.
19 May 2014
Total posts 40
Another dreadful budget airline that qantas forming relationship with, can it get any worse?. No business class so premium pax from qantas transferred onto budget airline.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
30 Apr 2014
Total posts 9
As a regular traveller to Canada this is great news to me as when there I fly domestically with West Jet.
Internationally flying direct from Sydney to Vancouver is ideal but I am not a fan of Air Canada, my next favourite route is via Auckland with Air New Zealand. I have flown to vancouver via Honolulu before and enjoyed the stop over and this is now a little bit more incentive to do it again though a direct flight from Sydney to Vancouver with qantas or Air New Zealand would be greatly appreciated!
04 Nov 2010
Total posts 670
Sounds good to me, a few good one-stop Canadian cities from LAX. Can't see how anybody could complain about that!
12 Dec 2012
Total posts 1027
Why the city code for Toronto? Of the 4 airports under that metro code, WS flies to two of them. One (Waterloo [YKF]) only has flights to YYC. All other WS flights are to YYZ.
Jetstar Airways - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Feb 2012
Total posts 17
At last! Anything except the tyranny of Air Canada. having lived in Canada or a decade or so, and suffered at the hands of Air Canada for that time, I am honestly prepared to fly Anthing Except Air Canada. As an airline they are a bully both to passengers and to other airlines. It stretches back to when Canadian Airlines went bust and Air Canada was forced to take over all staff/metal and flights. it didn't work.
Jetstar Airways - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Feb 2012
Total posts 17
I suppose I should add that I have never had anything but great service from WestJet. it promisies no more than it can deliver, but does it well!
QANTAS
17 Aug 2015
Total posts 1
I have previously flown WestJet from Maui to Vancouver return and was pleasantly surprised with the standard, quality and professional service it provided on both flights, especially for a so-called budget carrier. The propsed up-coming flights between Calgary, Vancouver and Honolulu next year should allow me to ascertain if the service I have just comented on still remains - I am sure it will.
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