Discount airline New Leaf has been given the go-ahead to re-start selling tickets for its low-cost flights to and from seven Canadian cities, including Kelowna.
Winnipeg-based New Leaf, which announced in January that it would start offering seats on its flights with fares as low as $89, abruptly stopped sales a short time later and before its first planes even took off when the Canadian Transportation Agency announced it would review licensing requirements for in-direct air service carriers such as New Leaf.
The company planned to use Kelowna’s Flair Air as its actual carrier and sell seats on planes operated by Flair Air.
With the announcement late Tuesday that New Leaf can continue with its business plan without have to have its own airline license, the company is set to start selling tickets again.
“This is a victory for Canadian travelers,” said New Leaf CEO Jim Young.
“We are determined to bring low-cost air travel pricing to the Canadian marketplace. With the completion of the CTA review, we will resume booking in the very near future.”
No date was immediately announced as to when tickets sales will start or when the first flights will take place.
New Leaf plans to fly between Kelowna and Abbotsford, Halifax, Hamilton, Regina, Saskatoon and Winnipeg. It has announced fares ranging between $89 one-way and $149 one-way.
Extra fees would be charged for everything from on-board snacks and drinks to luggage, both checked bags and and carry-ons too big to fit under a seat on the plane.