Â鶹ÊÓƵ

CALGARY — The WestJet Group says it has closed its acquisition of Sunwing Vacations and Sunwing Airlines that was first announced in March last year.

The company says that, initially, the airlines will continue independent operations.

However, WestJet says the two airlines will move from being competitors to collaborators.

Stephen Hunter, formerly the CEO of Sunwing Vacations, has been appointed CEO of the WestJet Group’s vacations business. Hunter will be responsible for all tour operating and vacation package businesses at both Sunwing Vacations and WestJet Vacations.

The federal government approved the takeover of Sunwing by WestJet in March.

In signing off on the deal, Ottawa attached conditions that include extending Sunwing packages to five new cities, maintaining capacity on the most affected routes and keeping both a vacations business head office in Toronto and a regional one in Montreal for at least five years. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2023.

The Canadian Press