WestJet Encore

WestJet Encore.
WestJet Encore is a Canadian regional airline that began operations in 2013 as a subsidiary of WestJet Airlines, Ltd., the holding company for WestJet Airlines. It is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Originally limited to Western Canada, air service was later supplemented by routes in the eastern half of the country. Pilot bases are in Calgary and Toronto, where many WestJet Encore flights operate. Because WestJet Airlines operates only larger aircraft such as the Boeing 737, the company could not profitably serve many routes with less traffic. WestJet Encore was created to use smaller planes, allowing the company to serve these routes and to increase the frequency of flights on other routes. The airline is the fourth largest operator of the Bombardier Q400 NextGen aircraft (pictured), a variant of the Bombardier Dash 8. The airline was initially staffed with non-union employees but the pilots have since unionized.