WestJet opened the doors on a $50 million hangar at Calgary International Airport that will accommodate its new flagship Boeing 787 aircraft. The 125,000 square foot hangar will be the maintenance hub for WestJet’s Dreamliner fleet, which will grow to 10 aircraft over the next year. “[This] another significant step in WestJet’s journey as a global network carrier,” said Ed Sims, WestJet President and CEO. “This state-of-the-art facility provides the perfect environment for our highly skilled aviation maintenance engineering teams to continue to ensure the safety and comfort of our 25 million annual guests.”
WestJet has been using its 787s for its daily mid morning flight to Toronto for the last few months to shake down the new equipment and on Sunday they start the international service Sims was talking about. A 787 will head to London on April 28 and start service to Paris and Dublin on May 17 and June 1 respectively. The new hangar will hold one 787 or four 737s and accommodate 130 maintenance techs to work in shirt sleeve comfort regardless of the variable Alberta weather.