Sunwing Airlines Inc. is a Canadian

low-cost airline A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (occasionally referred to as '' no-frills'', ''budget'' or ''discount carrier'' or ''airline'', and abbreviated as ''LCC'') is an airline that is operated with an especially high emphasis on minimizing ope ...

headquartered in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Sunwing Airlines offers scheduled and charter services from Canada and the United States to destinations within the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America in the winter months. During the summer months, the company offers domestic services across Canada. It is a subsidiary of Sunwing Travel Group and its main Canadian bases are Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport,

Toronto Pearson International Airport Lester B. Pearson International Airport , commonly known as Toronto Pearson International Airport, is an international airport located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is the main airport serving Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the sur ...

, and

Vancouver International Airport Vancouver International Airport is an international airport located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, serving the city of Vancouver and the Lower Mainland region. It is located from Downtown Vancouver. It is the second busies ...

. The company also operates seasonal flight services from approximately 25 local Canadian gateways including

Calgary International Airport Calgary International Airport , branded as YYC Calgary International Airport, is an international airport that serves the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is located approximately northeast of downtown and covers an area of 20.82 square ...

Edmonton International Airport Edmonton International Airport, as of August 29, 2022, officially branded YEG Edmonton International Airport is the primary air passenger and air cargo facility in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of the Canadian province of Alberta. Designa ...

Halifax Stanfield International Airport Halifax Stanfield International Airport is a Canadian airport in Goffs, Nova Scotia, a rural community of the Halifax Regional Municipality. It serves the Halifax region, mainland Nova Scotia, and adjacent areas in the neighbouring Maritime p ...

Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport Ottawa/Macdonald–Cartier International Airport or Macdonald–Cartier International Airport (french: L'aéroport international Macdonald-Cartier) is the main international airport serving Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and its metropolitan area kn ...

Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport, also known as Jean Lesage International Airport (French: ''Aéroport international Jean-Lesage de Québec'', or ''Aéroport de Québec'') , is the primary airport serving Quebec City, Canada. Design ...

, and

Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport (commonly known as Winnipeg International Airport or Winnipeg Airport) is a Transport Canada designated international airport located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is the seventh b ...

History

C-GMYH B757-236 Skyservice-Sunwing MAN 15AUG05 (6590678193)

By 2004, Sunwing Vacations had become the second largest

tour operator A tour operator is a business that typically combines and organizes accommodations, meals, sightseeing and transportation components, in order to create a package tour. They advertise and produce brochures to promote their products, holidays ...

in the Ontario area. That year, a former Skyservice employee named Mark Williams approached the CEO of Sunwing Travel Group, Colin Hunter, and asked if he wanted to start an airline. A few weeks later official plans to launch the airline were in place. In November 2005, a Boeing 737-800 departing from Toronto to Santiago de Cuba was the airline's inaugural flight. In December 2005, Sunwing flew its first direct flight from

Sudbury, Ontario Sudbury, officially the City of Greater Sudbury is the largest city in Northern Ontario by population, with a population of 166,004 at the 2021 Canadian Census. By land area, it is the largest in Ontario and the fifth largest in Canada. It is ...

to Varadero, Cuba, making it one of the first international flights directly from the Sudbury Airport. In November 2006, the company flew its first flight out of Montreal. By 2008, Sunwing Airlines had grown to operate in 29 cities. In 2015, it was announced that Sunwing had finalized a $350 million deal to acquire two Boeing 737-800 and four Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft from

Air Lease Corporation Air Lease Corporation (ALC) is an American aircraft leasing company founded in 2010 and headed by Steven F. Udvar-Házy. Air Lease purchases new commercial aircraft through direct orders from Boeing, Airbus, Embraer and ATR, and leases them to i ...

. The aircraft are due to be delivered over a four-year period from early 2016.

Seneca College Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology is a multiple-campus public college in the Greater Toronto Area, and Peterborough, Ontario, Canada regions. It offers full-time and part-time programs at the baccalaureate, diploma, certificate an ...

and the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to "Uptown" Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also operates ...

launched a partnership with Sunwing in 2016 to form a cadet program which includes flight training and mentoring through Sunwing. Sunwing joined the

Transportation Security Administration The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that has authority over the security of transportation systems within, and connecting to the United States. It was created ...

's (TSA) expedited screening program, TSA PreCheck, in January 2017. At that time, the TSA PreCheck program was available at 180 United States airports and works with 30 airlines. Sunwing took delivery of their first Boeing 737 MAX 8 on May 25, 2018.

Destinations

Sunwing Airlines flies to a wide range of vacation destinations across the Caribbean, Mexico, Cuba, Central, and South America. The most popular destinations include

Varadero Varadero (), also referred to as ''Playa Azul'' (Blue Beach), is a resort town in the province of Matanzas, Cuba, and one of the largest resort areas in the Caribbean. Varadero Beach was rated one of the world's best beaches in TripAdvisor's Trav ...

Punta Cana Punta Cana is a resort town in the easternmost region of the Dominican Republic. It is part of the Veron–Punta Cana municipal district, in the Higüey municipality of La Altagracia Province. According to the 2010 census, this district had a po ...

, Cancun, and

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore, all of which form the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area, ho ...

. Its parent company, the Sunwing Travel Group, is Cuba's largest travel provider internationally, sending over 700,000 vacationers to the destination each year. In Canada, the airline operates several domestic routes, including

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

which operated daily as of Summer 2015, as well as maintaining year-round service to its most popular destinations. Other connections include Deer Lake, Gander, and St John's from Toronto. As of Summer 2015, the airline operated service to Caribbean destinations from

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

Lansing Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, making ...

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Newark,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, and Rockford. In summer, Sunwing Airlines sends many of their 737-800 aircraft over to Europe to operate for the

TUI Group TUI Group is a German leisure, travel and tourism company. TUI is an acronym for ''Touristik Union International'' ("Tourism Union International"). TUI AG was known as Preussag AG until 1997 when the company changed its activities from mining to ...

during their extremely busy season. The aircraft operate flights all around Europe for the company. The deal is reciprocated during the winter months with Tui sending several aircraft to Canada to operate Sunwing routes. Sunwing has an agreement with ULCC Swoop that allows passengers out of Hamilton, London, Edmonton, Abbotsford, and Winnipeg to book Sunwing vacation packages with Swoop flights.

Fleet

Current fleet

The Sunwing Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft :

Former fleet

Accidents and incidents

*On July 25, 2014, a Sunwing Airlines Boeing 737-800, Flight 772 from

to Scarlett Martínez International Airport was forced to return to Toronto after a passenger made a

bomb threat A bomb threat or bomb scare is a threat, usually verbal or written, to detonate an explosive or incendiary device to cause property damage, death, injuries, and/or incite fear, whether or not such a device actually exists. History Bomb threats ...

. The plane was escorted by a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army S ...

plane and it landed safely. The passenger was arrested and was said to be mentally ill after being examined by medical personnel. The same flight was delayed again after a passenger fainted. *On January 5, 2018, a Sunwing Airlines Boeing 737-800 (registration C-FPRP), which was being taxied with no passengers, struck WestJet Flight 2425, a Boeing 737-800 (registration C-FDMB) flight from

Cancún International Airport Cancun International Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Internacional de Cancún) is located in Cancún, Quintana Roo, on the Caribbean coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. It is Latin America's third and Mexico's second busiest airport, after Mexico Ci ...

to Toronto Pearson International Airport, while parked and on approach to the gate. Fire crews put out a small fire on the Sunwing aircraft. *On December 30, 2021, a Sunwing Airlines Boeing 737-800 (registration C-FYJD), was operating Sunwing Airlines Flight 2283, a charter flight from

Montréal–Trudeau International Airport Montréal–Trudeau International Airport (french: Aéroport International Montréal-Trudeau) or Montréal–Trudeau, formerly known and still commonly referred to as Montréal–Dorval International Airport (''Aéroport international Montré ...

. On board the flight a group of

influencers An Internet celebrity (also known as a social media influencer, social media personality, internet personality, or simply influencer) is a celebrity who has acquired or developed their fame and notability through the Internet. The rise of social m ...

started to become unruly on board the flight and began to consume their own alcohol, use electronic cigarettes, with other passengers alleging that drugs were being consumed on the aircraft as well, non-compliance of orders from

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transporta ...

surrounding mask-wearing due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Canada The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (). It is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). Most cases over the course of the pandemic have been in Ontario, Que ...

. In the aftermath of this event, Sunwing canceled the charter flight back to Montreal with other Canadian airlines,

Air Transat Air Transat is a Canadian airline based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1986, it is the country's third-largest airline behind Air Canada and WestJet, operating scheduled and charter flights serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. Air Transa ...

and

Flag Carrier A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by the government for international operations. Hist ...

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocea ...

stating that passengers who were on Flight 2283 would be denied boarding.

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority the elected House of Commons; as suc ...

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since ...

said that Flight 2283 was, "a slap in the face to see people putting themselves, putting their fellow citizens, putting airline workers at risk by being completely irresponsible".

Federal Minister of Transport Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

Omar Alghabra Omar Alghabra ( ar, عمر الغبرا, ʿUmar al-Ḡabrā; born October 24, 1969) is a Saudi-born Syrian-Canadian politician who has served as Canada's Minister of Transport since January 2021. A member of the Liberal Party, he has represente ...

and

Minister of Public Safety The minister of public safety (french: ministre de la sécurité publique) is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet responsible for overseeing Public Safety Canada, the internal security department of the Government of Canada. T ...

Marco Mendicino Marco Mendicino (; born July 28, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the Minister of Public Safety since October 26, 2021. A member of the Liberal Party, Mendicino represents Eglinton—Lawrence in the House of Commons, sitting as a me ...

released a joint statement and directing both of their respective departments to investigate the events of Flight 2283.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Air Transport Association of Canada Low-cost carriers Airlines established in 2005 Charter airlines of Canada Companies based in Etobicoke 2005 establishments in Ontario Canadian companies established in 2005 TUI Group