News Releases

CALGARY, Nov. 22 /CNW/ - WestJet (TSX:WJA) commented today on the report
issued by the Montreal Economic Institute regarding the excessive taxes
imposed on the Canadian airline industry.
Sean Durfy, WestJet President stated today, "This third-party report
issued by the Montreal Economic Institute corroborates that this problem is
very real for all airlines in Canada. For WestJet, our ability to compete with
U.S. carriers requires that the government act on the economic inequalities
imposed by excessive taxes, security fees and airport rent. According to the
study, industry-specific payments to the federal government rose by almost
20 per cent per year between 2000 and 2004/2005. Fuel taxes imposed on
Canadian carriers are three times higher than those in the United States.
These are but two examples of how our tax and fees structure is out of step
with other industries in Canada and certainly needs to be brought in line.
"That WestJet has been profitable in this heavily-taxed environment
speaks to the efforts of our WestJetters and of our efficient, low-cost
business model. WestJet was the most profitable airline in North America in
the third quarter, on a percentage basis, in spite of the lack of a level
playing field. This speaks to the ability of our business model to perform
well moving forward."

Marking its tenth anniversary this year, WestJet is Canada's leading
low-fare airline offering scheduled service throughout its 35-city North
American and Caribbean network. Named Canada's most admired corporate culture
in 2006, WestJet pioneered low-cost high-value flying in Canada. With
increased legroom and leather seats on its modern fleet of Boeing
Next-Generation 737 aircraft, and live seatback television provided by Bell
ExpressVu on the majority of its fleet, WestJet strives to be the number one
choice for travellers.