Helijet International has announced it is adding more scheduled flights between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island effective Monday, June 8, 2020.

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The number of scheduled Helijet flights between Vancouver and Victoria will increase to five roundtrips each weekday, up from the current three daily roundtrips.

The number of scheduled flights between Vancouver and Nanaimo will double to four roundtrip flights per weekday, up from the current two daily roundtrips.

These additional flights also allow Helijet to offer an earlier start each day. The first Vancouver-to-Victoria flight will depart at 7:00 a.m., and the first Vancouver-to-Nanaimo flight will leave at 7:10 a.m. Daily schedules will also end later in the day, with the last flight leaving Nanaimo at 6:00 p.m. The last flight from Victoria departs at 6:30 p.m.

“With businesses gradually reopening, and the provincial government planning to resume sitting later this month, we’re preparing to support additional travel demand for our flights to and from Vancouver Island,” said Danny Sitnam, president and CEO of Helijet. “Although the entire air travel industry has been severely impacted by Covid-19, we pledged to keep operating with a reduced flight schedule as an essential service link to safely serve our communities, our dedicated guests and to keep the majority of our workforce employed. We are now in a stronger position to increase service provision as our guest numbers are anticipated to climb.”

Helijet continues to protect the safety of passengers and crew alike by maintaining strict sanitizing and social distancing protocols which include:

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• Limiting the maximum number of passengers in all aircraft to six, instead of the usual 12, to increase the distance between travellers.
• Sanitizing aircraft cabins before each flight, as well as disinfecting high touch areas within the cabin and cockpit.
• Providing a detailed disinfection regime for all aircraft at the end of every day, to ensure no contaminants remain for passengers who board the aircraft next.
• Making hand sanitizer available to all travellers and staff at each terminal.
• Deeper cleaning of terminal facilities, washrooms and offices on a more frequent basis.
• Complimentary food and beverage service at terminals consists of grab-and-go pre-packaged foods and beverages only.

In adherence with Government of Canada Covid-19 travel restrictions, prior to being allowed to board their flight, all passengers are subject to a health check — specific questions relating to any symptoms you may have, and whether you are under a mandatory public health quarantine. All air passengers must also have a removable, non-medical mask or face covering to cover their mouth and nose during travel. At check-in, passengers on all flights are required to demonstrate they have the necessary non-medical mask or face covering to be worn for the duration of the flight.