by Jen Mallia
Last updated: 11:25 AM ET, Mon December 15, 2025
Facing a near-unanimous wave of disapproval over its cabin overhaul design, WestJet has decided to hit pause on the initiative. The vastly unpopular proposal for 43 of the airline’s Boeing 737 craft included adding an extra row of seats, shortening leg room and making the majority of seats in economy “fixed seat,” that is, non-reclining.
Passengers and staff both pushed back, with the WestJet branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees issuing a bulletin in August raising concerns about the redesign. It compared the new configuration to ultra-low-cost carriers like Spirit, Wizz Air and Frontier. It said the more cramped conditions made it harder for guests with varying mobility, car seats and pets, on top of limited overhead bin space “despite an increase in guest capacity.”
Staff representatives also raised concerns about the difficulty crew would face getting rest in the confined seats as they travel to work.
As part of the rollout of the new configuration, WestJet executives with representatives from the flight attendants’ and pilots’ unions travelled in economy seats from Toronto to Calgary. The experience was “to gather a shared understanding of the product, the space and the experience,” said WestJet vice-president Robert Antoniuk in an internal memo obtained by the Canadian Press. Several weeks after that flight, the pause in the project was announced.
Of the 43 aircraft originally slated to undergo the overhaul, 21 have been completed and are in regular use. One more plane will be reconfigured, with the remaining 21 granted a reprieve for the time being. In the meantime, the Calgary-based company will conduct a review and “continue to gather feedback from guests and employees,” Antoniuk said in the message.
“Throughout this winter, we will also be monitoring guest feedback and assessing the operational performance of the reconfigured aircraft to learn more about how this product is performing in the market,” spokeswoman Julia Brunet told CTV News.
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