Pacific Coastal introducing non-stop flights between Kelowna and Prince George

Pacific Coastal Airlines is high on Kelowna.

In addition to the three non-stop routes it already flies from Kelowna -- to Victoria, Nanaimo and Comox -- it will introduce six-days-a-week service between Kelowna and Prince George on Oct. 28.

"We're grateful for the strong support of our newly added flights and are eager to continue to expand our services throughout the province," said Pacific Coastal vice-president Jonathan Richardson.

"Our new route offers customers enhanced access to convenient travel between northern BC and the Okanagan."

The new service will be six days a week (no flight on Saturdays).

It will leave Kelowna at 6:20 pm to arrive in Prince George an hour and 20 minutes later at 7:40 pm.

The plane will overnight in Prince George to take off at 7:45 am and touch down in Kelowna.

To celebrate the launch, Pacific Coast is offering 20% off flights between Kelowna and Prince George when you book ahead and use the promotional code KEL2PG on the airlines website https://www.pacificcoastal.com/.

Using the promo code gets the price down to as little as $202 one-way.

Traffic on the Kelowna-Prince George route is expected to be tourists, visiting friends and relatives and some business.

Prince George, population: 90,000, is known as the capital of northern BC located at the confluence of the Fraser and Nechako rivers.

It's also the province's northern hub for forestry and minint, higher education, health care, government, arts and entertainment and sports.

Pacific Coastal's competition on the Kelowna-Prince George non-stop is Central Mountain Air, which has flown the route five-times-a-week for years.

Central Mountain uses a 19-seat Beechcraft 1900 turbo-propeller on the route.

Pacific Coastal will also use the Beechcraft on the route.

At just 19 seats, the planes are easy to fill up and are the right-sized aircraft for regional routes between smaller cities.

Pacific Coastal also uses the Beechcraft for its twice-daily flights between Kelowna and Victoria and its daily flights Kelowna-Nanaimo and Kelowna-Comox.

"We are excited to see the Pacific Coastal network continue to expand at YLW (Kelowna) offering more regional connection options for Okanagan residents," said Geoff Ritchie, commercial and air service director at Kelowna International Airport.

"The increase in direct routes that Pacific Coastal is offering will improve the movement of people and goods throughout the province."

Gordon Duke, the CEO of Prince George Airport Authority, also praises Pacific Coastal.

"We are thrilled to welcome Pacific Coastal Airlines' new route from YXS (Prince George) to YLW (Kelowna), enhancing travel options for our community," he said.

"This service complements existing routes and reflects our commitment to providing diverse and convenient travel opportunities."

This is the second announcement of a new service at Kelowna International Airport in as many weeks.

Last week, WestJet revealed it will start flying non-stop daily between Kelowna and Los Angeles on Dec. 19.

Kelowna is the 10th busiest airport in Canada serving just over two million passengers a year.

Eight airlines (WestJet, Air Canada, Pacific Coastal, Alaska, Flair, Central Mountain, Air North and Sunwing) operate more than 60 flights in and out daily from Kelowna airport.

The non-stop destination count from Kelowna airport is now 21 -- Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Prince George, Victoria, Nanaimo, Comox, Seattle, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Kitchener, Toronto, Montreal and the winter seasonals to Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cancun.