Article content

OTTAWA — A Richmond-based discount airline says it will be up and running by next summer after the federal government agreed to open up the industry to greater foreign investment.

Canada Jetlines says it intends to offer bargain hunters the option of taking flights that are almost a third cheaper in price than Air Canada or WestJet fares.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Trudeau government gives B.C. discount airline thumbs-up Back to video

“We want to provide Canadians with affordable airfares, and the federal government very much wants this to occur,” said chief executive Jim Scott, who attended a Montreal event where Transport Minister Marc Garneau made the announcement Thursday.

“So it’s a good day.”

Garneau, in a major speech on the government’s vision for where Canada’s transportation sector should be in 2030, said he is accepting the recommendation in a report earlier this year from former Vancouver-based federal cabinet minister David Emerson.

The one-time chief executive of the Vancouver Airport Authority proposed sweeping changes to Canada’s transportation sector to boost the economy and improve safety and customer service.