WestJet has appointed Amanda Ierfino as its new vice president for sales and cargo to oversee the airline's departure from freighter operations.
The Canadian airline said that Ierfino has been a ”key architect of our corporate and agency sales strategy” and has helped ”build strong industry partnerships and reinforce WestJet’s presence across Canada”.
The appointment, effective 1 June, comes as the airline is moving away from its dedicated freighter fleet later this year.
”Amanda will oversee the shift toward maximising belly cargo capacity, with strategic priorities including high-value goods, key trade corridors like Tokyo and Central America, and a stronger global network,” the airline said.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Ierfino has worked for the airline since December 2022 as director of sales.
Prior to that role, she spent just over a year and a half at digital debt collection firm Symend and before that she spent just over seven years working for WestJet in several analyst, advisory and management roles.
“As we evolve, partnerships remain at the heart of everything we do,” said Ierfino. “I’m excited to lead this next chapter with a focus on collaboration, new opportunities and shared growth.”
In March, the airline confirmed its decision to end its freighter operation, which at its height offered capacity on four Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
The airline’s previous cargo head, Kirsten de Bruijn, explained that the freighter business was beset with “timing delays” and “additional complexity” that no longer made it the “right commitment”.
The conversion programme for the aircraft WestJet planned to operate required approval from Canadian authorities, which took longer than expected.
The airline took delivery of its first freighter in April 2022, but was not able to put the aircraft into service until a year later due to the time it took for Boeing to gain approval for its conversion programme.
In the meantime, a post-Covid boom in cargo demand had eased off.
