Lethbridge County Airport (YQL) Guide

Good job

Coming for the first time god knows if I would visit again hope I enjoy and learn about this place

Small Airport, Big Heart ❤️ I’ve had the opportunity to fly in and out of the Lethbridge Airport on a variety of aircraft with different carriers, as well as experience discovery flights through the local flight school, and every time has been a great experience. It’s easy to navigate, the staff are friendly and welcoming, and the overall experience is smooth and stress-free. There’s something special about the efficiency of a smaller airport; no long lines, quick check-ins, and a genuine sense of community. Whether you're traveling for business, leisure, or just getting a taste of aviation, this airport proves that you don’t need to be big to deliver a first-class experience. Highly recommend flying local when you can!

Flyers from YQL beware, WestJet agents at YQL do selective enforcement of carry-on baggage sizing. Today I was their chosen target, and they forced me to check one of carry-on bags from YQL to YVR for $63, because it wouldn't quite fit in the personal item sizer by about 1-2" in the width direction. It was a regular size backpack, and I didn't want to compress it due to multiple computer screens inside. I asked if I could gate check it to YYC, to which they refused. When WestJet previously used the Coastal Pacific planes to/from YQL, there was always a luggage cart available for gate checking of carry-ons, but I guess they prefer predatory money scrounging now. There was a lot of other people in the boarding area with similar sized roller bags and backpacks, but they did not get asked to fit them in the sizer. The Dash8-400 from YQL to YYC had only 33 out of 76 seats occupied, so there was plenty of room for a backpack in the overhead bins and under the seats. Based on 43 empty seats, 200lbs per person with bags for average weight, and a full fuel load, that is at least 8600lbs of spare capacity and that's very conservative. I explained this to the agents and they still refused. If the flight had been full, I would have been understanding but this was arbitrary and targeted enforcement based on poor reasoning. I am a regular flyer in/out of YQL and these exact 2 agents have let me board every other previous flight with these exact carry-ons without issue or question. WestJet should take a look at all the 1-star Google reviews for YQL and see how many times this exact scenario is mentioned. It is not an isolated event. Enforcement of policy for flights below 50% capacity is poor customer service at best for something as insignificant as a regular backpack. Is it very easy to do better. Something as simple as " We will allow it this time due to the mostly empty flight, but please do not do this again" would have mediated the whole situation. Keep it up and eventually the flights from YQL will be even more empty than they already are. No wonder so many people prefer to just drive from YQL to YYC rather than deal with nonsense like this for such a short flight. The real shame about this reoccurring issue is that it is damaging the reputation of YQL as a whole, since WestJet is the only airline that services Lethbridge. There has been significant investment to improve the facilities and that has not gone unnoticed. It will all be for nothing if WestJet keeps dragging it down like they seem bent on doing.

Airport itself and the people are great! Always friendly staff and a clean space. My issue is with WestJet and how they killed off this airport. Used to be able to get to Calgary and catch connections, now there is rarely an option to do that without long delays in Calgary or even having to stay overnight. Very disappointed that while the city continues to grow, our airport services are lagging far behind.

1 flight out of town per day and even that appears to be ran by amateurs. One drop of snow or cold weather and expect massive delays causing connection issues or them cancelling it altogether. I love Lethbridge but this airport is the worst one I’ve experienced.

I wish that I could give a 0 or a negative number. If you have a buddy with a crop duster you will be better off. If you like to wait extra long for everything then use the Lethbridge airport. I have not had a single return trip that was on time. The fastest return trip was a 6 hour delay. This place is a joke. Drive to Calgary, pay extra for parking and you will be better off.

The most ridiculous carry on baggage allowance at this airport. I have used the same carryon bag in and out of this airport multiple times in the last 6 months, and recently in Italy. I just flew in from Calgary on the same plane 3 days ago. Today on my departure, I'm charged $58 to check it as I was told it won't fit. They did this to multiple passengers. Yet onboard there were people clearly with oversize bags who had to shove to get them in the overhead bin. Absolutely ridiculous and shameful money grab.