Westjet 2011 Annual Report Download - page 20

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Results 2011
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Advisories
The following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Results (MD&A), dated February 7, 2012, should be read in
conjunction with the cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information and statements below, as well as the
audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto, for the years ended December 31, 2011 and 2010. The
consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
All amounts in the following MD&A are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated. Certain prior-period balances in the
consolidated financial statements have been reclassified to conform to current period presentation and policies. References to
“WestJet,” “the Corporation,” “we,” “us” or “our” mean WestJet Airlines Ltd., its subsidiaries and special-purpose entities
(SPEs), unless the context otherwise requires. Additional information relating to WestJet, including periodic quarterly and
annual reports and Annual Information Forms (AIF), filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities, is available on
SEDAR at sedar.com and our website at westjet.com.
Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information and statements
This MD&A offers our assessment of WestJet’s future plans and operations and contains “forward-looking information” as
defined under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Our actual results, performance or achievements could differ
materially from those expressed in, or implied by, this forward-looking information. We can give no assurance that any of the
events anticipated will transpire or occur or, if any of them do, what benefits or costs we will derive from them. By its nature,
forward-looking information is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the impact of general
economic conditions, changing domestic and international airline industry conditions, volatility of fuel prices, terrorism,
pandemics, currency fluctuations, interest rates, competition from other airline industry participants (including new entrants,
capacity fluctuations and the pricing environment), labour matters, government regulations, stock market volatility, the ability
to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and additional risk factors discussed in other documents we file
from time to time with securities regulatory authorities, which are available on SEDAR at sedar.com or, upon request, without
charge from us.
The forward-looking information contained in this MD&A is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Please refer to
page 55 of this MD&A for further information on our forward-looking information including assumptions and estimates used in
its development. This forward-looking information typically contains the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “intend,”
“expect,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “potential,” “plan” or other similar terms.
Our assumptions and estimates relating to the forward-looking information referred to above are updated quarterly and,
except as required by law, we do not undertake to update any other forward-looking information.
Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards
On January 1, 2011, we transitioned to IFRS from Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (Canadian GAAP). All
comparative figures contained in this MD&A have been restated under IFRS, unless otherwise noted. Please refer to page 51
of this MD&A for further information on the impact to our financial position, results of operations and cash flows from the
adoption of IFRS.
Non-IFRS measures
To supplement our consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with IFRS, we use various non-IFRS
performance measures. These measures are provided to enhance the reader’s overall understanding of our current financial
performance. They are included to provide investors and management with an alternative method for assessing our operating
results in a manner that is focused on the performance of our ongoing operations and to provide a more consistent basis for
comparison between periods. These measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to, IFRS and do not have
standardized meanings. Therefore, they may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other entities.
Please refer to page 59 of this MD&A for a reconciliation of the non-IFRS measures, including Cost per Available Seat Mile
(CASM), excluding fuel and employee profit share; net earnings and diluted earnings per share, excluding special items;
adjusted debt-to-equity and adjusted net debt to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and aircraft rent (EBITDAR)
ratios; return on invested capital (ROIC); free cash flow; and diluted operating cash flow per share.
Definitions
Various terms used throughout this MD&A are defined at page 57 under the title “Definition of key operating indicators”.
WestJet Annual Report 2011 20