An aviation expert says airfares may go up in the immediate aftermath of a hailstorm that tore through Calgary on Monday evening, damaging WestJet planes and upending travel plans.

Hailstones as big as golf balls pummelled the tarmac, forcing the Calgary-based airline to ground 10 per cent of its fleet for major repairs and inspections.

WestJet says it cancelled 248 flights between Monday and Wednesday, and will have to cut trips across its network for the “foreseeable future.”