Charter owner says aviators left out of airport talks
Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Fort Simpson (Feb 02/01) - Ted Grant says a territorial government airport study is a threat to his Fort Simpson air charter business, which he runs using an in-town airstrip.
The study should also consider the added safety factor of having a second runway, said Grant, a long-time pilot and businessman.
Chris Yarrow, owner of another air charter company, said emergency services can respond immediately to the in-town runway, but it takes 15 minutes to reach the airport which is about 18 kilometres away.
Grant said the Department of Transportation's (DoT) airport used to have firefighting services, but the government cut that years ago.
"Now they want to build a little empire out there at the detriment of private business people who are trying to make a living here," he said.
"We can't afford to move out there. I certainly can't anyway."
Grant and Yarrow's air charter companies lease the runway from the village. They renewed the lease last year for another 10-year period. A third air charter company and a Yellowknife-based carrier also use the strip.
Grant insisted that the community's aviators should have been consulted when GNWT officials and their consultants were in Fort Simpson earlier this month.
"Come and sit down and talk to us.
Don't go do a sneaky investigation and then tell us what you're going to do," he said. "This is supposed to be open government. Government is supposed to be working for the people, not the other way around."
Paul Guy, manager of buildings and planning for the DoT's airports division, said the GNWT fully intends to consult aviators and all stake holders in the community.
He added a representative from the Yellowknife-based carrier that operates in Fort Simpson is a member of the steering committee.
"There's no agenda not to consult with people," he said. "It's just that we're so early in the project."
He added the territorial government is not looking to impose a shut-down of the airstrip.
"I don't think anybody wants to force anything," he said. "I think if you make a business case for it, you might demonstrate the advantages of getting people to operate out of the main airport ... it's going to depend on the recommendations in the study."
Converting the in-town runway into the main airport for the community is another possibility, but there would be a number of "technical hurdles," Guy said. Expansion of the in-town runway, zoning for a terminal building and potential for flooding in that area would be some of the issues, he said.
"If it did flood and that was the only airport, then you've lost air service for the duration of the flood," he said.
