Thorunn Howatt
Northern News Services

Rankin Inlet (Oct 15/01) - Kivalliq Air is expanding its routes at a time when many of Canada's airlines are in big trouble.

"We first started off with one aircraft, started off in Winnipeg, Churchill and Rankin Inlet, Coral Harbour, Repulse Bay and then back south again," said Kivalliq Air spokesperson Randy Klym.

The airline added flights and frequency after studying a map and realizing a lot of the communities, particularly in the Kitikmeot region, were connected via routes through Yellowknife.

"For example, if you lived in Pelly Bay, to get to Iqaluit you had to go all the way west through Cambridge, down to Yellowknife, and then all the way across to get to Iqaluit," said Klym.

So they connected some Kitikmeot communities and created a more direct connection via Rankin Inlet. It turns out to be less expensive as well as faster.

"It is almost like they're suspicious," said Klym, explaining people weren't used to having direct and timely service. "People had come to accept, 'Well I missed an appointment today, I'll wait 'til next month.'"

Despite trying to present reliable service Kivalliq Air does face some challenges.

Northern weather is unpredictable and often prevents flights from leaving or landing.

"But that's life in the North," said Klym. "Especially when people from the south travel up North, sometimes they aren't used to things like the weather. It's one thing I learned when I started travelling up North. If you are going for two days, you better pack for four."

The airline hasn't suffered the financial problems that many other carriers have.

"In our case, we're operating as best we can within our means. We can't be everything to everybody, no matter how much we try. So we've kept our focus to the North," he said.