 | Home page |  | Text size |  | E-mail this page |
Yellowknife air traffic getting lift Aircraft movements dropped since 2008 recession, now rebounding, says GNWT
Daniel Campbell
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, July 17, 2013
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A recent Statistics Canada report on air movements for May 2013 put the Yellowknife's airport at a 23 per cent drop in air movement from May 2012.
The Yellowknife Airport's increase in aircraft traffic can be attributed to a strong local economy. - NNSL file photo
|
But that's nothing to worry about, said Earl Blacklock, manager of communications for the Department of Transportation.
In fact, Blacklock said, traffic at Yellowknife Airport has increased considerably over the last four years. In 2008, before the global recession, the airport saw a total of 64,835 landings and takeoffs. After the recession hit, that number dropped to 52,367.
Last year air traffic to and from Yellowknife climbed up to 60,968, reaching near pre-recession levels.
"We're quite pleased with how we're doing," said Blacklock.
According to Statistics Canada, Yellowknife was one of the few major airports in Canada to see an increase in traffic last year. Halifax, Ottawa and Montreal all saw significant drops. Western cities fared better, with Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver airports all increasing traffic.
"The trend is mostly down except in areas where there's an economic boost locally, so we're following that trend," Blacklock said, noting Yellowknife's strong economy.
Blacklock said a drop in air traffic such as the one reported for May aren't troublesome – it’s caused by short term issues such as construction, a lack of major emergencies and short term economic activity—all issues that cause an ebb and flow to air traffic.
The yearly trend, Blacklock notes, is more accurate gauge of an airport's health.
Lisa Hicks, spokesperson for Canadian North airlines, said the company cut back staff and routes in 2009 due to tough economic times, but it has been able to rebuild recently.
She said the airline had feedback from customers who said they wanted more flights coming to Yellowknife, so it introduced morning flights to the city from Edmonton.
"We're almost double the flights of any other airline to Yellowknife," she said.
The flights to Yellowknife feed other routes within the Northwest Territories, Hicks said. Strong economies in places such as Inuvik help traffic flow to Yellowknife.
But there's still areas to improve at Yellowknife's airport. A 2012-2013 Industry, Tourism and Investment marketing plan stated there are some major travel barriers to Yellowknife and the Northwest Territories, notably expensive flights and easier access to other Northern locations such as the Yukon territory and Alaska.
The tourism department plan also stated the recent cancellation of direct flights between Vancouver and Yellowknife caused a significant drop in travel to Yellowknife. The department is hoping new direct flights from Tokyo to Calgary will help increase traffic up North.
| 
