This year is shaping up to be a big year for Red Deer Regional Airport.
A $3.5-million terminal addition is on track for completion this July, a taxiway expansion project is in full swing and work is set to begin in a few weeks on the first part of a new north access road and link to C&E Trail.
There also appears to be more good news coming. Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen is scheduled to announce funding for regional airports at a Thursday morning news conference.
In the April 2023 budget, the province announced $30 million to go towards Red Deer Regional Airport expansion.
Meanwhile, the search for a new CEO continues following the departure of Graham Ingham, who left in February to run Ontario’s Thunder Bay International Airport. A hiring agency has been commissioned to find a replacement for Ingham, who was CEO for seven years and credited as a driving force behind major expansion projects that begin with runway widening and other improvements.
“(The Red Deer Regional Airport Authority) have given themselves six months to put someone in place, but the ideal time would be by the summer,” said interi CEO Nancy Paish.
The terminal project includes a 10,000-square-foot addition with space for security, baggage pick-up area, future customs area and space to handle the 189 passengers from a full 737-800.
“It is on schedule and we’re still on track to be completed by July 31 this year,” said Paish.
The airport’s goals have long been to take advantage of its central Alberta location and low landing fees and other costs to position it as a regional transportation hub with aviation-linked industries such as cargo flights, manufacturing, aircraft servicing and pilot training.
A new access road, which will provide a much-needed second entrance while opening up 200 acres of developable airside property, is ready to go. Red Deer County is overseeing the project and council approved a $4.4-million tender to county-based Red Deer County-based Carbon Earthworks Ltd. for the first phase of that project.
Phase 2 has not yet gone out to tender.
While all this is going on the quest to find an airline interested in offering scheduled passenger service continues.
“We’re still actively looking for an airline to come in to offer passenger service,” said Paish.
It may not be an easy task given Canada’s ultra-low-cost carrier troubles. Lynx Air announced in February it was shutting down and seeking creditor protection leaving Edmonton-based Flair Airlines as the country’s sole ultra-low-cost carrier.
Last month, Flair CEO Stephen Jones expressed confidence in the ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) industry’s future.
“I want to assure all Canadians that Flair Airlines is steadfast in our confidence that the ULCC model has potential to thrive in Canada. We are here to stay, resilient and determined to continue serving the needs of Canadian travellers,” Jones added.
– With files from The Canadian Press