1,000 Acres Available
The Fredericton airport may soon undergo an expansion if the findings of a study to be released today are as promising as expected.
David Innes, CEO of the Fredericton International Airport Authority, said in an interview Monday the airport has experienced "significant growth in traffic over the last five years."
"We've had a huge increase in aircraft movement," he said, adding that while flight school traffic has led the growth, private and commercial airline traffic has also increased in the last half decade.
In May the airport hired LPS AVIA Consulting, an Ottawa-based air transport consulting firm, to examine the expansion needs of the airport. The study is expected to identify future aircraft and passenger demands and whether the current terminal and airfield in Fredericton should be expanded to match forecasted growth.
Today's announcement comes on the heels of recent plans to phase-in an air traffic control tower and to develop an aerospace and defence park.
Following the Paris Air Show in June, where Innes held several discussions with firms interested in the park, an unnamed Canadian company visited Fredericton.
The company - which may work with the Canadian Forces Base Gagetown - could be the park's first major client.
"There are companies we are talking to, absolutely, and discussions have been progressing well," Innes said. "We have over a thousand acres of property available for development adjacent to the airport, with about a hundred acres at the stage where it is essentially shovel-ready."
Innes and Doug Motty, CEO of Enterprise Fredericton, have been recruiting businesses for the proposed development for three years. In the past both have said a commitment from one major client would allow them to break ground.
Although the aerospace industry has been battered by the downturn, Innes said the defence industry has been steady.
"Some aerospace purchases have stalled but it's still a big industry," he said. "There are still opportunities out there for individual companies."
In July NAV Canada announced an air traffic control tower will be phased-in for the Fredericton airport beginning in December.
In 2008 aircraft movements were up 115 per cent over the previous year and, as of May, year-to-date aircraft movements increased nearly 55 per cent over 2008.
Innes said pilot training, general aviation, military movement and commercial traffic have all contributed to these statistics.
This year the Fredericton airport has added a weekly flight to London, England, increased the number of flights to the Caribbean and added an extra flight to Toronto during the summer.
The addition of a traffic control tower could help woo other carriers, such as Porter Airlines or WestJet Airlines Ltd. (TSX:WJA) to the capital's airport.
"It's definitely an asset to have a control tower at an airport," Innes said. "Some carriers prefer to be in a controlled environment rather than an advisory one."
The biggest stumbling block to attracting new airlines, however, is the dearth of carriers.
"The number of Canadian domestic airlines out there is really limited," Innes said. "But all carriers have their eye towards expansion and they'll be looking for a good stable market and that's what we can provide."
While the economic downturn has caused a slump in air traffic, Daniel-Robert Gooch, director of communications for the Canadian Airports Council, said he expects demand to pick up soon.
"Travel has been hard hit but it will come back," he said. "Air travel is generally a growing industry despite the bumps in the road."
Monette Connaughton, executive director of the Atlantic Canada Airports Association, said the region has had several years of consecutive growth at 5.5 per cent annually.
"This year because of the recession the region is down seven per cent," she said. "But we anticipate things will bounce back as soon as the economy begins to improve."
Brett Bundale
Telegraph Journal