As he approaches his third anniversary at the helm of Jack Garland Airport, Bryan Avery is optimistic about the facility’s future.
“When you look out the window every day, and you see what's here and what's available, you think of many ideas and concepts that can make good use of the space and the infrastructure, and also to the benefit of the community,” Avery said.
Still in recovery mode after closures during the pandemic wiped out a good chunk of their business, regional airports like Jack Garland have had to be creative when it comes to drawing people back.
In North Bay, passenger traffic still hasn’t returned to 2019 levels, but has been trending in the right direction.
“Numbers have been increasing year over year and almost month over month, but it’s a different schedule than was operating before the pandemic,” Avery said.
For example, pre-COVID, he said, Air Canada was offering 120 seats daily, compared to the current 78 seats.
But reliability of those flights is above the national average, Avery said, and the airport has experienced annual increases in passenger numbers with both Air Canada and Bearskin Airlines.
On the business side, the airport welcomed Central Mountain Air in early December to provide cargo service for freight packages and freight-forwarding customers.
The Smithers, B.C.-based company was the successful bidder on a tender for cargo services deployed in a number of northern airports, including North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury.
Central Mountain Air’s arrival in North Bay won’t result in any additional employment, Avery said. But continuing to offer cargo services at Jack Garland maintains a number of existing jobs in the areas of ground handling, refuelling, baggage handling, and courier service.
“We’ve seen a slight increase in the amount of couriers recently, but it’s hard to say, at this time, whether that’s Central Mountain — they’re increasing their cargo through North Bay — or whether it’s just simply related to the holidays,” Avery said.
SEE: North Bay airport nets $4.4M for facility upgrades
This falls in line with a number of priorities outlined in the airport’s most recent five-year strategic plan, conceived in 2022. Highlights include continuing to support passenger service and trying to attract more business to the airport, Avery added.
“We knew that the airlines were going to have challenges globally in returning to the networks that they once had and the services they once had,” he said. “And so we’ve been focused on other business that was ad hoc over the years, but that we’re trying to attract more regularly.”
With a 10,000-foot runway and a much less congested airspace, Jack Garland has an advantage over other airports in the region and even across Ontario.
It’s worked in their favour in attracting clients like the Department of National Defence (DND), which brought hundreds of military personnel to the city last year to participate in rapid deployment training activities.
The airport’s also on the radar of international clients like Airbus, whose A350-900 arrived from Toulouse, France, last spring to undergo two weeks of systems testing.
Equally important is supporting local operations already established at the airport, Avery said, like the aviation-related programming offered by Canadore College, and Voyageur Aviation’s charter and refurbishment business.
“In their growth, we see the most success,” he added.
Jack Garland also embraces the chance to participate in community events whenever it gets the chance.
Last May, it hosted a major fundraiser put on by the local chapter of the United Way, with profits going toward youth-oriented programming. Close to 30 teams of 10 people signed up to pull an aircraft, drawing in more than 400 participants, volunteers and onlookers.
That same month, the airport participated in the Elevate Aviation program, which promotes aviation careers among young girls and women.
School-aged kids from the area spent the day touring the airport and speaking with aviation professionals about their day-to-day work.
“Many people will think that aviation is the pilot, but there are probably 100 jobs and careers that support that pilot doing their job,” Avery said.
“And so with that in mind, we want to try and demonstrate what's out there, and not just what's out there in that industry, but what's out there in that industry here at home.”
Then in July, the airport was selected as a stop on a cross-Canada tour of the Canso, a World War Two-era plane that was flown across the country to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
These types of activities elevate the profile of the airport, reminding residents of its important role in the community.
As air travel continues to evolve, Avery believes the airport can help “change how people fly,” by being available for testing on new aircraft and emerging technologies.
One example is electric aircraft, which is still in its infancy but is gaining industry interest. Air Canada placed an order with Heart Aerospace for 30 electric aircraft and secured a stake in the company in 2022.
Positioned just a few hundred kilometres from Toronto, Jack Garland could be an ideal destination for such companies seeking to explore this new tech. And Avery is open to all possibilities.
“I think there's an opportunity to grow that and support their changes as they introduce new airliners themselves and new aircraft, but also types of propulsion,” he said.
“We're not thousands of kilometres away from the hub airports, for example. So we have an opportunity that some don't have.”
