Since WestJet announced its intention to enhance its services through its new regional carrier, Encore, Sault Ste. Marie has made it known it wants in on the action.
Encore will operate a fleet of Bombardier Q400 78-seat turboprop aircraft, the first two of which will be delivered to WestJet in June, with five more added by the end of the year.
WestJet has firm orders for 20 Q400s and options for an additional 25 over the next six years.
In February, WestJet announced Fort St. John and Nanaimo in British Columbia as the inaugural Encore hosts. But Ferio Pugliese, vice-president of WestJet Encore, said in a news release that other communities haven’t been ruled out.
“We are just getting started,” Pugliese said. “The communities that are not part of today’s announcement continue to be under consideration as we take delivery of additional aircraft later this year and in the years to come.”
Sault Ste. Marie’s airport could be a consideration and Terry Bos, CEO of the Sault Ste. Marie Airport Development Corp., said discussions with WestJet are ongoing. Meanwhile, business is bustling, and numbers released following a winter strategy session are encouraging.
Passenger traffic at the Sault airport reached an historical peak in 2012, with 187,554 passengers accessing the airport—a 53.7 per cent increase from 2010. The introduction of additional airlines and competitive pricing were attributed to the increase.
“The passenger level increase since the competition has started here between Air Canada Jazz, Porter and Bearskin has certainly been a definite benefit to us and has increased the numbers substantially,” Bos said. “We’ve seen some positive trends there, and obviously we hope that the community will continue to support the airline and travel as well, and keep those numbers in the right direction.”
Aircraft traffic was also up to 65,941movements, a 37.6 per cent increase from the previous year. Increased use by the airport’s tenants, additional maintenance work by tenant JD Aero and activity at the area’s three flights schools were cited for the rise.
The corporation additionally is continuing to undertake capital upgrades on the facility. Over the last two years, safety and facility improvements have totalled $3.5 million, and an additional $5.1 million was invested into water and sewer system upgrades and the construction of a new 22,000-square-foot hangar for JD Aero.
The largest project to date was the installation of a new HVAC system, which is just being completed, and the facility is also getting a new electrical system, Bos said.
Energy conservation is also on the airport’s priority list; the airport’s entire groundside lighting system and signage has been replaced with LED lighting.
“We have a number of capital items outlined that we’re going to be doing over the next five years,” Bos said. “The facility is over 50 years old now, so obviously there’s starting to be some age fatigue setting in.”
While no major capital projects are on the books for 2013, the corporation is continuing to look at business opportunities, Bos said.
