Atlantic Canada airport thread

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by q12

I doubt that.

With the longest runway in the Maritimes about to open this fall, cargo volume and the number of carriers is expected to increase at Stanfield significantly. Add in a booming economy, and I think YQM is just throwing out some more classic Moncton B.S.

Perhaps, but the GMIA is putting in a 10,000 foot runway too, so you will have to share the title of "longest runway" before too long.

Construction is currently underway. They're moving a lot of dirt out by Malley Industries. In addition, there is a French company planning on building a major warehousing facility in the Dieppe Air Industrial Park fairly soon.

[Mattyyy]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Perhaps, but the GMIA is putting in a 10,000 foot runway too, so you will have to share the title of "longest runway" before too long.

The airport in Miramichi is also planning on completing their runway expansion to 10,000 feet this year in an attempt to lure cargo. They have actually had a 10,000 foot runway in place for years, but they discontinued full use of it a number of years ago (not sure when), and the work they are doing now is to bring it back up to speed.

So with that said, it looks like the title of "longest runway" will be shared among 3 cities.

[MonctonRad]

The Miramichi is at a major disadvantage when it comes to marketing their facility.

They don't have 24/7 air traffic control like YQM or YHZ. In addition, they are in a small community not well served by highways and the railway.

The GMIA plans to market YQM as a multimodal inland port facility. They apparently feel that it is cost effective for trans Atlantic shippers to offload in Moncton and continue on to their final destination by truck or rail. This is why they are so confident that cargo stats for the airport will mushroom in the future.

For cargo that is not absolutely (and only relatively) time sensitive, the GMIA may have a point. There would be fuel savings for shippers landing in Moncton and customs clearance might be quicker and less complicated than in a larger airport further down the eastern seaboard.

Moncton would have a leg up on Halifax for cargo trans-shipment to the US east coast. We are several hours closer. Miramichi has no particular advantage and some significant liabilities....

[q12]

Stanfield will still have the longest runway in the Maritimes at 10,500 ft.

[NBNYer]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

In addition, there is a French company planning on building a major warehousing facility in the Dieppe Air Industrial Park fairly soon.

That sure is interesting! Is there more information on this? What's the company?

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by NBNYer

That sure is interesting! Is there more information on this? What's the company?

I know the name of the company, but I'm not sure if I should say who it is publically. I found out though a priviledged communication.

It will supposedly be a 70,000 sq. ft. building. Construction hopefully will begin in the near future. There apparently are several other parcels of land in the Air Industrial Park that are under negotiation.

[NBNYer]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I know the name of the company, but I'm not sure if I should say who it is publically. I found out though a priviledged communication.

It will supposedly be a 70,000 sq. ft. building. Construction hopefully will begin in the near future. There apparently are several other parcels of land in the Air Industrial Park that are under negotiation.

That would be a sizable project indeed. Wonder if this project is one in the same as what Myles alluded to some months ago.

Yes, I too have also heard from a connected friend that several other projects may be in the pipeline for the Air Industrial Park. Even perhaps some aircraft component manufacturing (I have no idea if there is validity to this, but there sure are some big names being thrown around).

[Mattyyy]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

The Miramichi is at a major disadvantage when it comes to marketing their facility.

They don't have 24/7 air traffic control like YQM or YHZ. In addition, they are in a small community not well served by highways and the railway.

Yes, that may or may not be true - however I'm simply making the point that Halifax and Moncton are not the only airports with a 10,000 foot runway looking to lure cargo.

Lacking a 4-lane highway definitely puts them at a disadvantage. They may not be able to lure the amount of cargo that cities like Halifax and Moncton would, however they will likely produce some competition and I'm sure they will be successful at it. Furthermore, given the requirement who is to say they would not have 24/7 air traffic control in place?

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Mattyyy

Furthermore, given the requirement who is to say they would not have 24/7 air traffic control in place?

That would be up to Nav Canada, and they look hard and fast at air traffic counts before deciding to institute 24/7 coverage. About 6-8 years ago Moncton almost lost 24/7 coverage and had to fight like the dickens to retain it!

I'm sure that Miramichi would not be able to justify it, and since most cargo flights are in the off hours, this would be a major impediment to the airport being able to attract business..

[mylesmalley]

24/7 ATC is pretty expensive.

Logistically speaking, it's just hard to make a case for it. The rail line from Moncton to Bathurst is likely going away in the next year and a half, so there goes another mode of potential cargo shipping. The reason the line is being shut is because there just isn't enough interest in shipping that way to that part of the province. Toss in the fact that Miramichi doesn't have great highway links to anywhere else in the province, and you end up in a situation where getting stuff there en masse is tough.

[statbass]

Source: VOCM, Sept 11, 2012

The St. John's International Airport Authority says it's concerned about the "strike first and negotiate later" approach being taken by PSAC. Employees at the airport set up picket lines at 5am this morning, after four days of unsuccessful talks. President Keith Collins says the Airport Authority has flexibility on the outstanding issues, and is ready to re-open negotiations at any time.

The airport authority says the unionized workers have asked for a 58 per cent wage increase over four years. The Airport is an essential service, so there is still a sufficient number of employees working to meet all Transport Canada regulations during the strike.

The union is accusing the company of taking away concessions. Spokesperson Wayne Fagan says workers will stay out as long as necessary. Last time around he says they were gone for 87 days, he warns it could be longer this time around. Fagan says airport operations are slowed, but traffic is making its way through the area.

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?...26526&latest=1

[MonctonRad]

From today's T&T:
http://22864.vws.magma.ca/index.php?&article_id=9846

Metro (Moncton) poised to grow with air cargo
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Times & Transcript
By: Alan Cochrane

Author of Aerotropolis among speakers at air cargo symposium in Moncton this week

The Greater Moncton International Airport is already home to three of the major players in the air cargo business and welcomes over 100 cargo flights a week, but that could grow tremendously in the coming years.

An air cargo symposium being held in Moncton today and tomorrow at the Delta Beauséjour will look at the growth of the industry in Atlantic Canada and how Moncton can grow with it.

'This symposium is for all of Atlantic Canada and we'll have all the key players in industry together to talk about growth opportunities,' says Rob Robichaud, president and CEO of the Greater Moncton International Airport.

Robichaud says Halifax is currently the air cargo leader in Atlantic Canada, with Moncton running a close second. He says the airport is very busy with over 100 flights a week that move about 20,000 tonnes of cargo a year. But he says there is potential to increase that to over 80,000 tonnes by 2030. At the same time, the airport caters to several passenger airlines that move close to 600,000 passengers a year. The airport is also home to the Moncton Flight College where pilots from around the world come for training.

Three of the industry's major players - UPS, Purolator and FedEx - have cargo operations at the Moncton airport. Several other operations like Midland Courier, Armour and AltiMax also have a stake in the air cargo business.

The airport is currently undergoing projects to make the facility more welcoming to cargo. The main runway is being expanded to 10,000 feet to handle bigger planes, and the apron near the FedEx terminal is being expanded to give the big cargo jets more room to turn around.

'Moncton is the most central location in all of Atlantic Canada for the distribution of goods,' says Robichaud, noting that Moncton's geographic location is right on the inter national flight path. The airport is close to the industrial parks, rail lines and the TransCanada highway, with two U.S. border crossings a couple of hours away. There's also lots of empty space for future development for manufacturers, distributors and other businesses that want to be close to the airport.

That falls in nicely with the idea of creating an aerotropolis, a concept to be explained by author Greg Lindsay during tomorrow's session. Lindsay is a journalist, urbanist, speaker and consultant. He is a contributing writer for Fast Company and an author of the international bestseller Aerotropolis: The Way We'll Live Next. The book takes the idea that mankind has always built civilizations near harbours or railroad lines because it was convenient to live and work near the best source of transportation. But that is changing. The book says that places like Dubai, Amstertam, Memphis and South Korea have created their own aerotropolis: a combination of giant airport, planned city, shipping facility and business hub. The book predicts that airport cities are the wave of the future in a fast-paced world. Lindsay's presentation is set for 10 a.m. tomorrow.

Robichaud isn't sure if Moncton is ready to become an aerotropolis, but he has long promoted the vision of an air cargo village in Moncton.

He says the airport's proximity to the downtown, local industrial parks, rail lines and the U.S. border crossings all play into the equation. He says it would be cheaper and easier for international cargo carriers coming across the Atlantic to land in Moncton, put their cargo onto trucks and then move it to Boston or New York than it would be to actually fly into those larger U.S. cities. However, he says it will take time to convince these carriers that they should do it.

'Airports are becoming more integrated into their communities,' he says, noting that many businesses are looking to locate regional offices next to airports to save time and travel costs.

Manufacturers and distributors who want to move raw materials, parts and finished products also want to be close to airports and the cargo carriers. And then there is the spinoff effect. Once these business offices have established themselves, there are support services of food, hotels, rental car agencies, trucking companies and other businesses that would set up shop nearby - thus creating an entire community centred around the transportation centre.

Robichaud is confident growth will come but it must be well planned. A recent deal for an inter national cargo flight directly from Moncton to Germany fell through because the carrier wanted the airport to subsidize each flight.

Robichaud said it was regrettable that the airport and the carrier had to 'agree to disagree,' but the silver lining is that the amount of international cargo is growing and he's confident there is enough business to fill a smaller jet on a regular basis. The airport will continue to look for partners to make it happen.

The 2012 Air Cargo Logistics Symposium will kick off today at the Delta Beauséjour with a keynote address at 10:30 a.m. by Michael Campbell of Transport Canada on the future of air cargo security.

John Thompson of Enterprise Greater Moncton will moderate a panel discussion on intermodal freight transport that includes Peter Eadie of Midland Transport, Baldur Haraldsson of Bluebird Cargo and Dan Belliveau of VIP Seafood. Moncton author Gair Maxwell will give a presentation on branding of businesses.

Today's session at 2 p.m. will be focused on 'Trends and World Economy, how can airports lead in the recovery to Cargo profitability?' The moderator will be Curt Ketchum of Strategic Aviation Solutions International. Discussion will be on how airports should think of themselves not as just airfields but as logistics centres with many partners to consolidate the distribution of goods by air, truck and railroad. It will also touch on increased security regulations for international cargo movement.

Participating in the event will be Greater Moncton International Airport Management and Board members; representatives for federal, provincial and municipal governments and business leaders.

I'm personally quite surprised to hear that the GMIA already has more than 100 cargo flights per week.

[q12]

I posted this in the Halifax Stanfield thread, but thought those outside Halifax might be interested.

Cargojet Sprouts Brussels Flight

http://www.halifaxgateway.com/en/hom.../cargojet.aspx

Cargojet is streamlining Eastern Canada’s seafood export market with the addition of a direct flight from Halifax to Europe. The newly scheduled ‘fish flight’ addresses the challenge of trucking European-bound lobster to airports in Montreal or Boston by getting the fresh seafood to market a day faster.

Recognized as Canada’s largest air freighter service, Cargojet offers on-time reliability. Its fleet of 13 allcargo aircraft transport over 550,000 pounds of time sensitive air cargo each business night, predominantly to major cities in Canada and also into the U.S., and Europe.

Market demand for air cargo’s fast delivery to market is on the rise, primarily due to the short production cycles of high tech goods like iPhones and consumer demand for international delicacies. This is especially true for Atlantic Canada, a region that supplies 55 per cent of the worldwide lobster market.

“Cargojet offers shared capacity and costs to multiple shippers so customers only pay for the space they need.” Porteous says. “Essentially, we make it easier and more accessible for businesses to grow regionally, nationally and globally.”

Cargojet has 44 commercial agreements signed with multiple international carriers providing customers airfreight connections around the world.

Over 29,000 metric tonnes of cargo is shipped annually via the Halifax Stanfield International Airport. This number is expected to grow as the airport extends its runway to 10,500 feet. A longer runway enables the airport to handle larger wide-bodied aircraft and positions Halifax as a major air cargo gateway.

This new website has some interresting information about Halifax's advantage as an east coast gateway. http://www.halifaxgateway.com

This was in the herald today listing some of the impressive statistics last year in 2011:




Here is some more statistics from the gateway's website.

Halifax Gateway’s convenient and
modern infrastructure and services
include:

• The only U.S. preclearance
facility in Atlantic Canada and
24/7 customs services

• A natural, ice-free harbour that
is only one day’s sail from New York

• At 65 feet…the deepest cargo
berths on North America’s east coast

• On-dock, double-stack rail service
to over 43% of the North American
population

• The Atlantic Gateway–Halifax
Logistics Park with transloading
services minutes from Border Services
and next to 5 major highways.

[MonctonRad]

Interesting q12, you have just proven that Halifax is just as skilled as Moncton in the fine art of chest thumping!

[MonctonRad]

Flights south from the GMIA for 2013.

Sunwing - Montego Bay, Punta Cana, Varadero, Orlando
WestJet - Cancun, Orlando
Air Transat - Varadero, Punta Cana, Cancun

Or, to look at it another way:

- Orlando, Florida - WestJet or Sunwing
- Punta Cana, Dominican Republic - Sunwing or Air Transat
- Varadero, Cuba - Sunwing or Air Transat
- Montego Bay, Jamaica - Sunwing
- Cancun, Mexico - WestJet or Air Transat

Sounds like it will be a busy winter at the GMIA.

[SignalHillHiker]

The current selection of regularly-scheduled, direct, non-stop flights from St. John's International Airport:

[MonctonRad]

Interesting. Except for the intraprovincial routes in NF, the flights to Calgary & Edmonton, and the flight to London, the destinations from St. John's International are essentially identical to the ones from the GMIA. Which airline flies from St. John's to Newark? In Moncton, the route is handled by Continental/United.

[mylesmalley]

This isn't a criticism of St John's' airport...but maaaan that's a terribly done map.

[Lrdevlop]

Anyone knows what they are doing outside the departure area at the GMIA? It looks like they have huge wooden construction panels right now...

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by mylesmalley

This isn't a criticism of St John's' airport...but maaaan that's a terribly done map.

Hey now... not every airport authority can afford Photoshop. Some of us have t get by with MS Paint.

MonctonRad: It's the same for us. Air Canada handles the Calgary/Edmonton/London flights. PAL (Provincial Airlines) handles most of the domestic flights to other Newfoundland airports.

Gander is the most famous (all cross-Atlantic flights used to have to stop there to re-fuel), Deer Lake is probably the busiest (some of the larger Halifax to St. John's flights even top there), and Stephenville is definitely the largest on the island. It can land the space shuttle.