Mr. Speaker, now that we have the snow blower, we have to widen the airport. The widening of the airport is the next thing. Northwestern Air Lease was only informed of the lights being changed and replaced, with no mention of the runway narrowing, until a week before the work was to start. My question is: why were Northwestern Air Lease and Air Tindi, which is a medevac supplier, not consulted prior to all of these airport infrastructure changes? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The department talked with the Northern Air Transport Association, or NATA, and Northwestern Air Lease and Air Tindi are members of that association. The runway level of service did not change, therefore the aircraft used by Air Tindi and Northwestern Air Lease were not impacted. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
When was the decision made to make all these airport changes, and why were the major users of the airport and the Town of Fort Smith not part of that decision?
The decision was made in September of 2017. The level of service at the airport did not change. Only the air carriers as part of the Northern Air Transport Association were approached, as the airport operational certificate was maintained. Any aircraft that Air Canada or WestJet could operate in the Northwest Territories can land in Fort Smith.
It was noted last summer by Northwestern Air Lease that the Electra water bomber now has to taxi all the way to the end of the runway in order to turn around, thus delaying fire suppression activities. Was this risk factor taken into account when the decision was made to narrow the airport runway?
We feel taxiing down the runway does not pose a significant delay and thus can perform fire suppression activities accordingly.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If there was a need to bring in heavy air tankers for the fire suppression, would these aircraft be able to use Fort Smith as a reloading base, or would the tankers have to reload in Hay River or Yellowknife, thereby delaying fire suppression activities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The Fort Smith airport is designed for a 737. The geophysical features allow the operation of water bombers; the same level of service is maintained. Every aircraft that can land in Hay River can also land in Fort Smith. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
