As of January 11, 2021, Cape Breton Island will no longer have commercial air service to and from the island. This announcement is catastrophic to the sustainability and the growth of our region. Air Canada has been servicing our island’s regional commercial airport, the J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport, for more than 75 years. The suspension of its operations to the airport will have detrimental impacts on our sustainability, prosperity and overall development of our region, leaving all of which in serious jeopardy. Together, with other community stakeholders, we are joining the efforts and calling on Prime Minister Trudeau and his government to find a solution so we can quickly reverse this decision.
Commercial air service is critical to our island’s survival. Take tourism for example- tourism is one of our largest industries with a workforce of 5600 and over $400 million contributed annually to our economy. Most of our visitors come from outside Atlantic Canada and a growing number arrive at our local airport. Our Island has been ranked the #1 Island in North America by Conde Nast, yet as of January 11, 2021, tourists cannot get here via air.
Another key economic driver of our island that depends on our air access is Cape Breton University. Our University has grown substantially since 2018, welcoming students from more than 50 countries. These students have contributed to reversing the population decline of our region for the first time in more than 20 years and international students have injected more than $165 million dollars annually back into our local economy. An incredible economic achievement for Cape Breton, but without our airport, our University cannot sustain or grow.
Furthermore, here in Cape Breton we currently have a commitment of more than $1.5 billion dollars of public sector investment in our region over the next 7-10 years, which has already begun to have significant economic spin-offs with investments from the private sector. We now have global investors interested in our region, but without air service, they will be forced to choose elsewhere for investment and development.
These are just a few of many examples that illustrate how losing our regional commercial air service indefinitely would devastate our community and halt our progress. Losing our airport will have both immediate and long-lasting damaging impacts that will threaten our island’s survival.
We need your help. Please have your voice heard and show your support. Sign and share the petition today to help us save our airport.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Yurchesyn
CEO, Cape Breton Regional Chamber of Commerce
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