Traffic Up 16% During First Six Months

July 23, 2004

Passenger traffic at the Deer Lake Regional Airport during the first six (6) months of 2004 has increased 16% over the same period in 2003. The statistics to the end of June this year indicate that 87,656 enplaning/deplaning passengers traveled through the Airport as compared to 75,257 passengers reported in the previous year.

The figures for June of this year of 17,934 passengers also represents an increase of 16% over June of 2003. The Airport has recorded an increase in passenger volumes for each of the six months to date in 2004. The travel statistics for 2003 of 171,634 represented the highest ever passenger volumes recorded at Deer Lake Regional Airport.

Carl Stratton, Chairman of the Airport Authority, stated that the current traffic levels are outpacing last year’s record numbers. “These stats are even more significant when you consider that last year was the best ever in the history of the Airport,” said Stratton. “If this trend continues for the remainder of 2004, we will exceed last year’s record levels by a healthy margin,” added Stratton.

The Airport Manager, Jamie Schwartz, suggested that the current airline capacity has contributed to the recent growth. “The Airport requires a considerable amount of capacity to effectively stimulate and grow the market,” said Schwartz. “We are fortunate to have four different airlines providing an extensive schedule and competitive service to three route networks from Deer Lake. This level of capacity, combined with very attractive airfares, provides the traveling public with a quality, affordable and choice of service to meet their personal needs,” added Schwartz.

The Deer Lake Regional Airport now serves Western Newfoundland with twenty-three regularly scheduled passenger flights each day to destinations including St. John’s, Goose Bay, Wabush, and Halifax with connections worldwide. A total of four different airlines; Air Canada Jazz, Air Labrador, CanJet Airlines and Provincial Airlines, now offer a regular service to and from Deer Lake. The Deer Lake Regional Airport is one of only a few remaining airports in Canada that does not collect or charge an airport improvement or passenger facilitation fee.