FRANK GALE
THE WESTERN STAR
STEPHENVILLE, N.L. — Getting Stephenville airport back on track is Mayor Tom Rose's biggest file for 2020.
Provincial Airlines has said it will no longer offer flights to and from St. John’s as of Jan. 16.
Stephenville town council, which has been supporting the airport through grants for years, has asked Stephenville Airport Corporation to produce a new business plan.
Coun. Mark Felix said council can no longer support the airport the way it has been without driving itself further in debt. He said support must be limited.
Rose said the airport needs leaders at all political levels to start speaking up and show the valuable asset support. The town has budgeted conditional support, limited to about $200,000 a year, pending a new business plan and restructuring.
Rose heads up the Route Development Committee aimed at trying to make the airport a success.
He said it will take leadership and a champion to make continued operation happen.
“We’re looking for two proposals to come forward, one from an airline and the other from an aviation expansion company for the management and expansion of the airport,” Rose said.
He would not identify them yet, but he believes both will help get the airport back on track.
“We (route development committee) will be working to try and ensure that the airport continues to operate,” Rose said.
Meanwhile, Joe Sheen, chairman of the Stephenville Airport Corporation, said his committee is meeting to make changes and modifications to Stephenville airport's financial plan.
He said the corporation is still trying to get provincial government support but wants more answers from cabinet before they complete the document.
“There’s a lot at stake here and the next little while is critical in our go-forward plans,” Sheen said.
In terms of future operations, he noted Sunwing has already said it will tentatively return to regular flights in the spring and throughout the summer months.
Sheen said tentative proposals for the return of the Porter Airlines schedule are actively being discussed, and the corporation is in discussion with PAL Airlines to see if it might continue or return its schedule.
The corporation hopes discussions with the provincial cabinet will result in more interest at that level since Stephenville airport is very important to the aviation industry.
In an emailed reply to a request for comment, Porter Airlines told The Western Star the company is in discussions with the airport about details of when it will begin its 2020 service in Stephenville this spring.
Stephen Dinn, PAL Airlines vice president of business development, said in an emailed response it has remained in contact with Stephenville Airport Corporation officials. However, as previously announced, he said the airline’s last day of service into Stephenville airport was Jan. 16.
A response from Sunwing to a request for details on its plans for the coming year was not received as of deadline.