Image Credit: CFJC Today/Adam Donnelly

By Adam Donnelly

PANDEMIC TRAVEL

Despite dismal passenger numbers, Kamloops Airport focused on keeping travellers safe

Oct 23, 2020 | 3:11 PM

KAMLOOPS — While some industries have started to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the travel industry continues to suffer. Last week, WestJet announced plans to reduce and even suspend service to many destinations in Atlantic Canada. With passenger numbers down significantly at Fulton Field, CFJC Today went to the airport to ask if we could expect to see similar service reductions in western Canada.

When the snow starts to fly, people usually start thinking about their next vacation. Whether that’s to a ski hill or a tropical destination, COVID-19 has likely put a stop to many people hopping a flight this year.

“It’s disconcerting to see the recovery as slow as it is,” Ed Ratuski, Managing Director of the Kamloops Airport, explains. “We were expecting to see about 60 per cent of the passenger numbers right now, but the airline industry and the travel restrictions are definitely hampering that recovery.”

The airport released passenger numbers for the third quarter of 2020 on October 20. Compared to 2019, those numbers are bleak. From July through September of this year, YKA welcomed 14,233 travellers through its doors. That’s compared to over 84,000 passengers over the same period in 2019. It’s a drop of more than 83 per cent. Despite the drop, Ratuski is confident the airlines serving Kamloops won’t suspend any routes.

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“The airlines are adjusting their models constantly during this crisis,” Ratuski says. “They’re responding accordingly depending on what the restrictions are. So they’re pulling back staff and equipment, based on the travel needs.”

Kamloops Mayor Ken Christian is also President of the Airport Authority. He says the lack of passenger volume at YKA won’t create additional costs for the city. However, it will delay any future improvements at Fulton Field.

“We’re just going to have to defer some equipment purchases and those kinds of things down the road,” Christian says. “This is no different than any other airport in Canada, frankly.”

With fewer passengers passing through the terminal, many of the regular amenities have been shuttered. Ratuski says that’s just part of the plan to reduce costs during the pandemic.

“We’ve taken some pretty severe measures in terms of our own cost reductions,’ Ratuski says. “Our main priority is to keep the airport safe and secure during the pandemic.”