BATTLES LINES OVER AIRPORT
Mayor, MP push to save air-traffic control in city
Mayor Drew Dilkens is ratcheting up the fight to save Windsor's air-traffic control tower from the chopping block and prevent the “widespread economic damage” that would follow.
He has penned letters to Transport Minister Marc Garneau, Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Navdeep Bains and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, urging them to “backtrack on this really poor decision” to put Windsor on the list of potential cuts.
“We are not going to sit back and let this happen,” said Dilkens. “This is going to be a fight, and if you want a fight you've got one. We look at the numbers here in the community, we're barely coming out of the effects of the recession a decade ago.
“Business leaders are already calling us to advise that if the federal government continues with the study, it really sends the signal that they're not expecting Windsor to rebound from the pandemic.”
There has been boisterous opposition from pilots, business leaders, local politicians and others after Windsor was recently added to a list of airports under review.
NAV Canada, the independent privately run company that owns and operates the country's civil air navigation system, is considering shutting down Windsor International Airport's air-traffic control tower.
Spokesman Brian Boudreau said Nav Canada is conducting aeronautical studies across Canada to review operations and services. The process includes “full consultation” with those affected by any changes, he said.
“NAV Canada's decision to pursue a review of its services is first and foremost driven by air-traffic activity,” said Boudreau. “Windsor was identified for review as a result of long-term air-traffic levels, including prior to the pandemic. When making decisions, we always take a long-term view to uphold the highest standards in safety.”
He added that any service changes resulting from the studies must be submitted to Transport Canada.
“Prior to any implementation of service level changes by NAV Canada, Transport Canada must ensure that any reduction or termination of service proposed maintains rigorous aviation safety standards,” said Allison St. Jean, Garneau's press secretary. “Transport Canada will work closely with NAV Canada to ensure the safety of air transportation in Canada as NAV Canada works to implement the proposed changes.”
MP Irek Kusmierczyk (L—windsor-tecumseh) said Friday that Transport Canada would assess Nav Canada's recommendations based solely on safety.
But he also stressed that he is strongly opposed to removing the tower for both safety and economic reasons. Kusmierczyk said he has spoken with NAV Canada officials and has a call scheduled with Garneau next week to discuss the airport.
“I want my position to be clear, which is I oppose any reduction of the level of service of the air tower,” said Kusmierczyk.
A spokesman for Bains responded to a request for comment around 5 p.m. Friday, but did not refer to Windsor, its airport or the NAV Canada issue.
Riyadh Nazerally instead touted investments announced in the government's fall economic statement for a new “Regional Air Transportation Initiative.”
“The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that Canada's air sector continues to connect
Canadians and Canadian marketplaces, as part of a dynamic aerospace industry,” Nazerally said in an email.
With concerns about safety in a crowded airspace that includes two huge Detroit airports already well documented, Dilkens' letters to the feds focused on the economic impacts of taking away the tower.
He said shuttering the tower would negate millions of dollars in government investments at the airport. Among them is $12 million for the Institute of Border Logistics and Security, $4 million to build a maintenance, repair and overhaul facility, and the 2017 announcement of a new foreign trade zone in Windsor-essex.
“It makes no sense from any business perspective, economic development perspective,” said Dilkens. “It probably doesn't make sense from the government's perspective at the federal level. And certainly it would just be bad for business here. It would absolutely cut us off at the knees.”