The Mascouche airport, a key General Aviation
airport in the Montreal area faces closure.
COPA fired off a couple of letters to Transport Minister David Collenette and M.
Richard Marcotte, maire de Mascouche urging them to reconsider closing the
airport and to closely look at the benefits the airport brings to the community.
In his letter to M.Richard Marcotte COPA President Kevin Psutka stated. .
Many people do not understand the contribution of small airports to the national
economy. Apart from the obvious, such as the 75 jobs at your airport, Mascouche
is a very important training airport for future airline pilots.
Transport Canada statistics indicate that Mascouche is one of the busiest
airports in the Montreal area. This is almost entirely due to flight training.
Many pilots train here because of the convenience of the location, both in terms
of commuting to the airport and proximity of training areas. There are also
several support businesses there and aircraft owners depend on them for the
maintenance of safety standards.
I understand that Transport Canada funding was awarded to Mascouche in 1991 for
airport improvements and that a stipulation for receiving the money was that the
airport must remain an airport until 2011. I wonder what your plans are to deal
with this commitment and I have a suggestion.
If your mind is made up that Mascouche must close, I strongly urge you to
consider an alternative, nearby location to establish another airport, and open
that airport prior to closing Mascouche. You could then possibly convince the
federal government to forgive you of your obligation regarding the funding.
The coming year marks the 100th anniversary of powered flight and there will be
many celebrations in recognition of the important role that aviation has and
will have in the development of this country. Mascouche Airport serves a large
population base in east Montreal. I urge you to contribute to rather than
destroy this proud and important heritage.
COPA President Kevin Psutka forwarded the above comments to Transport Minister
David Collenette and further wrote:
I am writing to inform you of yet another important small airport that is about
to close. As I firmly believe that the National Airport’s Policy is jeopardizing
the health of our national air transportation infrastructure, I feel compelled
to point out to you any major closures to illustrate my concerns.
In this case, Mascouche Airport serves a large population base and provides a
considerable amount of pilot training for future airline pilots. Unfortunately,
the municipality does not realize the value of the airport, in terms of direct
and indirect benefits that it brings, and is focusing only on the airport’s
ability to stand alone, unlike all other facets of the community’s
transportation infrastructure that are supported by the taxpayers.
Other airports in the vicinity are experiencing similar problems. Beloil, which
is home to several aircraft, flight training and aircraft maintenance
businesses, is embroiled in controversy from “not-in-my-backyard” residents who
want it closed and I understand that it is very close to a turning point there.
If both of these airports close, the Montreal area will lose two very busy
airports on the east end, which will either put pressure on other smaller, less
capable airports or, more likely, result in the disappearance of the activity
all together. You should care about this.
One important consideration for Mascouche. I understand that the airport
received approximately $400,000 from Transport Canada in 1991 for improvements
and that it is required to remain in operation until 2011. If the airport
closes, I would like confirmation from you that the funding will be returned to
the government.