More flights for Baffin communities

This week, First Air took its new ATR 42-300 turboprop to Clyde River and Iqaluit where it invited members of the public to check out the faster, brighter, roomier aircraft.

The ATR 42-300s, which can carry a combination of passengers and cargo and land on ice or gravel runways, replace the aging fleet of 748s.

The new planes will fly six times a week to Clyde River and Pond Inlet starting on Nov. 15 and to Hall Beach and Igloolik starting early in 2005, upping the number of weekly connections through to Ottawa from the communities from 18 to 28.

But the new planes won’t be able to land in Panniqtuuq until an estimated $27 million of work is done to extend its cramped runway.