Air Inuit makes move towards an all Dash-8 fleet

Bye-bye to Twin Otters and 748s: Air Inuit moves towards the Nunavik-wide use of Dash 8-300 series aircraft, like this one at Kuujjuaq’s airport. (PHOTO BY SARAH ROGERS)

KANGIQSUALUJJUAQ – Nunavimmiut should see more Dash-8 aircraft in the skies this year.

That’s because Air Inuit plans to phase out its remaining HS 748 airplanes in favour of larger and more fuel efficient Dash-8s.

Some of the airline’s HS 748s will be decommissioned or sold.

Delegates at Makivik Corp.’s annual general meeting called for larger aircraft and more frequent scheduled flights by the Makivik-owned airline, when they met in Kangiqsualujjuaq last week.

The global recession has had an impact on the airline’s bottom line, managers said in a presentation to the AGM.

But business is on the rise and expected to improve through 2010, they said.

To date this year, Air Inuit said it has received calls to contract work rather than to cancel work, which was often the case in 2009.

In 2010 Air Inuit plans to:

• use a Dash 8-100 instead of a Twin Otter in Kuujjuaq for scheduled flights along the lower Ungava coast (Aupaluk, Tasiujaq and Kangiqsualujjuaq);

• increase Umiujaq’s three weekly flights to Umiujaq to seven, or one per day;

• fly the route between Kuujjuaq and Puvirnituq six days a week, with the addition of a Sunday flight;

• review airfare and the fees the company charges for excess baggage;

• use Dash-8s to run flights to Thunder Bay for the Gold Corp. mining company;

• lobby the Quebec government for assistance in building a major office, warehouse and hangar complex in Montreal.

The company expects to identify a location to construct a $35 million dollar building sometime this summer.

Air Inuit has also acquired 48 per cent of the helicopter company InnuKopters Inc., while its Innu ownership maintains at 51 per cent.

Air Inuit said it purchased the share so it would have access to helicopters for use in future mineral exploration in the region.

Although some Makivik delegates requested that freezers be built at community airports for the transport of country foods, the company said there isn’t enough space in every airport.

And Air Inuit does not want to be held liable for breakdowns that could cause food to spoil, a company representative said.