Rankin Inlet’s new airport terminal to open in April
Project has been delayed, but first phase is nearly complete, transportation and infrastructure minister says
The old Rankin Inlet airport terminal, seen here, is set to be demolished after the summer thaw to make way for Phase 2 of the terminal upgrade project, says Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure George Hickes. (File Photo)
The first part of Rankin Inlet’s new airport terminal will open at the end of April, says Nunavut’s transportation minister.
“We expect to have interim occupancy of Phase 1 of the new terminal by the end of the month, and final occupancy by the end of April 2026,” George Hickes, the transportation and infrastructure minister, told the legislative assembly March 13.
When completed, the 2,650-square-metre terminal will have a capacity of up to 508 passengers at a total cost of $85 million. The project received $63.5 million from the federal government while the Government of Nunavut covered the remaining $21.5 million.
Hickes said the project is “well past the halfway mark,” adding the “most complex building elements” have been completed. Once the ground thaws in the summer, the old terminal will be demolished and work will begin on the heating system for Phase 2.
The shell of the building for Phase 2 should be in place by the fall, allowing interior work to begin, Hickes said. Full completion, including Phase 2, is scheduled for April 2028.
When the new terminal goes into use at the end of April, it will “make a difference in [mobility for the] region and all of Nunavut,” said Alexander Sammurtok, the MLA for Rankin Inlet North-Chesterfield Inlet.
The Rankin Inlet airport is one of six new airport terminal projects in Nunavut.
In November 2024, the territory announced plans for new terminals in Chesterfield Inlet, Naujaat, Whale Cove, Kugluktuk and Kimmirut, along with the much larger Rankin Inlet project. The total cost for those five projects was $75.5 million. Kugluktuk was the last of those to be completed, in June 2025.
The project to build new terminals across the territory began in 2020 and was funded by the federal government and the Government of Nunavut.
Over the years, there were delays caused by supply issues with some building components.
Nunavut’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure did not respond to a request for comment about progress on the terminal in time in time for publication.
Neither Hickes nor Rankin Inlet South MLA Annie Tattuinee responded to a request for comment.
Not bad I guess for a project originally scheduled to open in 2023…
I’m curious… with this new airport, what are the chances of this opening up new direct flights to the Kitikmeot region? Seems so strange to me that to fly to that region of Nunavut, you need to overnight in the NWT. Would be nice if you could travel to all communities in Nunavut without needing to leave Nunavut (hopefully we can get a direct Sanikiluaq flight again too one day!)